By Rev. Dr. Angelique Walker-Smith
“Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with thanksgiving.” Colossians 4:2
“Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love.” I John 4:8
Recently, I celebrated the life and legacy of Bishop Elizabeth Anne Henning Byfield and Bishop Professor Dr. David D. Daniels III with many of you globally. I was honored to know both well and worked with them for many years. They left profound contributions to the churches and many outside of the churches. Their lives testified to the power of living lives that demonstrated thanksgiving, courage, and the power of abiding love.
In my letters and remarks about them, I cited the following scripture as one of the texts that their lives answered “Yes” to! They knew the Lord had commanded them to be strong and courageous and not discouraged in their faith.
Joshua 1:9 declares, 9 I hereby command you: Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”
We come to another season of Thanksgiving and a holy-day season where we, too, are asked this same question they answered with their lives. The answer of yes to this question suggests a willingness to have an abiding love for others in our hearts and minds, as well as actions of thanksgiving to God and appreciation of others. Such suggests an abiding love for loveliness and a rejoicing of truth, hope, and kindness—but also honor, perseverance, long-suffering, patience, and love, as described in I Corinthians 13.
Our Indigenous leaders and communities of 90 Wampanoag people, who hosted the white settlers in Plymouth (now in Massachusetts) in 1621 and Indigenous leaders who hosted settlers in Virginia in 1619, demonstrated these gifts at the first “American Thanksgiving.”
Sadly, then and still today, Indigenous Peoples in the United States—and globally—are still not regarded in ways that fully uplift and celebrate their dignity and human rights despite the recent change of the U.S. holiday to recognize these nations and communities in October. Indigenous Peoples are global and include not only those who were already in North America before the settlers came from Europe but also thousands of Indigenous African peoples who were forced to come to North America and those who have come later by choice.
The new presidential and congressional leadership teams will come to power in 2025 in the United States. The election season has shown what is best and worst among us regarding “othering” and much more. It will take courage, abiding love, and hearts of thanksgiving to move beyond the rancor, divisiveness, and violence in the United States and the world.
In 2023, 47.4 million people, including 13.8 million children, were food insecure in the United States, and these trends have contributed to this. Too often, they are also “othered.” Bread for the World invites hearts and minds of thanksgiving, courage, and love so our children can have a brighter future and not be “othered.” Please go here to be a part of the launch of our Nourish Our Future campaign on February 4, 2025.
Angelique Walker-Smith is a senior associate for Pan-African and Orthodox Church engagement at Bread for the World.
