Thanksgiving is a traditional celebration that has its roots in the end of the 16th century and the beginning of the 17th. In 1789, George Washington declared it a national holiday. Thanksgiving as we celebrate it today, however, dates back to 1863 when Abraham Lincoln officially made it recurrent on the last Thursday of November. Traditionally, Thanksgiving has been understood as a twofold holiday with a cultural-historical and religious dimension. People not only celebrated the earlier tradition of the first harvest but also offered a prayer of gratitude to God. This prayer had different purposes over time such as thanking God for His blessings, showing gratitude for the protection during the Revolutionary War, or remembering the fallen soldiers in the Civil War.
Thanksgiving has been controversial since the very beginning. Regrettably, the number of people who reject Thanksgiving is increasing each year. Around 10% of the population in the United States-–or 35 million people—have stopped celebrating the well-regarded holiday so far. One of the major arguments against Thanksgiving is the allegation that it introduces religion to American society. The argument is as old as time.
There are many of us who still emphasize the traditional view of Thanksgiving. But in the last decades, our modern society has strongly disregarded the religious dimension of the holiday by promoting it as the unofficial start of winter or Black Friday’s eve. I note a major issue with this approach because the twofold dimension of Thanksgiving is not only rooted in American history but also is noteworthy for being celebrated. Celebrating Thanksgiving may allow us to appreciate God’s grace in our historical past and today. In reflecting on my experience, Thanksgiving is still of great moral significance.
Thanksgiving Brings People Together
I still remember the first Thanksgiving dinner I had following my move to Michigan. That fall season, I had a series of experiences that made me question why I should be thankful: cold temperatures, darker days, sleep issues because of the daylight savings time, and a hard time getting accustomed to local food and eating habits.
As someone from Costa Rica (a country that does not have seasons like North America does), experiencing the cold fall season and seeing the falling of tree leaves was simply shocking. I was accustomed to seeing trees always green the whole year! I was also accustomed to temperatures around 75F or higher. I often preferred to stay at home, enjoying some black espresso coffee rather than being out. If these reasons were not enough, being a vegetarian made it difficult to appreciate the Thanksgiving feast, which includes turkey.
I expected my first Thanksgiving would make me feel uncomfortable, but to my surprise, it did not happen! The host—who was my pastoral mentor that year—invited me, along with all his close and extended family, to celebrate Thanksgiving. We gathered together in a church’s convening space, where I had the blessing of meeting many people. At the end of the night, we all briefly shared some reasons we were thankful. How I enjoyed that night! First, it was good to hear stories of how merciful God is. Second, the holiday finished with a powerful prayer. Third, there was a lot of vegetarian food available. And fourth, it did not even snow that evening.
With this first celebration, I had the opportunity to observe how Thanksgiving unified people around common values. There were around one hundred people; some were Christians, while some were not. Regardless of their religious beliefs, we were there expressing our gratitude for our blessings we had received during the year.
My last celebration of Thanksgiving was smaller, but equally special and impacting. It happened at the time I was recovering from surgery. It was a means to express publicly my gratitude to God and to notice what He has done in others as well. It was also an opportunity to receive compassion and words of encouragement.
Thanksgiving Challenges Our Comfort Zone
Even though Costa Rica does not celebrate Thanksgiving, this holiday has challenged me in significant ways.
Throughout the years of living in Michigan, I learned about the Pilgrims and their encounter with the American Native people. I started making connections with my own background. I found significant similarities between this event and the encounter between Christopher Columbus and the Native people of Latin America.
I’m aware that not all the events in history are worth celebrating, although it is important to remember and reflect on them. In his 1905 book, The Life of Reason, Spanish philosopher George Santayana put it this way: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” Here, Santayana reminds us that the history of a people can provide us with insightful lessons, and if those lessons are ignored, future generations can fall into the same errors.
It was beneficial to have my comfort zone challenged in my celebrations of Thanksgiving. Remembering the past does not have to be painful. Instead, it can serve as a means to think, reflect, and work towards the betterment of society.
Thanksgiving Helps Us Develop A Mindful Heart
Reducing Thanksgiving to a mere dinner, or using it exclusively as a mark for the start of Black Friday or the winter season troubles me. Celebrating Thanksgiving holistically is more than this! It is a great season to sharpen our hearts.
Although Thanksgiving does not resemble any biblical feast, it does not mean the Scriptures say nothing about being thankful. Scripture contains several references to thanksgiving as a spiritual discipline and act of worship.
Among the texts about thanksgiving, here are my three favorites in Scripture:
Psalm 28:7 (NIV) – “The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.”
Psalm 100:4 (NIV) – “Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.”
Psalm 107:1 (NIV) – “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.”
Overall, I have offered three brief reasons why we should promote further reflection on the value and significance of Thanksgiving for us today. Even for those who don’t profess a faith such as Christianity, Thanksgiving is a wonderful opportunity to show appreciation for other people. Thanksgiving promotes unity by transcending our differences, calls us to think and reflect, and helps us develop a life of gratitude.
(by Isaias D’Oleo Ochoa, PhD Student)