Service for Nov. 24, 2011 - Thanksgiving

Subject: Thanksgiving

 Hymn 249

 Vivian Burnett 

 O, when we see God's mercy

   Widespread in every place

 And know how flows the fountain

   Of His unbounded grace,

 Can we withhold a tribute,

   Forbear a psalm to raise,

 Or leave unsung one blessing,

   In this our hymn of praise?

 Our gratitude is riches,

   Complaint is poverty,

 Our trials bloom in blessings,

   They test our constancy.

 O, life from joy is minted,

   An everlasting gold,

 True gladness is the treasure

   That grateful hearts will hold.

Reading of the Thanksgiving Proclamation of the President of the United States.

Thanksgiving Day 2011 A Proclamation by the President of the United States of America

THANKSGIVING DAY, 2011
November 24, 2011
A PROCLAMATION BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

     One of our Nation's oldest and most cherished traditions, Thanksgiving Day brings us closer to our loved ones and invites us to reflect on the blessings that enrich our lives.  The observance recalls the celebration of an autumn harvest centuries ago, when the Wampanoag tribe joined the Pilgrims at Plymouth Colony to share in the fruits of a bountiful season.  The feast honored the Wampanoag for generously extending their knowledge of local game and agriculture to the Pilgrims, and today we renew our gratitude to all American Indians and Alaska Natives.  We take this time to remember the ways that the First Americans have enriched our Nation's heritage, from their generosity centuries ago to the everyday contributions they make to all facets of American life.  As we come together with friends, family, and neighbors to celebrate, let us set aside our daily concerns and give thanks for the providence bestowed upon us.

     Though our traditions have evolved, the spirit of grace and humility at the heart of Thanksgiving has persisted through every chapter of our story.  When President George Washington proclaimed our country's first Thanksgiving, he praised a generous and knowing God for shepherding our young Republic through its uncertain beginnings.  Decades later, President Abraham Lincoln looked to the divine to protect those who had known the worst of civil war, and to restore the Nation "to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility, and union."

     In times of adversity and times of plenty, we have lifted our hearts by giving humble thanks for the blessings we have received and for those who bring meaning to our lives.  Today, let us offer gratitude to our men and women in uniform for their many sacrifices, and keep in our thoughts the families who save an empty seat at the table for a loved one stationed in harm's way.  And as members of our American family make do with less, let us rededicate ourselves to our friends and fellow citizens in need of a helping hand.

     As we gather in our communities and in our homes, around the table or near the hearth, we give thanks to each other and to God for the many kindnesses and comforts that grace our lives.  Let us pause to recount the simple gifts that sustain us, and resolve to pay them forward in the year to come.

     NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim Thursday, November 24, 2011, as a National Day of Thanksgiving.  I encourage the people of the United States to come together    whether in our homes, places of worship, community centers, or any place of fellowship for friends and neighbors    to give thanks for all we have received in the past year, to express appreciation to those whose lives enrich our own, and to share our bounty with others.

     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this sixteenth day of November, in the year of our Lord two thousand eleven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-sixth.

BARACK OBAMA

The scriptural selections are from Psalms and Colossians.

Psalms 100:1‑5

Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.  Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.  Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.  Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.  For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

Colossians 2:6‑10

As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.  Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.  For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:

Silent prayer, followed by the audible repetition of the Lord’s prayer, with its spiritual interpretation as given in the Christian Science textbook.

Our Father which art in heaven,

Our Father-Mother God, all-harmonious,

Hallowed be Thy name.

Adorable One.

Thy kingdom come.

Thy kingdom is come; Thou art ever-present.

Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.

Enable us to know – as in heaven, so on earth

God is omnipotent, supreme.

Give us this day our daily bread;

Give us grace for today; feed the famished affections;

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

And Love is reflected in love;

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil;

And God leadeth us not into temptation, but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death.

For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.

For God is infinite, all-power, all Life, Truth, Love, over all, and All.

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 Hymn 150 

 William P. McKenzie

 In mercy, in goodness, how great is our King;

 Our tribute, thanksgiving, with glad hearts we bring.

 Thou art the Renewer, the Ancient of Days,

 Who givest, for mourning, the garment of praise.

 We thank Thee for work in the wide harvest field,

 For gladness that ripens when sorrow is healed;

 Made strong with Thy goodness that meets every need,

 We gather the fruit of the Sower's good seed.

 Dear Father and Saviour, we thank Thee for life,

 And courage that rises undaunted by strife,

 For confident giving and giving's reward,

 For beauty and love in the life of our Lord.

The Lesson-Sermon as outlined in the Christian Science Quarterly and read by the First and Second Readers.

Solo: "Behold, What Manner of Love"               

The meeting was opened for testimonies appropriate for the occasion.

 Hymn 283 

 From the German of Joachim Neander

 Praise we the Lord, for His mercy endureth forever.

 Let us extol Him with joyous and loving endeavor;

        Come let us sing,

        Praising our God and our King,

 Should we be silent?  Ah, never.

 Praise we the Lord, who our footsteps still holdeth

          from sliding;

 Daily He campeth about us, protecting and guiding;

        E'en while we sleep

        Watch doth He tenderly keep;

 Ever new mercies providing.

 Praise we the Lord with a joyous and glad adoration;

 Lo, unto them that believe there is no condemnation;

        Now will we raise

        Songs of thanksgiving and praise,

 Christ is become our salvation.

"The Scientific Statement of Being" (S&H p. 468} and the correlative scripture according to I John 3:1-3.

There is no life, truth, intelligence, nor substance in matter. All is infinite Mind and its infinite manifestation, for God is All-in-all. Spirit is immortal Truth; matter is mortal error. Spirit is the real and eternal; matter is the unreal and temporal. Spirit is God, and man is His image and likeness. Therefore man is not material; he is spiritual.

Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p.468

1John.3

[1] Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.

[2] Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

[3] And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.

Benediction

Psalms 75:1

Unto thee, O God, do we give thanks, unto thee do we give thanks: for that thy name is near thy wondrous works declare.