THANKSGIVING 2009 - GIVING THANKS AS AMERICAN CITIZENS AND CHRISTIAN DISCIPLES.........

Our pilgrim forebearers marked being in our New Land for their first year, by celebrating a feast with family and neighbors, to give praise to God and acknowledge their blessings, we call ThanksGiving. ThanksGiving Day, 388 years later has become a four day weekend national holiday that brings family and friends together from near and far. My ThanksGiving Day Mass today I celebrated at St. Philomene's, offering as my personal intentions, gratitude to God, my living donor Victor, Mayo Clinic Arizona Transplant Team, and my family, friends, and fellow believers, for your help and support in seeing me through to a successful kidney transplant. Present with me at St. Philomene's this morning were some 130 persons, giving their own thanks to God for the blessings of life and faith. Included among them was my second month primary 24/7 caregiver in Phoenix, Jeremy Lipp, and his mother, Patty. As we came to the conclusion of our Thanksgiving Day Eucharist, I acknowledged Jeremy's presence and contribution to my convalescence after transplant, as well as welcomed home all our visiting loved ones, and remembered all our military men and women serving in the two wars our country is engaged in. A special blessing was then given over the foods surrounding the cornucopia displayed before the altar of sacrifice, which will be served at parishioners dinner tables today. As you and yours celebrate this ThanksGiving may you be grateful for the blessings of life, family, faith, friendship, fellowship, and fidelity, to our one true and infinite King, Jesus the Christ. Happy Turkey Day !!!!!!!!! gobble gobble !! Gratefully + Thankfully Yours, Fr. Troy

EVENING POSTSCRIPT : My dear friend Teres Mugnaini, with an assist from her mother Ramona Bugatto, and a salad by her sister in law Julie, provided a delectable ThanksGiving Dinner for her family, her college sophomore son Chris' girlfriend Clare, and yours truly. Teres, Mike her husband, and daughter Lauren, a high school senior drive to Fresno Friday morning where Lauren will compete in the State Meet for Track, Saturday morning. Lauren is a prolific runner. Good luck in your three mile race on Saturday Lauren...Meanwhile her younger brother, Alex, who is quite a baseball player and an all star champion, was notified by Stanford University that they are watching him as a baseball player. I baptized the three Mugnaini children and am Alex's godfather...Way to GO !!! CLA MUGS.........tdp