“They don’t have to leave,” answered Jesus. “You yourselves give them something to eat!” Matthew 14:16
It has always fascinated me that the central act of Christian worship has, traditionally, been called the EUCHARIST and Eucharist is a Greek word derived from the noun EURCHARISTIA which means gratitude. Could it be that Christians can find in this act of worship a pattern and model for our lives, not just during the Thanksgiving holidays but throughout the year? If you consider the shape and the movement of the Eucharistic liturgy you discover that the central elements involve the bringing to the table of the gifts of bread and wine and the offering of those gifts to God in a prayer of blessing followed by the redistribution of those gifts to God's people. As we think about Thanksgiving and the challenging call to exercise our faith in generous Christian stewardship, we might reflect on the action of the Eucharist meal as an outline of our life in the faith. We offer what we have to God (the ordinary gifts of time, talent and treasure...gifts that God has blessed us with), and God takes these things and transforms them into "Visible" words and acts of grace which bless and benefit the spiritual life of the world.
This is and has always been the way in which God continues to be active and present in the world. The wonderful story of the multiplication of the loaves and fish, a story which appears six times in the Gospels (twice in Matthew and Mark and once in Luke and John) and is the only miracle of Jesus to appear in all four of the New Testament Gospels, teaches that God does not miraculously use what is not available to meet the needs of the world (Jesus did not create new bread and new fish) instead, God naturally uses inadequate means which are available (five loaves of bread and two dried fish, or seven loaves of bread and some fish in the feeding of the 4000 in Matthew 15) to meet the needs the people. The good news is that God will use what his disciples give him, no matter how seemingly insignificant that offering might be, and God will use what we give to bring life (physical and spiritual life) to the world. And if you think about it, that is exactly the rhythm of the Eucharist. May God grant us, during this season of Giving Thanks and as members of the parish called upon to make responsible decisions regarding our personal stewardship for 1996, the grace and the courage to offer what we have to God and for the sake of the world.
Faithfully,
The Rev. David L. Snyder, Pastor (written in Jan. 1996)