Article November 24, 1997 Issue

Thanksgiving's feast—and fast

Lynn Gray Jackson

Thanksgiving, as a national holiday in the United States, has roots in a tradition that began in 1621. Called the First Feast, it lasted three days in 1621, as recorded in a letter by Edward Winslow, a pilgrim. It wasn't until much later, however, that Thanksgiving became a holiday of gratitude and prayer.

Today other countries also have thanksgiving celebrations, intended to be times of reverence, prayer, humility. Times of remembrance of all the good God has provided. They signify a feasting or gratitude for the harvest we have reaped throughout our lives.

Yet, Thanksgiving can be more. It can be a time of awakening spiritually to recognize that even though there are places where hatred, anger, and want run rampant, in reality each one of God's children is as free, as cared for, as blessed as another. This is true because no matter who you are or where you come from, you are in fact a child of God. This is true for everyone and its basis is in the Bible. In Romans we read, "Glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, ...fir there is no respect of persons with God" (2:10, 11).

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Thanksgiving's feast—and fast

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