"It Happened To Our Fathers...."

Father,we do well to join all creation,in heaven and on earth,in praising you, our mighty Godthrough Jesus Christ our Lord. You made man to your own imageand set him over all creation.Once you chose a peopleand, when you brought them out of bondage tofreedom, they carried with them the promisethat all men would be blessedand all men could be free. What the prophets pledgedwas fulfilled in Jesus Christ,your Son and our saving Lord.It has come to pass in every generationfor all men who have believed that Jesusby his death and resurrectiongave them a new freedom in his Spirit. It happened to our fathers,who came to this land as if out of the desertinto a place of promise and hope.It happens to us still, in our time,as you lead all men through your Churchto the blessed vision of your peace....

Granted, the text above is no longer in use, but as it's the old proper Preface for this Thanksgiving Day, it still makes for a worthwhile reflection.Whether your centerpiece is dinner with family, the marathon football, a raid on the mall (God forbid), or something else, with thanks for all the blessings of these years, may all this day's joy and goodness be yours.-30-