The story of Squanto is inspiring. Who among us in this room would be as selfless, as willing to give to others as he was. Even more deeply considered, how many of us would give so meaningfully to others who represented those who had destroyed our tribe, our family. His story remains such an inspiration because he acted with radical hospitality and compassion to welcome the Pilgrims to his world. It would have been far easier to have acted from fear and tried to run these white devils into the sea. But neither he, nor the Wampanoag chief, Massasoit, acted from that instinct. It is also important to note that they welcomed the intruders when they were at their weakest point and could have easily been defeated. They acted from the best part of their Wampanoag culture which maintained that all beings are related.

When the Mayflower had arrived at Cape Cod, then, subsequently at Plymouth, it is usually assumed that the Pilgrims landed in Plymouth and began to build a settlement. That is not actually what happened. They arrived on Nov 9 in present day Provincetown, Cape Cod, harbor and sent a group ashore to explore. They found a number of burial mounds in present day Eastham and looted them for the corn and other preserved food. The local tribe, the Nausets, were, understandably, upset. It would be like them coming into a cemetery that held the remains of our relatives and digging them up and taking sacred objects from them. This continued for 10 days or so, then the party was driven back onto the ship by the Nausets. The Mayflower then sailed around the tip of Cape Cod over to Plymouth, there landed briefly, then went back to Provincetown harbor and stayed there from late November until late March of 1621, preferring the safety and shelter of the ship during a cold New England winter. Only then did they return to Plymouth and begin to construct a settlement on shore. That is the moment that Squanto appeared, speaking fluent English and offering his help.

When they arrived in Provincetown harbor on Nov 9 all but one of the original 102 who had set sail from England were still on the Mayflower. When they finally stepped ashore at Plymouth in that last week of March, there were 53 left. An epidemic of a combination of “scurvy, pneumonia, and tuberculosis” had killed 48, almost half the Pilgrims and crew. Those who survived were very weak. They were barely able to do the hard work necessary to construct shelter. This is the group that Squanto encountered and with whom he began to work side by side, teaching them much of what they needed to know to survive in this New World.

Where does compassion for others and the urge to welcome the “stranger” come from? As with many Native Americans, Squanto came from a tribal spiritual tradition of generosity. It has always been a part of native cultures to give to others what is precious to them. The Christian groups who later worked to convert the natives to Christianity used this characteristic to attack the worth of the native cultures saying it was childlike to act in such a naïve way. Quite the opposite of course. The Wampanoag spiritual tradition was based on the belief that the Great Spirit had given all beings equal status, that all living things are brothers and sisters, thus creating the basis for the compassion and radical hospitality that they practiced.

The indigenous peoples do not have a monopoly on compassion and radical hospitality, of course. It seems to be hard wired in humans to act with such kindness, just as it seems hard wired to act at other times with selfishness and violence. The question is always, which side of us will win?

Others who we think of practicing such compassion include Father Damien, the priest who helped create the leper colony on Molokai in the Hawaian Islands, during the late 1800’s. It was a time that leprosy was so feared that the ships bringing the patients would simply drop them into the water along with their belongings rather than to touch the shore. Father Damien lived there, constructing a colony of homes and caring for those in greatest need. He would hold and bath each persons sores, he protected them from those who would mistreat them from the outside world, until he died of the disease himself. Compassion and radical hospitality.

Another example is Mother Teresa. You know the story. She lived among the poorest of the poor on earth in Calcutta, India. For forty five years she tended to those who were dying with AIDs and other diseases. She founded the Missionaries of Charity which eventually became a worldwide network of caring. A diminutive Catholic nun from Albania, she is the epitome of radical hospitality and compassion.

Notice that both Father Damien and Mother Teresa are Christians, Catholics by faith. They represent some of the best of that faith. Those guided to act compassionately in the world out of love and a deep faith in the divine. They carry out compassionate acts in the name of Jesus, who healed the sick and welcomed the outcasts.

How are Unitarian Universalists moved to act compassionately? From where does our inspiration come? Christianity and indigenous traditions remain two of the major sources for our present day principles. And three of those principles can inspire us to act with compassion and radical hospitality.

First, our belief in the inherent worth and dignity of every person. Every person, be they native or white, black or brown, gay or straight, every person on Earth, even those with whom we strongly disagree, deserve to be treated with compassion. And welcomed as a friend.

Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations is the next principle to bring into the light. The core of being spiritual IS acting with compassion and welcoming with radical hospitality! And to accept, and love, each other in our own immediate spiritual community, despite our own warts and the warts of those toward whom we act with love, is some of the most powerful life work that any of us have.

And finally, to respect the interdependent web of which we all are a part is a coded way to say we are all brothers and sisters on this third planet from the sun living our lives out with as much love and care as we are capable, and that we are related to all living things.

Let’s go back to Plymouth colony in November of 1621. Because of Squanto’s great generosity of heart and his hard work, the colony was saved. Along with the help of the local Wampanoags, and the Pilgrim’s own hard work. The fifty or so Pilgrims who were left had solid native designed homes in which to live, there were plenty of crops put up to eat for the winter, the fishing was great, the hunting was spectacular thanks to the guidance of Massasoit and his warriors, and survival was assured. Our ancestors and the Wampanoag people then sat down and feasted in celebration of both the bounty of the harvest and the shared friendship of two very different peoples. Gratitude flowed as turkey, quail, venison, cranberries, seafood, squash, corn, and many other foods were shared in the way that Nathan described in his lovely service on the spirituality of food. It is this spirit of gratitude and blessing that we celebrate anew this coming Thursday on Thanksgiving Day. It is sad beyond words that this moment of mutual care and respect did not last.

We all know what came after. The breakdown of the relationships between the two groups happened slowly, over fifty years or so. More and more whites came making more and more demands on the tribes. These new arrivals had not been recipients of the earlier generosity of the local peoples. Respect and care began to erode. Eventually violence began.

I like to think of that first Thanksgiving Day feast as a moment similar to the legend of Camelot. For one brief shining moment, the best of humanity was displayed. As Squanto and Massasoit sat in places of honor at the Thanksgiving table, and all, native and pilgrim, joined together in a prayer of gratitude, for that moment, all was well in the universe. It is this shining moment we celebrate on Thursday.

May we always remember the loving, heroic acts of Squanto and the Wampanoag people. May we be grateful for all kindness. For all acts of compassion and radical hospitality.

May each of us have the courage to act with such compassion in our own lives.

Mitakuye oyasin. We are all related.

Amen.