St. Catherine of Siena hosts 40th Annual Thanksgiving Service

On November 24, the Trumbull Interfaith Council hosted the 40th Annual Trumbull Thanksgiving Prayer Service at St. Catherine of Siena Church. The Prayer Service brought together members of the Trumbull community across many practices of faith.

Attendees contributed non-perishable food items to benefit Trumbull Social Services. And the offertory was collected to benefit the Daughters of Charity Rescue Mission, Inc., Bridgeport Rescue Mission, and Thomas Merton Center.

The prayer service was led in song by a 60-member combined ecumenical choir, comprised of choir members from throughout the town of Trumbull. The choir was led by Dr. William A. Atwood, Director of Music and Coordinator of Liturgical Ministries for St. Catherine of Siena Parish.

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Father Joseph A. Marcello, Pastor of the Parish of St. Catherine of Siena, addressed those gathered with the following:

The Book of Deuteronomy makes clear that giving thanks to God for the blessings we have received from His hand is something He asks of us, a duty which springs from being his creatures.

We are all children of this loving and Provident God; brothers and sisters, children of the same Father, and consequently we are here not just with respect and civility, but truly with affection and joy, just as Our Lord would have it. And it is in that spirit that I offer these words for our consideration.

On Thursday all of us will sit down to a Thanksgiving meal with those we love the most. This is because, as we remember from history class, in October of 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln, as astute an observer of human nature as anyone, wrote:

The year that is drawing toward its close
has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies.
To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed
that we are prone to forget the source from which they come,
others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature
that they cannot fail to penetrate and even soften the heart
which is habitually insensible to the ever-watchful providence
of Almighty God.

Those words are true also of this year, and of every year. Lincoln continues:

It has seemed to me fit and proper that [these blessings of Almighty God] should be solemnly, reverently, and gratefully acknowledged
as with one heart and one voice by the whole American people.
I do, therefore, invite my fellow-citizens
in every part of the United States, and also those
who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands,
to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next
as a Day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father
who dwelleth in the heavens.

When we do that, this Thursday, and when we celebrate the various holidays next month, it’s only natural that our mind and heart will turn to the memory of celebrations of years past, and the realization of how many circumstances of our lives have changed over that span of time. But just as quickly, we will remember that the love and providence of God have remained constant.

In this regard, I’d like to share with you some thoughts of John Henry Newman, the 19th century English philosopher, historian, theologian, priest, and cardinal, who was canonized by Pope Francis last month.

In a sermon called “The Thought of God, the Stay of the Soul,” Newman writes:
Life passes, riches fly away, popularity is fickle, the senses decay,
the world changes, friends die.
One alone is constant;
One alone is true to us;
One alone can be true;
One alone can be all things to us;
One alone can supply our needs;
One alone can train us up to our full perfection;
One alone can give a meaning to our complex and intricate nature;
One alone can give us tune and harmony.

Even as we give thanks for past blessings, we know with certainty that God’s goodness and providence will never fail us in years to come. We don’t know what the future holds, but we do know who holds the future.

In this regard, in another place, Newman observes:

We are not our own, any more than what we possess is our own.
We did not make ourselves; we cannot be supreme over ourselves.
We cannot be our own masters. We are God's property by creation,
by redemption, by regeneration... We are creatures; and, as being such, we have two duties, to be resigned and to be thankful.
Let us then view God's providences towards us more religiously
than we have hitherto done.
Let us try to gain a truer view of what we are, and where we are,
in His kingdom. Let us humbly and reverently
attempt to trace His guiding hand in the years
which we have hitherto lived.
Let us thankfully commemorate the many mercies
He has vouchsafed to us in time past,
the many sins He has not remembered,
the many dangers He has averted,
the many prayers He has answered,
the many mistakes He has corrected,
the many warnings, the many lessons,
the much light, the abounding comfort
which He has from time to time given.

He has not made us for naught; He has brought us thus far,
in order to bring us further, in order to bring us on to the end.
He will never leave us, nor forsake us…

So with full and grateful hearts, with all our hearts, we offer to God this day, on Thursday, and every day, hearts which are filled with gratitude, respect, and love: indeed, reflections of the very love which has brought us into being, and which guides us on our way: the love which, as Dante writes, “moves the sun, and the other stars.”

My brothers and sisters, Happy Thanksgiving!

The purpose of the Council is to promote understanding, respect and cooperation between the various religious traditions serving the community in Trumbull. The group encourages all faiths that hold services in town on a regular basis to participate in the organization. It is part of a local, non-sectarian coordinating agency for charitable and volunteer activity in the town of Trumbull. The Council is comprised of Trumbull clergy and lay representatives from churches who gather monthly to share culture and practices of the respective faiths. Two yearly events sponsored by the group are Thanksgiving and Good Friday services. This outreach lends spiritual strength to all age groups in our Trumbull community.

Member organizations include: Armenian Church of the Holy Ascension, Christ Episcopal Church Tashua, Christ the King Roman Catholic Church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Congregation B’nai Torah, Grace Episcopal Church, Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Long Hill United Methodist Church, Nichols United Methodist Church, St. Catherine of Siena Roman Catholic Church, St. George Albanian Orthodox Church, St. Stephen Roman Catholic Church, St. Theresa Roman Catholic Church, Trinity Episcopal Church, Trumbull Congregational Church, Unity Hill United Church of Christ.

The Parish of Saint Catherine of Siena warmly welcomes anyone who is new to our area, anyone who is searching for the truth, or anyone who is looking for a spiritual home. We are joyfully and faithfully Roman Catholic in belief and practice - a community of faith, worship, service, and formation - and with open hearts we invite all our brothers and sisters into a living and saving friendship with the Lord Jesus Christ, in the communion of His One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. We are conveniently located at 220 Shelton Road in the Nichols area of Trumbull.