Happy Thanksgiving! The Meaning of Our Uniquely American Holiday
“Today, O faithful, sing to God your thanksgiving hymns; learning Scripture’s command to give thanks with heart as well as lips, and to seal heart and lips with blessed deeds. Let America play her thankful part among the nations, giving praise to our saving Lord, the benefactor of our souls.” —Byzantine Catholic prayer for Thanksgiving
“I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought, and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.” —GK Chesterton
Happy Thanksgiving! It is not only a holiday unique to America, it is a holiday uniquely American. It celebrates the coming together of different people and different cultures to thank God and appreciate what both the individual and the community have achieved.
During the past few years, it has seemed harder and harder to feel optimistic about the future, and it might seem as if we have little to be grateful for. Yesterday, a priest reminded me how subjective our standards can be. Even with the economic and energy crises, the stolen election, and the other serious problems in this nation, most of us this Thanksgiving will probably not have to worry about a clean water supply, some sort of shelter, or a radical jihadi bursting through the door, as so many millions around the world do.
I explained the history and essence of Thanksgiving last year:
“Thanksgiving is the emblematic American holiday, with a history rich in all the traditions and beliefs that make up the best of the American spirit and identity. At the first Thanksgiving, 400 years ago, American Indians and European settlers alike gathered together in friendship and harmony to celebrate the gifts and blessings of the God Who made them all in His image. George Washington, the Father of our Country, first (when the US had become the US) proclaimed a day of thanksgiving, and later President Lincoln, the man who saved the Union, in conjunction with his secretary of state William Seward, established what became the beloved national holiday we have today. A female magazine editor was instrumental in the latter holiday establishment, too, and the manuscript of Lincoln’s proclamation was sold to benefit Union troops (at a time when there were many black as well as white troops).
Thus Thanksgiving, as a holiday centering around family, patriotism, and pious gratitude to God, as a holiday with a history involving the inspirational acts of individuals of multiple races and both sexes, is truly a symbol of American greatness, America at its best, America as it always should be.”