November 23, 2017 Thursday)
In 1621, the Pilgrims at Plymouth Rock who came over on the Mayflower the previous year celebrated with a fall harvest feast. In all likelihood, they ate venison. British colonists in Virginia, a year before the arrival of the Pilgrims, celebrated with roast pig, proclaiming December 4, 1619 as a day of thanksgiving to be observed every year. Today we usually have turkey, along with other delights. Whatever we serve, “the meal’s the thing” at Thanksgiving. We want everyone who joins us at our table to enjoy it.
George Washington proclaimed the first national Thanksgiving Day in 1789, but his successors did not follow suit until Abraham Lincoln proclaimed it in 1863. All the presidents since have proclaimed a national day of Thanksgiving each year.
Where it began and what was the main course of the meal, and when it became a national observance are questions of interest to us, but of little importance when we consider the meaning of the day. It is a day to give thanks to God for being our God and making Himself known to us. We thank Him for His blessings upon us. That’s our way.
This is also a day for family. All across the nation, families gather for the meal and usually a special prayer of thanks. It’s a holiday that has not yet become glitzy and commercialized. It’s a family time. It’s a faith time. It’s a good day. May you enjoy your Thanksgiving Day today. May it turn out to be a great blessing for you.
Incidentally, Coronado and his fellow explorers observed a day of Thanksgiving at the Palo Duro Canyon in what is now the Texas Panhandle in 1514. The Texas Society Daughters of the American Colonists commemorated the event as the “first Thanksgiving” in 1959. Once again, we Texans have struck a mighty blow for the Lone Star State. Don’t know what they ate, but they probably barbecued it.
Repeated from November 22, 2007