The Thanksgiving 'Hierarchy of Meals'

Thanksgiving as a 'High Meal' But Not the Highest

Most Americans have a general distain for the word ‘hierarchy.’ We do not want to be dominated by people who are ‘higher up’ and would rather not have them around so we can simply do our jobs or live our lives. But healthy hierarchy doesn’t leave room for domination, and instead, exists to allow everything to thrive within its proper order like fire running through the hierarchy of a jet engine. Earth must revolve around the Sun in order for life to survive. Children must obey their parents if they are going to feel secure or safe at all, and parents’ lives must revolve around God if they have any hope of being a source of godliness for their children or our society. In other words, the greater exists so that the lesser can thrive.

The same could be said for Thanksgiving. Yes, Thanksgiving! Within the hierarchy of meals, Thanksgiving is a ‘high meal’ among all the meals that we regularly consume. It is obviously a higher meal than a quick granola bar on the way to work or a fast-food burger at lunch, but it is also intended to be greater than a typical family meal with your spouse and children. Thanksgiving exists to be one of the highest meals we partake of as family throughout the year. Relatives travel from all over the country to join us. We spend hours upon hours baking a turkey and traditional side dishes that will create the fabric of this meal. We come together and toast another year, and hopefully, find time to directly give thanks to our Creator for all of His abundant blessings.

This is why people can be greatly saddened during the holidays if these meals do not function in this way. If its just a few people grabbing a pizza, then something feels off. This is why it is important to invite others to your High Thanksgiving Meal if others have lost their family either through death, bitter break ups, or distance in geography. Everyone needs High Meals in their lives, and great sadness lingers if they are missed for some reason.

And yet, there is still a higher meal than Thanksgiving, and it is called ‘The Eucharist.’ Ironically, this Greek word translates as ‘thanksgiving’ or ‘to give thanks,’ and it refers to the great gift of Christ’s Presence to us in Holy Communion at our Sunday gatherings. Every Sunday is a Thanksgiving meal! The 1st century document, the Didache, states,

“But concerning the Eucharist, after this fashion give ye thanks. First, concerning the cup. We thank thee, our Father, for the holy vine, David thy Son, which thou hast made known unto us through Jesus Christ thy Son; to thee be the glory for ever. And concerning the broken bread…”

I would make the case that if we neglect to celebrate and partake of the Eucharist on a regularly basis, then the rest of our meals will eventually lose their taste. If we forget to gather with God’s family, we will eventually forget to know how to properly gather with our own families. If we forget to give thanks with God’s family on Sundays, we will eventually forget to give thanks to God on Thanksgiving Thursday. If we forget the joy of Sundays, then any lasting pleasure we receive Monday through Saturday will eventually fade.

This is why it is essential for our families to surrender our lesser meals and even our higher meals to the Great Meal. We need to for the sake of our souls and the soul of our society. So raise your glass this thanksgiving, but remember that it will eventually be an empty glass if we do not remember the Chalice that is filled with the joy of our salvation, Christ’s own divine life in the Eucharist. Thanksgiving Thursday still needs Thanksgiving Sundays.

Be entirely His and Happy Thanksgiving!

Kyle King

Thanksgiving with the Church Fathers

Take care, then, to use one Eucharist, so that whatever you do, you do according to God: FOR THERE IS ONE FLESH OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, and one cup IN THE UNION OF HIS BLOOD; one ALTAR, as there is one bishop with the presbytery… (Letter to the Philadelphians 4:1) -St. Ignatius of Antioch, 107 AD

“They [i.e. the Gnostics] abstain from the Eucharist and from prayer, because they do not confess that THE EUCHARIST IS THE FLESH OF OUR SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST, flesh which suffered for our sins and which the Father, in his goodness, raised up again.” (Letter to Smyrnians 7:1) --St. Ignatius of Antioch, 107 AD

For not as common bread nor common drink do we receive these; but since Jesus Christ our Savior was made incarnate by the word of God and had both flesh and blood for our salvation, so too, as we have been taught, the food which has been made into the Eucharist by the Eucharistic prayer set down by Him, AND BY THE CHANGE OF WHICH our blood and flesh is nourished, IS BOTH THE FLESH AND THE BLOOD OF THAT INCARNATED JESUS. (First Apology, 66) --St. Justin the Martyr, 150 AD

Moreover, as I said before, concerning the sacrifices which you at that time offered, God speaks through Malachi [1:10-12]…It is of the SACRIFICES OFFERED TO HIM IN EVERY PLACE BY US, the Gentiles, that is, OF THE BREAD OF THE EUCHARIST AND LIKEWISE OF THE CUP OF THE EUCHARIST, that He speaks at that time; and He says that we glorify His name, while you profane it. (Dialogue with Trypho, 41) --St. Justin the Martyr, 150 AD