November 06 Kandili Article
Humility and Thanksgiving
“Gratitude (eucharistia) is the vessel that contains grace (charis); it is the human expression of a divine experience defined as learning to share.” (Rev. Deacon John Chryssavgis – from his book, In the Heart of the Desert, pg 73.) Even in the midst of global unrest, school shootings, economic instability, and personal challenges that come our way – health issues, financial struggles, interpersonal challenges, even death – do we not have so much to be thankful for? As the weather begins to turn, with the extraordinary vibrancy of colors this year, some snow already in the mountains, is not God good? Deacon Chryssavgis, in his book “In the Heart of the Desert”, reminds us that our ability to be thankful is a “human expression of a divine experience.” The root of the thanksgiving or gratitude is grace. (Greek-Eucharistia, root-charis) Grace is from God. The Eucharist – Holy Communion, therefore, is a Thanksgiving – God’s Grace offered to us and we receiving in gratitude. A “charismatic” person is one “graced” by God with gifts. Any good, therefore that one does or offers is a gift from God. The key to this gratitude is humility. Father Deacon Chryssavgis states, “Humility looks to shift the focus of oneself as the center of the world and to place oneself in the service of others . . . The humble person is always satisfied, always shares, always gives, always gives thanks. In fact, one learns to give thanks even for misfortunes.” (pg. 73) Do we have clenched fists or open hands? Try this exercise. Clench your fists tightly for ten seconds. After that, open them for ten seconds. Now think of the differences experienced in the two exercises. Does not the first invoke an experience of holding on to, of possessing, of not letting go, of tension? Does not the other, however, bring about an experience of letting go, of freedom, of offering, of receiving? Thanksgiving, gratitude and sharing are expressed in the latter, not the former. They become possible only through humility because humility allows us to let go of things, either good or bad. Good things that we do or accomplish, we recognize as coming from God and not from us and give Him thanks and glory. This allows us to not think about keeping them, but rather sharing them. This includes “our” possessions, even our money. Bad things, such as afflictions caused by others, grudges and the like, we let go of recognizing that: 1) We are not the center of life, God is and that if we do not have control, ultimately God does; 2) God, therefore, can transform those bad things to blessings, if we trust in Him. After all, Jesus transformed even death to life; 3) Humility allows us to not put ourselves above others – even those who hurt us, our enemies – because we recognize that the hurt others cause us is part of the imperfections of life. Humility reminds us that we are prone to hurt others as well and that any good we do is from God’s grace, not our own. The month of November provides for us a perfect annual opportunity to learn or “refresh our memories” relative to gratitude and humility. Prayerfully consider approaching life daily with an attitude of open hands and not clenched fists. The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Love of God the Father and the Communion of the Holy Spirit be with you always. Happy and Blessed Thanksgiving.In Christ,
Fr. Lou