Thanksgiving is one of my favorite celebrations, a day set apart to pause and appreciate life’s blessings. My first Thanksgiving was in 1975, shortly after I arrived in Florida from Ireland. Back in Ireland, we didn’t have a holiday like Thanksgiving. I quickly realized, however, that Thanksgiving wasn’t just an American tradition—it was a universal need to express gratitude for life’s blessings, big and small.

Here in America, Thanksgiving is a time to celebrate gifts like family, friends, food, drink, and shelter. But it’s also a moment to recognize deeper blessings: freedom, compassion, love, and the sense of community that draws us together. Thanksgiving stirs something profound within us, calling us to remember the joy of giving and receiving, especially with strangers. It reminds me of how Native Americans welcomed early settlers with generosity—a gesture that symbolizes what this holiday is all about.

Yet Thanksgiving isn’t limited to a single meal or one day on the calendar. It’s an opportunity to embrace gratitude as a way of life. We can give thanks for the beauty of creation itself—the sun that warms us, the moon that protects us, the stars that envelope us, and the natural world that sustains us. These are blessings freely given, available to all.

At the same time, Thanksgiving challenges us to confront the ways we fall short. Too often, we take for granted the gifts of nature, destroying our environment rather than cherishing it. Prejudice and exclusion can harden our hearts, causing us to reject those who look or think differently. In many ways, people today are losing the spirit of thanksgiving as they give into hatred of others, neglect of the natural environment, and disrespect for life itself.

The essence of Thanksgiving is to cherish humanity’s best qualities and to acknowledge our interdependence. Whether we realize it or not, we need one another. It’s in our shared need that we grow, build bridges, and expand our horizons. True gratitude inspires us to care for others and our world, nurturing the gifts we’ve been given and passing them on to future generations.

Thanksgiving is especially vital today. In a time when our society feels divided by ideology, fear and greed, Thanksgiving reminds us that we are stronger when we are together, inviting us to imagine an America—and a world—where we welcome others, embrace differences, and find unity in our shared humanity.

To paraphrase Benjamin Franklin, we have Thanksgiving—if we can keep it.

As we gather around tables filled with food and laughter, let us remember that Thanksgiving is more than a feast. It is a mindset to inspire us, not just for one day but for every day of our lives: to live thankfully and to care deeply for our earth and all those within it.

Let us honor the true meaning of Thanksgiving—not just as a holiday, but as a way of life.

Happy Thanksgiving!

—Fr. Hugh Duffy, Ph.D.