Take the Catholic Online Thanksgiving Challenge!

Thanksgiving is supposed to be a holiday filled with family and food, often spent on televised parades and football, and naps after lunch. Kids play in the yard or the streets as everybody generally has a good time. However, this is not the case for millions of Americans who are not celebrating Thanksgiving for one reason or another.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Few things can shake a person's confidence in the goodness of humanity than to be left alone on a holiday that is supposed to be about coming together. Whether it's because their family moved on, their health has faltered, or they are outcast in some way, doesn't matter so much. As America celebrates and gives thanks, there are millions who are shut in or shut out.

Thanksgiving is a time for us to reflect on our blessings, but what is the purpose of blessing? We know we are given many talents, but those talents are not to be buried, as we may be tempted to do. Instead, we are called to invest our talents in others.

Don't know anybody shut-in? Give here to complete your challenge!

Pope Francis has set the example. More than any pope in decades, he has made a point of ministering to the social outcasts, the sick and infirm, and those who are shut-in away from the world. From prisoners to the mentally ill, Pope Francis has taken great pains to provide pastoral care to these people.

Likewise, we are called to follow his example. Our Holy Father does not do what he does to promote himself -he does it to lead by example. To show us that we should have no fear in sharing Christian love with our neighbors. It does not matter why our neighbors are shut in or shunned. It does not matter if they belong to another faith besides ours, or even if they are atheists. We are called to share our bounty with everybody.

This Thanksgiving holiday, we challenge you to reach out to someone you know who might not be enjoying Thanksgiving with family or friends. It may be someone in your own family, or it could be a neighbor. It could even be a stranger on a bus or in the street. It does not matter who the person is, or why they suffer. Even if they are reclusive by their own fault, every human being, even the worst felon, deserves to know the love of God because they belong to God and He will it. "Love one another," is the new commandment. It comes with no exceptions and it even extends to your enemies!

We challenge you to extend a kind word, a good deed, a plate of food, or an invitation. If you know someone far away, then perhaps the best you can do is make a phone call. Five minutes on the phone can make a world of difference for someone this Thanksgiving.

Extending a hand of friendship or a plate of food can be really hard sometimes, but we must not shy away from doing hard things. After all, we follow the example of Christ who went to the cross for a crime He did not commit. He paid for our sins with great suffering. Knowing this, can we really complain about difficulty?

This Thanksgiving, let's do more than say thanks. Let's take the Catholic Online Thanksgiving Challenge and show that we are thankful through both 'Prayer and Action!'

Here's another way to complete your challenge, donate in response to Pope Francis' call to 'Prayer and Action' to end world hunger by 2025.

---

'Help Give every Student and Teacher FREE resources for a world-class Moral Catholic Education'