Beloved Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,

Thanksgiving Day is a very special holiday for us all in this land. It is set aside to allow families to gather together to offer prayers of thanks to God for His bountiful gifts and blessings, and then to enjoy a sumptuous dinner that He has provided.  This holiday carries a very special message in terms of its importance and meaning of the history of our nation.

Even though this holiday may not be a religious feast on our Orthodox ecclesiastical calendar, we all await its arrival each year with joy and eager anticipation.  We have rightfully adopted this celebration in our hearts and homes as part of our own tradition, and there can be no doubt that to give thanks to God for His blessings is an authentic expression of Orthodox spirituality.

Our homes are open to friends and guests on this holiday as on the celebration of Christmas and Pascha.  It is Christ Who opens our hearts and homes on these three feast celebrations, and it is the Lord Himself Who imbues these celebrations and all of us with His presence, His love and His divine Grace.

On this special day, therefore, let us all open our hearts and homes to one and all.  Let us welcome and embrace friend and stranger alike into our midst with love and compassion, as we would welcome members of our families and relatives.  Let us set aside a portion of our abundant food and share our many blessings with them and the less fortunate in our society.

Within our local communities and perhaps even our local neighborhoods, there are many who hunger and are in need of clothing, shelter, and compassion.  Many of them are elderly, or have suffered various misfortunes for no fault of their own.  In countries far across the seas, in Asia and Africa, people are suffering because they have little or nothing to eat.  Little children raise their sad eyes to heaven, weeping and praying that God will be merciful and that their fellow human beings will show some compassions upon them.

Thanks to the blessed tradition begun by the pilgrims, we all share in this historical tradition begun by them - of giving thanks to God in prayer, and sharing our food, our earthly blessings, with those who hunger and thirst. This year, perhaps more so than ever before, we need to focus our attention on people all over the world who suffer because of lack of food and proper nutrition.  The need is more acute today because the number starving people is growing - even in our own land of plenty.  In our large urban areas there are more homeless and hungry people than ever before, wandering about aimlessly in alleys, streets, and corridors searching for some food.

Let us establish programs in our parishes to provide hot meals for the hungry and needy.  Many worthy projects of this kind have been undertaken by our parish organizations, including Philoptochos.  Let us multiply these efforts! It is our Christian duty and responsibility to act in the spirit of Thanksgiving Day.

I hope and pray that our Lord, the giver of all good things, will bless you in abundance so that this day and every day may be a time of thanksgiving!

With Love in Christ,
+ G E R A S I M O S
Metropolitan of San Francisco