Giving Thanks in Troubled Times

By CHERI RAE

Our community has had more than its share of traumatic events in the past year—natural disasters and violence in the streets, fears and…yet we remain a community, bonded in common experience, and strong will to move forward peacefully, together.

Here is a collection of perspectives from local spiritual leaders who offer words of wisdom and comfort to ponder in the face of loss and in the blessings of Thanksgiving.

The staff of The Daily Sound wishes every reader a meaningful Thanksgiving Day.

People often describe thanksgiving as having an “attitude of gratitude.”  It is not so much a day of the year but a choice of the mind.  Every person has a choice about where to focus our thoughts.  If we think mostly on those things which are painful and disappointing, we can easily become cynical and ungrateful.  But if we focus our thoughts on all the things that are true and honest, just and pure, beautiful and respected - if we think about the good things which bring virtue to our behaviors and praise to people’s lips, then we will live in a continual place of Thanksgiving.  May everyone have a THANKFUL day and life with all the health and joy such a choice provides.

                                                 --Denny Wayman, Pastor of the Free Methodist Church

Be kinder than necessary for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.

                                  --Rev. Maurice O’Mahony, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church

In every moment of our lives, we are given a choice.  How shall we regard this world in which we live? Is it good, or not?  Is there hope for the future, or not?  Is this world full of beauty, life, blessing and love; or is it cold and heartless?  In every moment, it is one or the other.  And how we regard it is up to us.  With our eyes, with our hearts and with our hands, we create the world; and especially when we give thanks.

                                     --Rabbi Steve Cohen, Temple B’nai B’rith

Once again Thanksgiving Day approaches, giving us the opportunity to spread festive joy in our homes, experience the happiness that appears when family members come together for the holiday dinner, and exchange good wishes and warm embraces with loved ones.

     It is a time when our hands, our hearts, and our very souls rise up to the Creator, the giver of “every perfect gift”, in a celebration of true thanksgiving. This expression of thanks includes the blessings which we take for granted such as temperate weather, greeting a stranger, and the smile of a traveler who passes by. Yet, not only do we overlook the obvious, but we tend to neglect the more immediate blessings we receive from above: our health, our employment, our place in society, our profession, our fluency, the development of our children, our family unity, our parish, our churches, our schools, our philanthropic institutions, and so many other blessings which we enjoy.           Have we ever stopped to realize that all these blessings are gifts from God? Have we ever reflected back to our parents, our relatives, and all those individuals who made it possible for us to be in the enviable position we find ourselves today?  They are the ones who gave us our life, our name, our highly honored legacy, and the privilege of being Orthodox Christians. 

It is especially important to remember the many people in California who have endured the devastating fires, and witnessed the destruction of their earthly possessions. When we gather on this Thanksgiving holiday, let us remember in prayer those whose lives have been affected by this tragedy, asking the Lord for His special blessings upon them and their loved ones, and giving thanks to God for their safekeeping. 

(Excerpts of the 2008 Thanksgiving Encyclical from Gerasimos, Metropolitan of San Francisco)         --  Submitted by Fr. Simon, Saint Barbara Greek Orthodox Church

?

It is important to cultivate a thankful attitude. By being thankful for what we have—instead of grasping for what we don't—we grow in spiritual understanding. Thankfulness expands the heart by removing selfishness, self-centeredness and egotism. Gratitude awakens us to the fact that we are not a mass of isolated individuals but rather one integrated whole; we are interrelated and deeply interconnected. In being thankful we affirm the unity of existence and the oneness of all life.

From the Upanishads, Hinduism's ancient scriptures:

Peace be unto the heavens,

 peace be unto the sky,

 peace be unto the waters.

The earth is filled with peace. The herbs and trees are filled with peace.

May the peace of Brahman be manifest in all divine forms and may that peace be ours.

Om. Peace, peace, peace.

                                                     -- submitted by Vrajaprana, Vedanta Society

Thanksgiving

We give thanks for the gift of life and the earth on which we live.

We give thanks for:

--The loving Divine Spirit that surrounds us and dwells within us and all people.

--The Spirit from which we seek guidance for living a life that reflects the values of integrity, unity, equality, simplicity, peace and community.

--The Spirit which sustains us in good times and bad times.

                              --Carol Hauer, Clerk, The Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)

?        Thanksgiving is the holiday of reunion. In the spirit of togetherness, family members gather like sheaves, often from great distances. Some primal impulse drives people who may not see each other the rest of the year to seek each other's company. Honoring clan membership seems to be the invisible force drawing them together.

        The jewel of the holiday is claiming an attitude of gratitude. A thankful heart finds much to celebrate. Those who can't be grateful for what they have are not able to be grateful when they get more. The practice of gratitude is like the dedication to a work-out routine, or doing regular meditation, or maintaining proficiency on a musical instrument. It is discipline. Those who are intentionally thankful on a daily basis end up with more fulfilling lives.??     Most of all, we can be thankful to be here. We should remember that almost half of the Pilgrims died before that first day of thanksgiving. Their losses, like ours, were terrible. It is in the face of grief that we must be grateful for what we have, not in the absence of grief. When someone we love dies, the love does not fade, it grows deeper. So, on this special day, we might let our thoughts drift to the large circle of family and friends, including those who cannot be present in person.

       Holidays pierce through everyday routine. They are a kind of magical time that links to other Thanksgiving Day memories. We can forgive ourselves for indulging in a little nostalgia, even though such longing is usually for good old days that never were. There is a common yearning that bubbles up on this occasion. It is for the perfect belonging and satisfaction that eludes us all. In its place, we have the real lives with all the normal worries and moments of delight. It is in this regular life that surprising delights happen. We can't predict what they will be, but we can be grateful when our lives are blessed in large and small ways. It is the ability to appreciate the ordinary wonders that makes the journey radiant.

          --Jonathan Young, local psychologist and founding curator of the Joseph Campbell Archives

Thanksgiving in Islam

In Islam thanksgiving is not only a particular religious act or service; it is embedded in our everyday life. Our lives should be lived in obedience to our Lord. God has been good to us and so in our gratitude we worship Him, and obey His commands and orders.

"If ye are grateful, I will add more (favors) unto you. (Quran 14:7)

 The Quranic word for thanks is "shukr." It is mentioned in the Quran many times.

Shukr is a very important principle in Islam. It is a quality of the believers and it is a source of all goodness. Shukr is used in the Quran sometimes as equivalent to faith. The faithful are thankful people. Allah has described His Prophets and Messengers among those who were thankful people. Prophet Noah was a grateful servant of God (Quran 17:3). Prophet Abraham used to thank Allah for His many blessings (Quran 16:121). Prophet David and his family were told to be grateful to God (Quran 34:13). Allah told His Prophet Muhammad: Nay, but worship Allah, and be of those who give thanks. (Quran 39:66)

Islam does not only teach us to thank Allah, but we are also told to thank our parents, our spouses, our friends, neighbors and all those who do any good to us. The Prophet INCLUDEPICTURE "../../../../../DOCUME~1/AFAFTU~1/LOCALS~1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image002.jpg" \* MERGEFORMATINET said: "Those who do not thank people, they do not thank God." (Al-Tirmidhi 1878)

                                     --Afaf Turjoman, Islamic Society of Santa Barbara      

Praise be to God! That day by day we are advancing and every day we see

some new blessing descending. Let all of us render thanksgiving to our

generous Lord that He may bless our eyes with sight and give unto our

hearts understanding. May we become resuscitated with the breath of the

Holy Spirit. May we be enabled to leave behind the world of matter in

beholding the bounties of God. The divine table is spread, the heavenly

illumination is all-encircling; eternal life is provided for all;

divine food is prepared for all! Therefore let us practice the divine

essence of love and love each other from our very hearts and souls so

that the East and West shall embrace each other and realize that all

are the sheep of God. God is the good shepherd -- then shall we gather

under the tabernacle of His mercy!

--compilations from the Baha’i Scriptures submitted by Don and Mollie DeWald

 HYPERLINK "http://bridgingnewsletter.c.topica.com/maamuSGabLYkpa4i0Kme/" Comes The Love

From the Fires?Comes the Flames?Comes the Heat?Comes the Light.??From the Floods?Comes the Waters?Comes the Swelling?Comes the Healing.??From the Winds?Comes the Turbulence?Comes the Force?Comes the Soothing.??From the Rains?Comes the Thunder?Comes the Lightening?Comes the Cleansing.??From the Fires?From the Floods?From the Winds?From the Rains?Comes the Love.

                             --Allan from "Bridging Heaven & Earth"  (  HYPERLINK "http://www.HeavenToEarth.com" www.HeavenToEarth.com)

Comment on this article

Subject:

Body:

Poster:

Enter text seen above: