Making Thanksgiving Meaningful Again by Newt Gingrich

Making Thanksgiving Meaningful Again

This Thanksgiving, it's time to ensure that every young American and every immigrant who would become a new citizen learn about the historic origins and meaning of Thanksgiving.

In the popular media today, Thanksgiving is a time of turkey, too much food and the beginning of the Christmas shopping rush.

Yet, historically, Thanksgiving is about much more than food.

Historically, Thanksgiving is about renewing the bond between Americans and their Creator. It's a time when we are reminded that our rights come from God and that we have responsibilities to God as free citizens.

So here's what we should do: Every state should adopt laws requiring the teaching of the real history and meaning of Thanksgiving in the schools. It would be an important step toward truly understanding our nation's heritage and history.

Thanksgiving: The First Uniquely American Holiday

The history of Thanksgiving goes all the way back to the second decade of English-speaking people in North America.

Thanksgiving was the first uniquely American holiday.

Yesterday, President Bush visited the site in Virginia -- Berkeley Plantation -- where the first Thanksgiving was celebrated in 1619 -- 12 years after the founding of the Virginia colony at Jamestown.

The first Thanksgiving was a religious celebration -- an occasion to thank God -- that featured only a modest meal. It wasn't until two years later, in 1621, that Thanksgiving was expanded to include a banquet by the pilgrims in Massachusetts.

President Washington Makes Thanksgiving a Day for a Free People to Acknowledge Their Debt to God

During his first year in office, President George Washington issued a proclamation calling for a day of "public thanksgiving and prayer."

Washington had been a general who had spent eight years on the field of battle winning our freedom from Great Britain. Then he spent another six years creating the Constitution and the government that we still have 218 years later (the longest continuing constitutional government in the world). So Washington understood well the nature of a free society and its obligation to both thank God and seek His guidance.

In his Thanksgiving proclamation, Washington wrote: "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."

Lincoln Builds on Washington's Tradition

During the very heart of the Civil War, in October 1863, President Abraham Lincoln built on President Washington's initiative and created an annual day of thanksgiving.

Like Washington, Lincoln was determined to draw a direct tie between America and the Creator from whom Americans draw their rights.

Lincoln acknowledged that the nation was "in the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity." But he focused instead on the nation's blessings, urging his fellow Americans to remember that "no human counsel hath devised, nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the most high God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy."

Americans Understand the Wisdom of the Founders on Religion and Morality

Both young Americans and new Americans should learn about the unique values of America's founding leaders.

In our American Solutions survey, the American people overwhelmingly assert that the lessons of Washington and Lincoln are relevant today: 79% surveyed believe that the Founding Fathers understood that religion and morality were important to creating and building this country and that this is central to America's success today.

In that same survey, Americans strongly support seeking answers to today's challenges by listening to the wisdom of our past great leaders: 86% believe that statements regarding religion and morality made by the Founding Fathers are just as important today as they were 200 years ago.

Contact Your Representatives and Ask Them to Restore Teaching the Real History of Thanksgiving

So what can we do to make sure all Americans understand the wisdom of the Founders when it comes to Thanksgiving?

A first step would be for you to contact your state legislators and ask them to make sure that your state requires teaching the history of Thanksgiving as part of its curriculum, including in public undergraduate college education.

Then contact your members of Congress and ask them to support legislation making the history of Thanksgiving a part of citizenship education for new Americans.

	Your friend,
	Newt Gingrich

(CM) theSuperPatriot said:

Making Thanksgiving Meaningful Again

...

"Yesterday, President Bush visited the site in Virginia -- Berkeley Plantation -- where the first Thanksgiving was celebrated in 1619 -- 12 years after the founding of the Virginia colony at Jamestown.

The first Thanksgiving was a religious celebration -- an occasion to thank God -- that featured only a modest meal. It wasn't until two years later, in 1621, that Thanksgiving was expanded to include a banquet by the pilgrims in Massachusetts."

The last part was most interesting, and probably unknown to most.

Too bad Newt's idea is probably never going to get any traction with current day school officials.  They are much too busy being "politically correct", so they'd probably oppose it.

Paul55

Greatest post I've seen in a long time!

Thanks