Robinology ~~ Hows Your Thanksgiving History? Abraham Lincoln issued the first executive proclamation establishing a national holiday of Thanksgiving on the last Thursday of November. He did so in the midst of the Civil War, in part to foster a sense of unity between the South and the North. His Oct. 3, 1863, proclamation called for a day of “Thanksgiving and Praise,” noting that “in the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity,” the U.S. should give thanks that peace “has been preserved with all nations, order had been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theater of military conflict.” Lincoln noted that the costly war had “not arrested the plow, the shuttle or the ship,” that “the ax has enlarged the borders of our settlements and the mines … have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore.” These “great things” were clearly “gracious gifts of the Most High God,” and should be “solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged” in a “Day of Thanksgiving and Praise.” Lincoln asked that people pray also that the Almighty “heal the wounds of the nation and restore it…to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility and Union.” Thanksgiving was not a day for shopping or football, but for giving thanks for our blessings and praying for peace and unity. It was only with the abolition of slavery that Thanksgiving finally became a holiday that was celebrated across the nation. Now, if you still believe it is about the White Man invaders and the first Native American Citizens, you must have graduated HS in TEXAS.
Posted on: Thu, 28 Nov 2013 05:08:15 +0000
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