Word to the Wise
Thursday, November 25, 2021 -
[Sirach 50:22-24; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Luke 17:11-19]And now, bless the God of all, who has done wondrous things on earth; who fosters people's growth from their mother's womb and fashions them according to his will! [Sirach] I give thanks to my God always on your account for the grace of God bestowed on you in Christ Jesus, that in him you were enriched in every way, with all discourse and all knowledge, as the testimony to Christ was confirmed among you, so that you are not lacking in any s[iritual gift as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. [1 Corinthians] "Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine? Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?" [Luke]
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2021 THANKSGIVING DAY, U.S.A.
[Sirach 50:22-24; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Luke 17:11-19. These scriptures may vary from place to place since there are multiple options. I am using the ones featured in the daily misalet LIVING WITH CHRIST.]
And now, bless the God of all, who has done wondrous things on earth; who fosters people's growth from their mother's womb and fashions them according to his will! [Sirach]
I give thanks to my God always on your account for the grace of God bestowed on you in Christ Jesus, that in him you were enriched in every way, with all discourse and all knowledge, as the testimony to Christ was confirmed among you, so that you are not lacking in any s[iritual gift as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. [1 Corinthians]
"Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine? Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?" [Luke]
Around many tables in the USA today, families and friends will be asking one another what each may be thankful for on this day in the year when we celebrate "thankfulness" or gratitude. I would not know where to begin. I celebrated my 50th anniversary of ordination to priesthood this year, which is certainly something I am grateful for. But it is not just the years but the people in those years that I am most grateful for. At a recent celebration in Tucson, AZ, at the Catholic student center at the University of Arizona, where I was director 1977-80, most of the participants in the meal that followed the Mass were couples whose weddings I celebrated 40+ years earlier!!! But every assignment, especially to campus ministries, has brought the blessing of enduring friendships. It is for this blessing on every Thanksgiving Day, that I am most grateful. I can especially see in these friends, whom I met when they were students, the growth in Christ that St. Paul speaks of in 1 Corinthians.
The Samaritan leper in today's gospel, who realizes that something more than a cure has happened to him, reminds me that each friend's love points to a greater love. It is not just for favors received that I should be grateful. I can never take this blessing for granted. It is God's providence that has brought divine love to me through the love of friends. In this, God has "fostered my growth and fashioned me" into the minister that I have tried to be, as the Book of Sirach proclaims.
These blessings of love continue in the students here at Texas Tech University, who join the other friends in my life. To all of you and them I offer my deepest gratitude for your ministry to me and say "Thanks!" to the "God of all, who has done wondrous things on earth," [Sirach] AMEN