The Real First Thanksgiving and What it Means for us Today.

The Rev. John R. West, Jr.

November 26, 2014

Thanksgiving is an important time and event in the life of our nation. Unfortunately it didn’t start off as one might expect. I remember growing up with all the Norman Rockwell type of pictures of the wife of the family serving a delicious looking turkey to her family. I also remember pictures of the pilgrims sitting side by side with the Native American people sharing in a gorgeous looking meal, largely provided by the Native Americans. Unfortunately my childhood perceptions of Thanksgiving were shattered by the reality of the events that actually took place.

The settlers of that day whether at Plymouth Rock or else where in the new world actually slaughtered the Native Americans in the name of God, fertile land and a selfish desire to obtain as much territory as possible. So the Norman Rockwell paintings are smashed to bits and untrue. I find it amazing how human nature has the tendency to rewrite history in a manner that makes us feel less guilty, look better in the eyes of the world and ignore the true facts. 

A whole people were wiped out systematically as the English, Spanish and Portuguese continued to settle the new world. What good could possibly come out of these heinous actions? How can we possibly be grateful for the bountiful resources we have at the expense of the Native Americans? Where is the real Thanksgiving in our ancestor’s actions of brutal and selfish force?

As terrible as this early period of settlement in the New World was for the Native Americans we must look for the grace of God, a God whose name was unfortunately used in the systematic exploitation and genocide of so many innocent indigenous people. While this was certainly a black and dark time in the colonization of North America as well as else where, and one that I am adamantly opposed and embarrassed, today in this post modern era knowledge and truthfulness have changed our Thanksgiving to a time of genuine remembrance and gratitude.

Today we come together in an atmosphere of love, thanksgiving and gratitude for the bountiful love and blessings God has bestowed upon us and those we love. While life may be difficult for each of us though out the year, we truly have so much to be thankful for in life.

First of all we have acknowledged the brutal and wretched actions of our ancestors, and while we can’t go back in time to change those actions, we have apologized in many ways to our brothers and sisters who are Native American. We have even made November Native American month in order to honor these beautiful people. Of course this is only a scratch upon the surface of reconciliation for the terrible actions of our ancestors, but many of us, especially in the Church acknowledge the wrongdoing and seek to reconcile with our Native American sisters and brothers.

While turkey and all the fixings line many of our tables on Thanksgiving Day as we gather with family, there is another group of people that we seek to assist and provide subsistence. Those are the forgotten and people of the streets who are hopeless and options have seemly run out in the life. There are many shelters and places of safety that these people are able to seek shelter and eat a hot meal.

Despite all the negative connotations that are unfortunately associated with the early days of Thanksgiving, today it is about gathering with family and friends in our homes. Thanksgiving is about the remembrance of the bounty, in which God has provided us, and an attitude of sincere gratitude. Thanksgiving is about outreach to the poor and destitute of our cities and rural areas. Finally thanksgiving is about humbly seeking forgiveness and reconciliation with all those we hurt in the settlement of this country, especially the Native Americans. 

This year as we gather with family and friends to enjoy each other’s company and come together in gratitude and thankfulness for all the rich blessings God has bestowed upon us, I ask us to specifically pray for those who are hurt, destitute, resentful, angry, sick, diseased and abused. That is the true meaning behind Thanksgiving - reconciliation, gratitude and observance of God’s blessings along with outreach to those who are destitute and hopeless. I also pray that we will be united as one people under God, honoring one another and respecting each others heritage. 

Spirituality, A Real Workout

I have just recently begun to work out again. I am taking Cross Fit with my wife Sallie. I have not lifted any kind of weights for over three years. Getting back in that kind of shape is extremely difficult after such a long lay off. I have to gradually ease myself back into it. While I am sore all over, I enjoy the workout and the way it makes me feel afterwards. I ask myself why I ever quit!

Often in our spiritual lives we take time off, and it is extremely difficult to get back into rhythm and shape again. Prayer and growing spiritually is an ongoing effort that takes practice and commitment. When we get out of sorts it is hard to regain the proper motivation to get back in shape again. We have to be intentional about seeking God, and following through with our spiritual disciplines each day.

Spiritual discipline is a demanding work out to some degree. We are always striving to become better at communicating with God and living out our spiritual lives in everyday occurrences. Rather than lifting more weight to get into shape, we learn to dispose of some of the weight we all carry to grow deeper in our relationship with Christ and our neighbors. When we stop or become undisciplined in our prayer and church life our spiritual muscles become weaker and grow in atrophy. God calls us to a life of daily prayer and to live into our community of faith. By doing so we are much more prepared to face the world in which we live. Chrissies cease to overwhelm us, and our anxiety about life calms down. We live not just for ourselves, but also for the greater purpose of the Gospel.

I encourage us all to develop and stay with whatever spiritual discipline feeds our soul. By doing so our lives become much richer and we become better servants of Christ. The quality of our spirituality affects our whole being and the manner of life we live. Therefore it is important to take time for those things spiritual, and thus we find ourselves in excellent spiritual health.

When Life Seems Too Much To Handle

What happens when life seems just too much to handle, when we feel we are at that jumping off point? Life is certainly not easy. While it is a gift from God, because of the broken world we live, we still face a variety of challenges, sometimes on a daily basis. Often life doesn’t seem fair. Sometimes it is simply hard and seemly malicious. The challenges we face often appear insurmountable. But are they?

Certainly we are forced to make difficult decisions as well as take arduous actions. All too often we feel trapped and see no way forward. Unpleasantness and despair seem like our constant companions. Faith and hope are so distant that we can’t even imagine what life might be like with them as our rock and guide. God is a vague concept that perhaps once existed in our life, but now seems distant and abstract. This is a point in life in which we face the harsh crossroads of faith. Do we continue to believe in the benevolence of God, or do we search for the answers to our life’s problems elsewhere?

This is an important place in our life. Faith is the hard road, while the other path is much smoother and easier. With what do we fill that hole in our soul? The choice is ours to make, but deep down in our hearts if we have had any kind of relationship with God, we know the answer. The easy path leads us into all kinds of dysfunction and unhealthy lifestyles, while the path of faith leads us through trial and tribulation, but ultimately to a healthier and stronger relationship with God.

So what happens when our faith has run dry? Do we automatically take the path of least resistance or do we trust in the God that we no longer believe and take the path less travelled. The emptiness in our lives demands to be filled and the path of least resistance offers us all sorts of unhealthy ways. But they are short lived and soon become a burden themselves adding to the ones that we already carry.

The path of faith is the correct choice. Even though we feel distant from God, perhaps even angry with God, in our hearts we know this is the route that will fill our souls with spiritual fortitude and grace. But pride sometimes won’t let us take the faith path. Our egos are fragile and easily hurt, thus we rebel against the God in which we no longer believe and strike out on our own, determined to find peace in our own way. Many have tried to carve their own path or take the easy route in order to fill their hearts with something, anything that will kill the pain in which we live and exist. We soon find that we are in more trouble than ever before. Our lives have become miserable, lost and full of anxiety. Alcohol and drugs no longer relieve our pain; promiscuous activity no longer fills our need for real love. Perhaps we have even turned to other religions that are incapable of filling our hollow hearts. It is then (if we are fortunate enough) that we lay aside our pride and ego and look to the true Living God for help.

Jesus reminds us that he is the way, the truth and the life. It is through him that we come to the Father. Christ welcomes back the lost and spiritual destitute. He embraces us even if we are still skeptical. His is the peace that passes all understanding and through that peace we find refuge and hope. We are redeemed and renewed by his body and blood. The gift of forgiveness is there for us to merely accept without any strings attached. Gradually our faith is renewed as we begin to relax and trust God again. That hole in our soul is filled with God’s grace and we come to believe in the same God we had forsaken.

Life is difficult enough in this broken world, but if we forsake our spiritual lives and practices it becomes much more difficult. Remember, faith is an action verb. It requires us to actively participate. To grow in faith and our relationship with God we can’t just sit there passively. If we do so many spiritual opportunities will pass us by, and we will not only remain in that same spiritual void, but actually regress as well. It is then that we come to that jumping off point. So exercise faith, even when it is trying and difficult. God is present and will ultimately reveal Gods self in our lives.

The Image of God

When we imagine the image of God what do we see? Do we see the grey headed old man with a long white beard sitting on God’s heavenly throne? Or is our image vague, almost misty and in the shadows? God gives us plenty of images throughout Scripture. While God is still a mystery we encounter God in many ways, through many of our senses.

We encounter God in Scripture in the burning bush as a fire that burns but doesn’t consume. We encounter God with our sense of smell through the rising of incense and the sawdust of carpentry. We encounter God in the mud and straw used to make bricks. We see God in Trinity at the Oaks of Mamre.  We see God in the heavens as Abram looks up at the billions of stars. The list goes on for quite a while.

But the question is how do we encounter God with our senses in everyday life? Through sight, smell, touch, hearing and taste God is present in our lives. We see God in the homeless and rejected outcast under the bridge. We smell God through the springtime flowers and plants. We touch God when we hold a child’s hand. We hear God as the wind blows through the trees on a fall morning. We taste God in the Holy Eucharist, in the breaking of the bread and consumption of the wine. In other words, God is all around us in so many ways.

Quite often we encounter the image of God in the mirror. Not that we are God, but we are each (both male and female) made in the image of God. Therefore we are innately good. The image that stares back at us is touched and blessed by the love of God through Christ Jesus the Son. Thus we delve into the Incarnation.

God is part of all things created, for he made them all. While we don’t know God’s name, except for what God told Moses, I Am, we are assured that the Incarnate God has touched everything upon the earth and heavens. We are a part of God’s great creation and divine plan of the universe.

So take heart and know that God surrounds us. God is not some aloof deity that sits on a throne and casts life into motion only to ignore it. God is active and ever changing, a part of all things and in all things, including each of us.

Traversing the Road to Emmaus

We have all been in a dark place at one point or another in our lives. A place where our faith fails us, and Christ seems aloof. Abandoned and forsaken we feel that huge hole in our spirits that nothing seems to fill. We are tempted by the Adversary to walk away from our faith and fill our lives with all kinds of sinful things; things that bring instant gratification, but never last. We curse the morning sun as it drags us into a new day. We are left helpless and hopeless, full of self-loathing and shame. Loneliness and despair are our only companions, continually knocking on the door of our hearts.

Perhaps we feel trapped in a rut and see no way out. Dirty and tired we raise our fists towards heaven in deep despair. This feels like another day of misery and dread. By all accounts life appears to have abandoned us, leaving us for dead. We beg Jesus to talk to us but there is seemly no response, as the sultry air from the east beats down upon our spirits.

This is what the travelers on the road to Emmaus must have felt. These two faithful disciples witnessed the death of their Lord, a man they had placed all of their hope and life’s commitment. Heads down, feeling confused and lost they surely must have felt a mixture of anger along with a genuine sense of loss.  Cut off from God or at least they thought, they felt deprived of the glory that they so believed and sought.

Yet quietly a stranger walked into their midst and told them everything concerning the Scriptures from the prophets until now. Their spirits filled with hope as this man discussed the promise of God’s grace along the way. Their hearts burned with a renewed fire the more he spoke, but it wasn’t until the breaking of the bread that they recognized their visitor. Jesus lived!

Jesus does live and he lives in our hearts. He promised to never forsake all who believe, and he is there even in the silence of our despair. Sometimes like the travelers on the road to Emmaus, we simply don’t recognize that we are in his presence.

Don’t give up hope. Don’t give into the lies of the Adversary, for Luke tells us that he is the father of all lies. Life is often difficult, and as we traverse its path we are going to encounter hardships and disappointments, but Christ is there in the midst of them. Can we slow down long enough to recognize him? Can we quiet our hearts and minds so that we can listen and hear his voice?

Remember this: No one, absolutely no one is beyond the grasp of Christ’s grace. Even though we may feel lonely and deserted on occasions, Jesus is that stranger walking along beside us telling us everything we have ever done. He is that traveler who reminds us that we are forgiven for our sins. He is that wayfarer that consistently reminds us that life does have meaning and purpose. For life is a precious gift from God, even in the difficult times.

Evangelism, a Dreaded Word Amongst Christians!

Why Christianity? Why do we choose to the Christian faith when there are so many more religions? Is it because we were simply born into a Christian household and automatically accept the Christian tradition and beliefs? Or are we one of those rare people who have explored and searched different religions only to find the values and teachings of Christianity exactly what we need to feed our spiritual lives?

I recently had a conversation with a young man who was raised in the Christian tradition, yet had valid questions on why he should remain a Christian. This particular young man found the Mormon Church appealing, meeting his spiritual needs. While I completely disagreed with his argument to convert to Mormonism, he had obviously done his research and was determined to convert to this religion. As the polemic went on, it became clear that nothing I said, no matter how convincing was going to change his mind. He was a thoughtful young man who was in search of a God that fed his soul in the manner he saw fit.

So what is it about Christianity that attracts people? Perhaps it is grace, freely given yet can’t be earned. Perhaps it is the teachings of Jesus that transcend our daily lives and provide us with a theology of hope. Or perhaps it is the atonement of our sins through Christ’s death and resurrection. There are many reasons why people chose to become Christian’s, these are only a few examples.

The problem today is that we live in a pluralistic world that teaches one God, many paths. As Christians we believe that we are on the right path, although some of our brothers and sisters utilize this pluralistic outlook. This only causes confusion and waters down our faith. Christ said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father accept by me.” As Christian’s we are almost embarrassed by this claim, yet other religions are set in their beliefs. They are not embarrassed to discuss and defend what they believe. Why then do we as Christian’s struggle to defend our faith? Many people choose to walk in the light of Christ yet when it comes to defending the faith and actually evangelizing the Word, we become deafly silent.

What is it then that draws people to Christianity? The mainstream religions certainly do not evangelize very well. They are almost frightened of the word, evangelism. While other religions devoutly defend their beliefs we seem much more hesitant. I learned that during my conversation with the young man determined to convert to Mormonism. It is a frightening experience to defend ones faith and argue our points. It is most uncomfortable and almost as if we don’t wish to push our faith on anyone else. Is this what Jesus taught us to do? No, absolutely not. Christ commissioned his disciples to “go into the world and proclaim the faith to all nations.” Yet somehow in this post-modern age we as Christian’s have forgotten the significance of evangelism. We shy away from it and recoil from the word as if it were a hot, burning fire.  No wonder we lose people to other religions.

We have much to teach that is good and life saving. We are unique in the fact that we have a God who was willing to die for our sins and experience human suffering along the way. We have the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that is absolutely free. So why then are we so hesitant to defend our faith? After all this is good news!

In their defense there are some Christian denominations that are very good at spreading God’s Word to others and they have a high conversion rate. However the Episcopal Church seems to lag behind on this evangelical front. Many of us are taught that if we simply build the church, then people will mysteriously come.

My conversation with the young man converting to Mormonism made me acutely aware that we as a denomination need to embrace evangelism and boldly proclaim Christ. I for one am guilty of the old school mentality and realize we must change if we want not only my parishes to grow, but the Episcopal Church as a whole as well. We must change for the sake of Christianity as a whole.