"Dedicate Yourselves to Thanksgiving"

A short thought about the Pauline year, and his admonishment to "dedicate yourselves to Thanksgiving."

Perhaps we can learn from not only the ancient Hebrews, but the Native Americans as well. The Hebrews had their own Thanksgiving festival. The Native Americans had such a feast after each harvest, which meant they certainly had more than one celebration.

Of all the religious orders in our church, only one is actually dedicated from its foundation to the practice of Thanksgiving. They are the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration, who have been made famous by Mother Angelica, the TV nun.

We are such children when it comes to receiving gifts--and being thankful for them. We should take more responsibility for offering thanks, and make it a daily practice, particularly when blessing our meals.

Our loving God is a generous God. We are the ones who fall on our faces when dealing with our gifts. We should not only offer more Thanksgiving, but also ask for the graces of better stewardship of such gifts. And I'm especially praying for that gift for the Obama administration.

Blessings,
Gemma