(Image via Wikipedia)
Thanksgiving is a uniquely American celebration that began nearly four centuries ago with a deeply religious people, the Pilgrims, giving thanks to God for preserving them though a very hard year and bringing them their first bountiful harvest which they gratefully shared with their indigenous neighbors.
It was our first President George Washington who proclaimed that our first official national day of public thanksgiving should be dedicated by observing and:
“…by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God.“
In recent years the ‘politically correct’/secular crowd has rewritten the history of the first Thanksgiving to place an emphasis upon the hand that the indigenous American Indians played in helping the original Pilgrim community to survive. In the process they have redirected the emphasis on thanks towards the neighbors and away from the providence of Almighty God.
In his official recognition and Proclamation of Thanksgiving 2009, our most secular President Obama continues the PC view and takes it to another level calling the nation to observe the following during this Thanksgiving:
“…I encourage all the people of the United States to come together, whether in our homes, places of worship, community centers, or any place where family, friends and neighbors may gather, with gratitude for all we have received in the past year; to express appreciation to those whose lives enrich our own; and to share our bounty with others.”
Notice that he makes no mention of thanking God in his proclamation—probably the first President to ignore the Almighty during this celebration. While it is always good to be thankful for others who have enriched our own lives and certainly that has a good part to play in the celebration. Nevertheless the major emphasis of Thanksgiving should always be upon God as it was at the very first.
Sorry Mr. President, for me and my family we will be praising and thanking the Lord God Almighty for the bounties and the providence that he has bestowed upon us this year in the name of his Son Jesus Christ.