In Celebration of Gratitude: Bedford’s Interfaith Thanksgiving Service

By Julie McCay Turner

The Bedford Clergy Association invited all Bedford residents to St. Paul’s Episcopal Church on Sunday afternoon, November 18, for the town’s traditional interfaith Thanksgiving service.The services have taken place for more than 40years, although the time has been changed to Sunday from the evening before Thanksgiving, when families were busy preparing for the next day’s celebrations.

Participating clergy included Rev. Christopher Wendell, rector of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church; Rev. John Gibbons and Rev. Megan Lynes of First Parish Unitarian Universalist; Rev.Elizabeth Waters of the First Church of Christ Congregational; Rev. Dr. Lorrie Dunham, a United Church of Christ minister who grew up in Bedford; and Rabbi Susan Abramson, a Bedford resident and rabbi of Temple Shalom Emeth in Burlington.

In addition to readings, reflections and blessings by members of the clergy association, the service featured songs of gratitude and praise, offered by choirs, choruses and musical ensembles from seven houses of worship.Following the offerings from the individual choral groups, the musicians joined in The Choir of Many Voices led by Bradford Conner, First Parish on the Common’s director of music who said “[this collaboration] shows that while we sing for the pleasure it gives us, we also sing because it allows us to be part of a larger community and to share our joy with others.”

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Loj-7eMLCTM?rel=0&w=640&h=360]

The service began with the presentation of the colors by the Bedford Minutemen and the delivery of Governor Deval Patrick’s Thanksgiving message by Catherine Cordes, chair of Bedford’s Board of Selectmen. A freewill offering to benefit the Bedford Food Pantry was collected, and a brief reception followed the service.

St. Paul’s rector, Rev. Christopher Wendell, offered the final blessing:

May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships, so that you may live deep within your heart. 

May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that you may work for justice, freedom and peace. 

May God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection,starvation and war, so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and to turn their pain into joy.

And may God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you can make a difference in this world, so that you can do what others claim cannot be done. Amen.