God of the Circular Table

a prayer for Thanksgiving Week

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The following is a caim, or an “encircling” prayer. In the wisdom of Celtic thought, these prayers would be said when walking in a circle around a person or place as a symbol of protection, or surrounding.

To symbolize the way God surrounds us with His peace, you could say this prayer while walking, while embracing, while seated around a table at meals, while drawing a circle with your finger on the tabletop or in the air…or even while stirring your morning coffee.

O God of the circular table
where no one is head
and no one is foot:

surround us when we gather
and surround us when we are alone. 

keep gratitude within
keep greed without.

keep health within
keep need without.

let us pause to wrap our arms around our blessings,
count them, one by one,
and then send them out
to bless the wanting. 

for what we have was never ours
but spills from the round cup
of Your generosity;

O God of the circular table
encircle us,

draw us near to Your Kingdom
of perfect generosity,
where no one is head
and no one is foot. 

This week, as you may very well know, the United States observes the holiday of Thanksgiving. As a child it was always one of my favorite holidays. I have so many fond memories of seeing beloved relatives, decorating the table, and eating foods that we never ate at any other time of the year. There was a quiet magic to it, something so different from Hallowe’en or Christmas. Slower. Calmer.

But you know what? Thanksgiving is kinda complicated.

Even if your family gets along, getting everyone together for a big meal is always complicated. And in reality, most of us have something that adds extra complexity and even pain to the holiday: tensions, traumas, estrangement, long distances, deaths, changes in health, etc. With all this in the landscape, some opt into gatherings of found-family instead, and some opt out altogether.

The national history and origins of the holiday are complicated. There are good things about it, and also awful things. There are legacies we would rather forget. There are things we’ve painted over in an effort to feel better about ourselves.

The overconsumption is complicated. In a culture where overconsumption is normal, a holiday celebrating “feasting” feels…a little like overkill.

“Gratitude” is complicated. It can so easily become just a word, a thing we say and repeat and echo instead of a posture we adopt. One day of gratitude a year is like one day of exercise a year; it’s really not going to do a whole lot for our overall health.

And yet.

Call me crazy, but I still think Thanksgiving is an important date to keep on the national calendar. Why?

Because it’s a weird little holiday. Uncanny, even. And weird is good. It shakes up the system, gets our blood pumping.

No matter how much the culture machine tries to turn it into a marketing opportunity with Black Friday, Thanksgiving itself remains a steadfast outlier. A malleable celebration, a moveable feast. It takes the shape of whatever each family or group of found-family or individual decides it should be. And there’s something really profound about that. So few holidays allow us that flexibility.

This year, whether you’re observing the holiday with family, with friends, or alone (or whether you’re skipping it altogether, or don’t observe it at all) I pray that the God who specializes in moveable feasts—desert wanderer He has always been, Giver of nourishment along the path of pilgrimage—finds you where you are and blesses you. I pray that you’ll feel surrounded by His grace, a tangible and comforting thing.

I pray that this Thanksgiving becomes a pocket of uncanny peace for you in a remarkably chaotic world.

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