November 22, 2012 | Thanksgiving Day Mass

Thanksgiving Day Mass
Lectionary: 943

Reading 1 from the Holy Book of Sirach
Sir 50:22-24

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!May he grant you joy of heartand may peace abide among you;May his goodness toward us endure in Israelto deliver us in our days.

The Book of Sirach is a beautiful which is written much like the Proverbs of Solomon.  It teaches us much wisdom.  And this is probably the greatest wisdom of all.  In everything give praise and glory to God.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 145:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9, 10-11

R. (see 1) I will praise your name for ever, Lord.

Every day will I bless you,
and I will praise your name forever and ever.
Great is the LORD and highly to be praised;
his greatness is unsearchable.

R. I will praise your name for ever, Lord.

Generation after generation praises your works
and proclaims your might.
They speak of the splendor of your glorious majesty
and tell of your wondrous works.

R. I will praise your name for ever, Lord.

They discourse of the power of your terrible deeds
and declare your greatness.
They publish the fame of your abundant goodness
and joyfully sing of your justice.

R. I will praise your name for ever, Lord.

The LORD is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and of great kindness.
The LORD is good to all
and compassionate toward all his works.

R. I will praise your name for ever, Lord.

Let all your works give you thanks, O LORD,
and let your faithful ones bless you.
Let them discourse of the glory of your Kingdom
and speak of your might.

R. I will praise your name for ever, Lord

Folks, we in America have much for which we should be thankful to God.  Let us raise our voices in praise of God almighty, every moment of everyday.

Hebrews 13:15
King James Version (KJV)
15 By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.

Reading 2 from the first letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians
1 Cor 1:3-9

Brothers and sisters:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ.

St. Paul bestows his blessing upon the Corinthians.

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 spiritual gift
as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.

He thanks God for all the blessings He has bestowed upon the Corinthians in the name of Jesus Christ.  As they are baptized, they are therefore "in Him".  And by their Baptism and the Sacrametns, they are enriched with the knowledge to express their faith in Christ as they await the Day of Judgement.

He will keep you firm to the end,
irreproachable on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
God is faithful,
and by him you were called to fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

And he assures them that Christ will bring to completion the work which He has begun in them:

Philippians 1:6
King James Version (KJV)
6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke
Lk 17:11-19

As Jesus continued his journey to Jerusalem,
he traveled through Samaria and Galilee.
As he was entering a village, ten persons with leprosy met him.

As Jesus was traveling, when He met ten lepers.

They stood at a distance from him and raised their voices, saying,
"Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!"

Lepers were not permitted to come close to anyone.  So they stood away from Christ and called out, "Lord Jesus, have mercy on us!"

And when he saw them, he said,
"Go show yourselves to the priests."

And Jesus replied, "Go show yourselves to the priests."  The law of Moses required that any who had been diagnosed with leprosy and then believed to be cured, must be examined by a priest.

As they were going they were cleansed.
And one of them, realizing he had been healed,
returned, glorifying God in a loud voice;
and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him.

All ten were cured immediately and one of them realized what had happened.  He immediately turned around and he gave glory to God and thanked  Jesus.

He was a Samaritan.
Jesus said in reply,
"Ten were cleansed, were they not?
Where are the other nine?
Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?"
Then he said to him, "Stand up and go;
your faith has saved you."

Jesus said, "Ten were cured, but only the foreigner returned and gave thanks to God."  Then He turned to the former leper and said, "Stand up and go, because of your faith, you have been saved."

Sincerely,

De Maria