Thanksgiving
To all my USA readers, happy thanksgiving!
Thanksgiving reminds me of an old Irish festival called Lughnasa. Lughnasa (literally, “the assembly of Lugh”) was a month-long harvest festival that took place at the time of the grain harvest (probably late July or early August); it was marked not only by feasting, but also by sporting events and much pageantry. Here in America, we’ve moved our harvest festival to the end of the season (late November), but thanks to the mass media, in addition to our feast we also get plenty of sporting events (televised football) and pageantry (the Macy’s Parade).
Of course, thanksgiving day also reminds me that whenever Christians gather to celebrate the Holy Eucharist, it’s a “thanksgiving day.” For the Greek word eucharistia means “thanksgiving.” Which means that when we participate in daily mass, it’s thanksgiving every day.
That’s the way to live.
