View from the pew
Flipping through the calendar with holidays on the horizon had become a downer for me. Not in a Happy Thanksgiving mindset. Definitely dreading fa-la-la-la-LAH. Almost wishing we were still in ancient days of the Catholic Church when Advent was a time of defined penitence — fasting and abstaining from rich foods and other self-indulgence — with suffering encouraged as a way of life.
It feels like the whole globe is already well into a long season of suffering. If you are the least bit tuned in to the news, you know that vast numbers of people are starving, shivering without shelter because they’ve been evicted or worse — their homes deliberately destroyed by enemies not their own.
Just in our own suffering country, thousands of people had jobs and paychecks terminated, innocent victims of political forces beyond their control.
How can I even make a shopping list of favorites for a Thanksgiving feast when I know that 170,000 Hawaii residents are among the millions of Americans whose food stamp support was severely interrupted? We can see that reality as we drive past Hawaii Foodbank distribution sites where hordes of people are waiting for a box of groceries.
At this point in a long life, what could I possibly want for Christmas beyond praying that the angel choir at Bethlehem’s blessing of “peace on earth, good will to men” would come true in my lifetime?
I was well into this internal rant — count yourself lucky to see the abridged version — when I encountered a column about the early holiday of the season, Veterans Day.
The Monday Morning Meditation, written weekly by chaplains at Children’s Wisconsin medical center in Milwaukee, comes to me weekly from my niece. Recent wisdom from Amy Van Donsel, manager of the hospital’s rehab services, suggested that we try to adopt the spirit of members of our armed forces, past and present.
“The dedication, courage and sacrifice that these service members have shown remind us of the power of service and resilience in tough times,” Van Donsel wrote.
“Remember on this Veterans Day that service can take multiple forms. When we care for each other and ourselves, and demonstrate resiliency in our daily lives, especially in the face of uncertainty or ambiguity, we honor the same spirit of those who have fought for our country.”
Van Donsel, who served in the Army in Afghanistan, wrote about the struggle veterans often face when they move back into civilian life after the “very defined role of military service.”
“Practice self-compassion, acknowledge your emotions and give yourself time to navigate the transition. Be kind and understanding to yourself,” she advised.
It struck me as a personal message: Stop whining and find a positive path out of deep blues. Get out of your head and into action.
Help someone, whether a personal connection or through a community effort such as donations to food pantries and grocery dispensing efforts. I’m thinking we might downsize our own shopping list and invest in cases of Spam and soup to give away.
A few previews of Thanksgiving have distracted me from the daily news blitz on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program crisis, with Hawaii and other states jumping in to meet the need with emergency funds — a little less talking, a little more action, please.
Action, not just talk, defines the approach of the wonderful Salvation Army with its annual Thanksgiving dinner for hundreds at Blaisdell Center. The Zippy’s restaurant chain has joined the effort, urging its customers to invest in a pumpkin pie to be served at the public banquet. (I know, the publicity benefits the business, but still I applaud it.)
Then, here’s my parish, launching a new initiative to meet the current need and follow the words of Jesus in Matthew’s Gospel: “For I was hungry and you fed me.”
St. Patrick Church is offering a turkey dinner giveaway — a full meal, prepared by Kaimuki restaurant 3660 on the Rise, to be handed out the day before Thanksgiving. People have been signing up for the limited meals available.
“Show thankfulness by helping others,” says the promotion in the weekly bulletin. It’s unwritten, but clearly this effort is meant for the needy members of the parish community.
St. Patrick School also has gotten back in the business of collecting nonperishable food donations for distribution by another parish’s food pantry.
I appreciate both initiatives for giving me a way to channel my giving, and for getting this parish back into living the Gospel, a goal that was abandoned some years ago when a previous pastor shut down our own large food pantry.
My spirits continued to spiral upward as I heard from a friend who has made a mission of baking turkeys for other people in her Waimanalo imu. Individuals bring their own wrapped meat — not always turkey — which often is intended as a giveaway to a family in need.
Leila Fujimori adopted this tradition in 2010 from the late Sharon Black, whose Kau Kau Wagon prepared turkey dinners on Thanksgiving and fed hundreds of people throughout the year in downtown Honolulu.
The generosity of people is something we need to know about and imitate. I applaud the Honolulu Star-Advertiser’s Kokua Line writer Christine Donnelly, who frequently publishes “Mahalo” messages from people who were embraced by the aloha spirit of someone. She is collecting contributions for a Thanksgiving Day “Mahalo” column.
Three days after Thanksgiving, Catholics will begin Advent, the formal religious preparation for Christmas. But never mind the American Thanksgiving feasting tradition; Orthodox Christians joined Eastern Christians in many countries by starting Advent on Nov. 15 with a daunting fasting regimen similar to Lent.
During the 40 days ending Dec. 24, they will abstain from meat, dairy products, olive oil and wine. In the last 11 days before Christmas, not even fish is allowed.
For centuries Catholics were expected to observe a similar pious discipline. It was not just about fasting; Lent and Advent were, and still are, times to prepare for the great events of Christianity, the birth of Jesus and his death on the cross and resurrection. It is a time for self-examination and prayer, repenting for sins, focusing on our beliefs and Christ’s teaching.
We no longer have fast or abstinence requirements for Advent. Following the 1965 Second Vatican Council, the emphasis changed from disciplinary penitential practice to fostering understanding of Jesus’ teaching as recorded in the Bible.
Advent traditions are still a matter of choice, so go for it. The Dynamic Catholic website has a whole catalog of ideas, including the Filipino tradition of Misa de gallo (an early-morning liturgy also known as “rooster’s Mass”) and the Mexican celebration of Los Posadas (a nine-day commemoration of Mary and Joseph’s journey to Bethlehem).
No room here to share them all. But I can’t resist this idea: “Abstain from social media.” Talk about a sacrifice! Talk about a blessing.
Volunteers with the Ladies of Charity of Calvert County, Maryland, load turkeys and other provisions into a car at a food pantry in North Beach. (Bob Roller / CNS / 2021)