Thanksgiving Sunday
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Thanksgiving Sunday was an All Ages service featuring the story of Naamah, Noah's wife. Hymns and songs, projected images and words, a narrated play and litanies of thankgsiving all developed the theme of thanksgiving for the gifts of the earth.The service began with the litany of the seed which young and not so young learned to recite together. The message for the day came through the enactment of the story of Naamah, who gathered and protected the seeds of all the plants of the earth during the long time of the flood.  | |
God called out to Naamah, "Walk across the land and gather two of every kind of living plant and bring them into the ark." Naamah gathered the plants in her apron with many pockets and planted the seeds in clay pots.
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As the rains came down, Naamah carefully tended her garden on the ark and collected the seeds from the plants. After forty days and nights, wind swept over the waters and the rain ceased. Naamah looked at the sky in wonder.
 Naamah sent Raven out to scout for dry land and to plant an olive seed. When Dove returned with an olive branch, Naamah knew it was time to leave the ark and to place all the seeds in the new soft earth.
 God was pleased with Naamah's work. To this day, whenever someone digs in the earth and plants a seed God remembers the Mother of Seed and Naamah's garden continues to grow.At the close of our Thanksgiving service, each worshipper received a bulb to plant at home—a promise of the gift of growth and a reminder of our God of abundance.  |