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

Happy Thanksgiving! It is not only a holiday unique to America, it is a holiday uniquely American. 

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.

Thanksgiving is a holiday with a history including acts from the Pilgrims, Native American Indians, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, William Seward, and magazine editor Sarah Josepha Hale. 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