The Thankful Leper

 

¹¹ And it came to pass, as he went to Jerusalem, that he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee.

¹² And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off:

¹³ And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.

¹⁴ And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.

¹⁵ And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God,

¹⁶ And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan.

¹⁷ And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine?

¹⁸ There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger.

¹⁹ And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole.

Luke 17:11-19 (KJV) Biblegateway

 

The Myth of Thanksgiving

By Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz

Thanksgiving is the favorite holiday of many US Americans; unlike the rather boring or divisive holidays that honor Columbus, Presidents, Martin Luther King, Jr., Independence, veterans and war, the birth of a religion, and a new year, Thanksgiving is centered on sharing food with family and friends. Individuals and families travel long distances at great expense to be with one another. It might be surprising to learn that the cherished tradition of Thanksgiving is, in fact, the most nationalist of all holidays because it narrates the national origin myth. The traditional meal, as we know, consists of the foods cultivated by Indigenous farmers—corn, squash, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, and turkey.

The US origin story of a covenant with God goes back to the Mayflower Compact, the first governing document of the Plymouth Colony. It is named for the ship that carried the hundred or so passengers, half of them religious dissidents, to what is now Cape Cod, Massachusetts, in November 1620. This compact marked the beginning of settler democracy, which from its inception sought the elimination of the Indigenous. Behind the black clothed and solemn “Pilgrims,” was a corporation of shareholders, the Virginia Company, accompanied by armed and seasoned mercenaries on a colonizing project ordered by the English King James. If any local Natives were present at a colonizers’ celebratory meal, they were surely there as servants, and the foods were confiscated, not offered as a gift.

“Thanksgiving” became a named holiday during the Civil War, but neither Pilgrims, nor Indians, nor food, nor the Mayflower—all essential to today’s celebration—were mentioned in Lincoln’s 1863 proclamation.

It was during the Great Depression that the Thanksgiving holiday was transformed into a nationalistic origin story to bind a chaotic society experiencing economic and social collapse. But this idea of the gift-giving Indian, helping to establish and enrich what would become the United States, is an insidious smoke screen meant to obscure the fact that the very existence of the country is a result of the looting of an entire continent and its resources.

In 1970, on the 350^th anniversary of the English settlers—“Pilgrims”—occupying land of the Wampanoag Nation, the United American Indians of New England led a protest of the Thanksgiving holiday, which they called a “National Day of Mourning.” Every year since that time, the National Day of Mourning has taken place at Plymouth Rock. They rightly accuse the United States government of having invented a myth to cover the reality of colonialism and attempted genocide. By Thanksgiving 1970, Native Americans from many Indigenous nations had been occupying Alcatraz Island for a year. It was the height of renewed Native resistance to US colonial institutions and calls for sovereignty and self-determination, which have continued and seen many victories as well as new obstacles. In 2007, after three decades of Indigenous Peoples’ lobbying, the United Nations General Assembly passed the “Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.”

Thanksgiving needs another transformation, a day to mourn US colonization and attempted genocide and celebrate the survival of Native Nations through their resistance.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Professor Dunbar-Ortiz has been active in the international Indigenous movement for more than four decades, and is author or editor of seven books including the recently published An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States.

Beacon Broadside 

The benefits of practicing gratitude

 

By Sylvia Huang

The benefits of practicing gratitude are innumerable. It helps release toxic emotions such as frustration, envy, regret and resentment while increasing sensitivity and empathy toward others. Being grateful also improves self-esteem and personal relationships by reducing social comparisons and supporting prosocial behavior.

While it’s common knowledge that cultivating gratitude is good for us, it’s not common practice for many of us. Here are five ways to change that.

1. Give thanks immediately upon waking.
   Every morning before jumping out of bed into the new day, pause for a few moments and give thanks for the following: the opportunity to live and experience another new day; the people in your life whom you love and who love you; the good night’s rest you just had; the work you get to go to later; the clothes that keep you warm, and the commute money you have so you don’t have to walk to work.
2. Give thanks before every meal.
   As you sit before your meal, make a quick mental note to feel thankful for the food that fuels your body and ultimately aids in the realization of your goals and dreams. Also give thanks to the meals for nourishing you and for giving you a breather to savor life in the midst of a crazy workday. If you happen to be with company, give thanks for the friendship, companionship and love you receive from the person you’re with.
3. Give thanks when moving or exercising.
   We often take for granted our good health and the freedom that comes with it. Whenever you’re walking, running or exercising, take the occasion to give thanks for having the ability to move as you wish and to stay fit. Especially when you’re in the midst of a tough workout routine, repeat in your heart, “I’m so grateful for my hands, legs, beating heart and good health.” This mantra never fails to keep me going till the end of the session and I hope it’ll work for you too.
4. Give thanks while showering or getting ready for bed.
   At the end of each day, wrap up the day by doing the following gratitude practice in your shower or when getting ready for bed: Give thanks for the day that has been completed. Focus on the parts of the day that went well. Next, give thanks for having a home to return to, a hot shower to keep you feeling fresh and clean, and a warm bed to sleep in later.
5. Give thanks each time something wonderful happens or when a problem is solved.
   Whenever something good happens or when you overcome a challenge or avert a crisis, take a moment to express your appreciation to the universe. It’s important to acknowledge the victory and the hard work that went into it and to soak in the relief before getting back into the humdrum of our daily lives. More often than not, it isn’t that good things don’t happen to us, it’s just that we don’t pay enough attention to them.   Psycentral