November 2015 – Thanksgiving

In the chaos of our modern world there is perhaps nothing more important than to take time out of our hectic lives and to give thanks to God for all that is right with the world. On the surface, the 21^st century is an era of abundance where you can walk to your local supermarket and have all of the food you could ever want, but underneath the well-curated and sterile environment of big business we must never forget all that is required to supply us with the necessities of life. In short, there is much to be thankful for, especially in the U.S., but we must never lose sight of our brothers and sisters in other lands where times may be far more challenging. On Thanksgiving we should be grateful for what has been provided, but also offer up the hope that life will improve for all the people, animals, trees and even as we shall see in Joel, the soil or earth itself. As Paul said in Romans 12:5, “We, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.” It is worthwhile on Thanksgiving to meditate on the fact that Whitehead himself chose the name the Philosophy of Organism to describe his philosophy and this highlights that we are all in this together and what happens to one of us affects everyone and everything else within this fragile yet beautiful ecosystem that collectively we call earth.

Joel 2:21-27

This reading from the prophet Joel speaks to the restoration of fertility after darker times. The return to fertility spans from the soil to the trees, animals, and humanity. This is of course a cause for thanksgiving to God. Most process thinkers believe that all entities even down to microbes and below have a form of feeling and experience and thus, it is right for God to address not only human beings, but even the soil itself!

Psalm 126

This special Psalm is about a return from exile. In its more historical context it is about the Hebrew people returning to the areas around Jerusalem and the joy and uncontainable laughter that ensues from this event. There is a good chance that many of us cannot directly relate to being displaced from our homeland and then after many years being allowed to return; however, in one form or another, all of us have experienced the pain of exile. Perhaps we have been exiled from our immediate family, or from a group of friends, or a career that we loved. Now, imagine the jubilation that would take place when that period of alienation or estrangement ended. This would be cause for a very unique form of giving thanks, for there is no place like home, and there is no place like being at home with friends and family. Spontaneous laughter is the hallmark of sincerity and authenticity; it bubbles up from within. We are not the origin of laughter; it comes from a genuine encounter with the present and with a joy shared with God in the present moment.

1 Timothy 2:1-7

There are two important elements to be found in 1 Timothy 2:1-7. First, there is the clear statement that God cares to save everyone, not merely a specific group or class of people. We must remember that at the time, various forms of Gnosticism are on the rise and they do believe that they, and only they, would have a complete form of salvation. This elitist belief is contrary to the proto-orthodox Christian message especially as espoused by Paul and the gentile audience he deals with. Of course, from a process lens, God is completely concerned with all other actual entities within the world and has a unique redemptive relationship with everyone. The next lines are an adaptation of the Jewish Shema in Deuteronomy 6:4-9. “There is One God; there is also one mediator between God and humankind, Christ Jesus, himself human, who gave himself a ransom for all.” These lines speak to the redemptive role of Jesus within the world and can be compared to the Consequent Nature of God within process thought. God’s Consequent Nature is a reference to God as fully actual, fully responsive and receptive to the needs of each person within the world.

Matthew 6:25-33

These lines from Mathew are a personal favorite of mine, but to be understood properly I feel one must backtrack to 6:24. “You cannot serve God and wealth.” Giving thanks to God for one’s wealth or a successful business year completely misses Jesus’ larger point of the pernicious effect of money on a person’s soul. This belief that being a good Christian means tithing 10% and then as long as we do this we can make as much money as possible and still be justified in the eyes of God flies in the face of the totality of the gospel message.

Be thankful to God for the treasures you have built up in heaven rather than the treasures you have built up on earth where moth and rust can consume and thieves can steal. Jesus says, “is life not more than food, and the body not more than clothing?” However, this is what most of our lives are about…we go to work and fixate on our lunch break and what we will eat and what we will wear for work or for that big party on the weekend. I would argue that this passage speaks more to the Primordial Nature of God rather than the Consequent Nature of God per se and by that is meant the aspect of God that is eternal and unchanging, God’s very essence. God’s essence is love, simplicity, and authenticity and so, we should, in aiming for the model of imitatio dei, strive to embrace and be thankful for the essentials in life: the love of family and friends, the simplicity of an austere shelter, and our ever-present struggle to remain sincere and pure of heart.