The Pastor's Corner

by Fr. Bob Hoffman

As we prepare to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday next week, I wanted to make sure that we included a few things on our list for which we give thanks.

First, I wanted to remind us that Thanksgiving is meaningless without belief in God. If we are not giving thanks to God, then to whom are we giving thanks?

Second, I wanted to point out that the Greek word for Thanksgiving is Eucharist. So, the Mass is a celebration of thanksgiving (as one dimension of what it is). In fact, we could argue that the first Thanksgiving in this country was not the Pilgrims in 1621, but the Spanish celebrating Mass in Saint Augustine in 1565.

Now, about that list. We know that God is the primary cause of all good things. We operate as secondary causes. We are tools or instruments in God’s hands. We know that God is the primary cause of our very existence. So, we give thanks to God for our own life. And for the lives of those around us.

We live in a country that enjoys freedoms, most notably a level of freedom of worship, not found in many other countries. So, we give thanks for those freedoms that we enjoy.

While some of us struggle financially, we still enjoy a level of prosperity higher than many others in the world. So, we give thanks for that.

Finally, we can never forget the sacrifice that Jesus Christ made for our redemption. And so, we most definitely give thanks for that.

Enjoy the week with your families.