Table of Plenty

Blame it on that time of the year. With Thanksgiving fast approaching, food items and recipes might consume our thoughts these days. Menus, table decorations, seating arrangements and much more vie for mind space. This is especially true if you are hosting a gathering, but also if you are an invited guest. Is this the year to try that new stuffing or dessert recipe or do you stick with those tried-and-true dishes? What special dishes are you known for? What food item do others request that you bring to a family gathering or church potluck?

Along with the usual Thanksgiving Day considerations, now would be a suitable time to ask a different question. What is my God-given specialty? What spiritual food do I bring with me to share wherever I go? What do I bring to the table of the altar whenever I attend Mass? What do I lay at the foot of the cross in prayer? Worries and concerns, hopes, and petitions are frequent side dishes. And God welcomes and hears all these things. However, when was the last time I stopped to consider what God would like me to bring to His feast? What is His favorite special dish? It is a simple one. We are the specialty he loves most – each one of us. Why do I find this a hard dish to provide?

It is not an easy recipe to follow even though the ingredients are straightforward. Often, we want to give God only what we think is right and fitting: the perfectly browned turkey and beautifully baked pie---the good stuff and not those burnt edges. I believe God’s reply to that attitude would be, “I created you out of love, to be love. The rest is just window dressing. Please take your seat at the table and gratefully join Me in the feast I have provided. You are my most favorite dish.” 

While Thanksgiving can turn into feasting on too much food, the Eucharist is our great and perfectly prepared feast of love, uniting heaven and earth. Partaking in the Eucharistic Feast is not reserved for special holidays only and specifically invited guests. It is available to all believers, as often as Mass schedules allow.

I am abundantly blessed and grateful for the opportunity to gather at table with family and friends this Thanksgiving. I am eternally blessed to frequently join with fellow believers at the altar table to partake in the Sacrament of Thanksgiving, the Eucharist.

Feast and be blessed this Thanksgiving.