Gratitude: The Key to Christian Life

We have just celebrated Thanksgiving, and the beginning of the Advent Season is now upon us; thus, this is a time for reflection. I ponder what I am grateful for, and also imagine those things which I long for with greater hope. All in all, gratitude is important to Christian life. I want to take some brief moments to reflect on the virtue of Gratitude and its place in Christian life. It is important to take the time for deeper reflection and to pray for the grace to desire a spirit of thanks, for without gratitude, nothing would hold life together.

In Mass

The Catholic Church continuously celebrated the Eucharistic Sacrifice from the beginning of the Church itself. There is nothing more central or powerful in Christianity than the lifting up of the bread and wine in the Consecration as Jesus’ Risen Body. The Eucharist is thanksgiving. The Greek word literally means this. In the Gospels, when it says Jesus gave thanks, the word is literally Eucharistesas. So, no one can legitimately question the legitimacy of the Eucharist. It is literally written in the Gospel itself.

When we come to Mass, we know that the Eucharist is our meeting place with God, the very essence of God himself. We are not left alone. We have Christ waiting for us. We know that we will be transformed ourselves. Mass is the height of the Christian life. Thanksgiving for God’s grace in our lives will turn into gratitude for God’s life within us. Let this be the work of it all: We come to Mass not only to take part, but to be taken over by Himself. There you are, “Oh Jesus, waiting to receive and be received.” How privileged we are to be here in this sacred time, Kairos, the eternal time. Let the Mass be for you what becomes you, an infinite source of grace and joy.

In Offering

When it comes down to the Eucharist, we offer ourselves as well to God. An offering is made holy by the one it is offered to. It was said of the Messiah in Midrash that at his coming, he would leave tangible signs of God’s Presence. So the Sacraments were foreseen as the installments that Jesus, the Messiah, would impart on his followers to carry on after his death and rising. Then, consider the very nature of the Eucharist. It was said that the Sacrifice of the Temple would be replaced by one Sacrifice after the Messiah’s coming, the Todah Sacrifice. The Todah was an ancient ritual of thanksgiving in Judaism that gave thanks to God for all he gave to the world. Jesus fulfilled the saying that the Todah Sacrifice would be the lasting sacrifice to the Lord, and that it is eternal.

We have our part to play also. The Todah is ours to make personally and daily. We offer ourselves over to God in continual thanks for all we have and are. There is something so vibrant and enlivening to know that we are made to give ourselves over to God. This is why we come to Mass. We receive God’s holy gift to the World, His Son. We ourselves become an offering. We are the ones who come forward to allow ourselves to be offered up. As we behold the Priest take the holy host into his hands at the Consecration, we know Jesus takes us in his hands, his holy hands, pierced and still unblemished, and makes us into his holy ones. This is the moment we are offered totally to God through Jesus.

In Consuming

Then, we are blessed by Jesus himself. He comes into our lives now, thoroughly and tangibly, and we can consume the consecrated bread and wine, which is substantially Jesus, although still seen as bread and wine in appearance. How does gratitude fit into this dynamic? Remember, gratitude is not an easy virtue to practice or a disposition to develop. Our natural instinct is to be protective of ourselves and not be vulnerable. When we give thanks, we let our guard down. We open ourselves up to the possibility of disappointment. This is hard for us to deal with, because we want a guarantee for everything we invest in. Still, we need not worry. Along with the possibility of disappointment comes the renewed hope of change and new fulfillment. What we held onto before has passed, and new life is offered to us. The options are not just to go back or forward; the possibility of falling in any direction is perpetually present in life. What we can do is give thanks, and let that thanks be for all things in life, especially those hidden blessings which we only see in hindsight. 

I am tying this back to the Eucharist by saying that our gratitude is meant to be an all-consuming attitude, and it is the true attitude of Christ. When we give thanks sincerely, it does not stay stagnant or unactualized. Our gratitude is part of the consuming fire of faith that blazes through all things. When we receive the Eucharist, we are being changed. While we linger in sin, the effect is not fully realized, yet the grace is present always. When we come into the State of Grace, we ourselves have this confidence that the Eucharist has given us life. Our whole life is meant to be ruled and controlled by Christ. As St. Gregory Nazianzen taught, we don’t consume Jesus when we receive Communion; he consumes us. We are consumed fully by the Christ who meant to share in our human nature and grant us divine life also. 

In the Resurrection

Now, finally, no discussion on Christian spirituality is complete without returning to the greatest event in Christian history, the Resurrection. If salvation history is described as a phenomenal show with many important acts and transitions, the Resurrection Event is the show-stopper, the one event that opened the gates of paradise for all ages. The miracle of the rising of Jesus from the dead is not a one-time event. The Resurrection is still happening now. We are not isolated from it. The new life is made from a new creation. All people are remade before God’s presence.

How heartbreaking that many young people do not feel connected to life in the Church anymore. So many of Generation Z’s younglings are caught in a subjective milieu where the only thing that matters is how they see things. It is as if someone may accept the Resurrection on faith, but not see its relevance in their own life. “What does this have to do with me?” We can reassure them that the Resurrection of Jesus gives us life and touches upon every aspect of our lives. Understand, gratitude is the greatest response to so great a gift. How could anyone be worthy of what we receive at Mass? Yet we do receive it. We receive him who liberates us. We are free in the Resurrection, and gratitude is the most appropriate response. 

As Advent Begins…

I want to encourage you to examine all your experiences with gratitude. Leave nothing unopened and examined. Look at everything you experienced in the last year, in recent days, what you are experiencing now, and what you anticipate in the future. No, not everything will be perfect. You can understand Abraham’s heartbreak as he almost had to sacrifice his beloved son, whom he had long awaited. You can think as Quoheleth did, who said all things were vain. Listen to the voice of Job, the great sufferer, who called to God in anguish, demanding the appearance of his vindicator. In the end, gratitude doesn’t erase our troubles. It reminds us that there is more to life than suffering, heartbreak, and death. It consoles us to know that hope prevails, faith is rekindled, and divine love is with us always. Gratitude is not a command; it is a loving invitation. I ask all of you, friends in Christ, to join the Church in this perpetual memorial and thanksgiving sacrifice. Amen.