Dear one,
You might recall that two portly men addressed Scrooge:
“At this festive season of the year … it is more than usually desirable that …”
Likewise, at this season of the year: Thanksgiving, I find it more than usually desirable to ponder and then act in accord with the meaning and nature of “thanksgiving.” As you also might recall, I am one who delights in words and their morphology. This delight is particularly true vis-à-vis the Greek language, for the Greeks regularly built word upon word, thus providing nuance or meaning not otherwise derived. Such is evident in the word “thanksgiving.”
The Greek word meaning “thanksgiving,” εὐχαριστία (eu-charis-tia), consists of two words: εὐ, which means “well” or “good” (as in “eulogy” or “good word”), and χάρις, which means “grace” or “favor” (as in “charisma”). Thus “thanksgiving” suggests being “well-favored,” with this further understanding: “thanksgiving” has grace at its center, and “grace” is “a benefit conferred freely as an expression of good will” (cf. William Danker), or more commonly, an unmerited or undeserved gift.
For me, “thanksgiving” is my response to what has been freely given without an expected return; or, it is my thankful response in recognition of what I have been given beyond any just desert. But more than a mere response, I find, when I am thoughtful, that thanksgiving is really to be a way of life—a way of living, breathing, speaking, and acting. With thought I confront the question: What do I have, what I have I gained or achieved, apart from what has been given to me? My accomplishments, however great or small, presuppose gifts given—physical, emotional, spiritual, educational, financial, cultural, relational, etc. This is not the question: Have I rightly used what has been given to me?; but rather, the honest admission that first I was gifted, first I was favored, before I could act and achieve.
Some years ago, as based upon Romans 1:21, I concluded that the origin of “sin” is “thanklessness,” that is, my/our unwillingness to give honor and thanks to God. Moreover, I discovered that my heart and mind descend upon a path of darkness, of pride and recrimination, when I cease giving thanks; however, I also discovered that that darkness lifted when I asked: “When, Stan, did you last give thanks?” This, I believe, is more than a psychological technique; no, I believe we were created for both giving and receiving “thanksgiving,” and that the giving of thanks is a gift.
I wonder: Are you thankful?
Thankfully,
Stan