|
November - December 2001 The Sabbath Sentinel
The Great Thanksgiving Day Disappearing Act
by Kenneth Ryland
|
The First Thanksgiving
This is the way the feast was described in a first-hand
account presumably by a leader of the colony, Edward Winslow,
as it appears in Mourt's Relation:
"Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on
fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice
together after we had gathered the fruit of our labors. They
four in one day killed as much fowl as, with a little help
beside, served the company almost a week. At which time,
amongst other recreations, we exercised our arms, many of the
Indians coming amongst us, and among the rest their greatest
King Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we
entertained and feasted, and they went out and killed five
deer, which they brought to the plantation and bestowed on our
governor, and upon the captain and others. And although it be
not always so plentiful as it was this time with us, yet by
the goodness of God, we are so far from want that we often
wish you partakers of our plenty."
--- Excerpted from www.pilgrims.net.
For the last several years the last week of November has been a
time of sadness for me. I lament the loss of Thanksgiving from
our national calendar. To be sure, the day is still listed in
the month of November every year, but its importance as a
national day of recognition of the blessings and protection of
Almighty God over our nation and over our personal lives is all
but gone. We still get together as families; the family is the
last bastion of "thanksgiving" to God in our great
country. However, in the malls and public squares, there is not
even a shadow of remembrance of our need of gratitude for the
Lord's giving us such favor among nations. Will it be different
this year since we suffered to terrorist attack of September 11?
I recently came across a copy of George Washington's
Thanksgiving Proclamation of 1789. Read through our first
president's words, and you will see a very different idea of what
he thought America was and was destined to become. He relates it
all to the Almighty's purpose in making our people the caretakers
of His divine largesse in the newly independent united States of
America (yes, that's an uncapitalized "united" States -- another
indication of how he and the other founders viewed the government
in our nation's capital).
I would like to draw your attention particularly to
the paragraph near the bottom that begins, "And also that ..." The
champions of modern secularism would cringe at the words of many of
our early presidents if they were ever to give them serious
attention (by ignoring them, they pretend that such ideas were
never in the minds of our national forebears).
For example, President Washington proclaimed that our
new nation was to undertake the following: "... to protect and
guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shown
kindness to us), and to bless them with good governments, peace,
and concord; ..."
Yes, our people were to become the missionaries of
this new type of government -- the representative republic. And,
our national mission included the need "to promote the knowledge
and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of
science among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind
such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be
best."
Well, there you have it. One integral part of our
national mission was to promote "the practice of true religion and
virtue," which to the people of Washington's day was Christianity.
And, in that national Christian atmosphere, to promote "science,"
which included not just science as we know it, but learning in
general, which has always been the route to freedom and
prosperity.
Whereas it is the duty of all nations
to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey
His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to
implore His protection and favor; and Whereas both
Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee,
requested me "to recommend to the people of the United
States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be
observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many
and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by
affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a
form of government for their safety and happiness:"
Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the
26th day of November next, to be devoted by the people
of these States to the service of that great and
glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the
good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may
then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and
humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the
people of this country previous to their becoming a
nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the
favorable interpositions of His providence in the course
and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of
tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since
enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which
we have been enable to establish constitutions of
government for our safety and happiness, and
particularly the national one now lately instituted' for
the civil and religious liberty with which we are
blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and
diffusing useful knowledge; and, in general, for all the
great and various favors which He has been pleased to
confer upon us.
And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering
our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and
Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national
and other transgressions; to enable us all, whether in
public or private stations, to perform our several and
relative duties properly and punctually; to render our
National Government a blessing to all the people by
constantly being a Government of wise, just, and
constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed
and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and
nations (especially such as have shown kindness to us),
and to bless them with good governments, peace, and
concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true
religion and virtue, and the increase of science among
them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind
such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows
to be best.
Given under my hand, at the city of New York, the 3d day
of October, A.D. 1789.
|
TSS
November - December 2001 The Sabbath Sentinel
|