topic Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada in Community Chat

Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

traveler — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 16:22:00 GMT

Your date makes more sense as a harvest date. US Thanksgiving date was based on Christmas shopping.

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

Krimpette — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 16:37:50 GMT

I think our Thanksgiving date was proclaimed long before Christmas shopping events. But perhaps your post was tongue-in-cheek!

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

beckyb1012 — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 16:44:31 GMT

I believe Pres. Lincoln stated this Thurs. date in November for celebration and there was no shopping involved.

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

ROMARY — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 16:49:49 GMT

Every US Thanksgiving, I am grateful that we have such a good, friendly, neighborly bordering country.

(Could have been something different.)

We are blessed that we get along just fine and have a safe border.

(No wars, etc.)

Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

traveler — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 16:51:25 GMT

Nope. I got the information at thanksgiving.com

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

Mominohio — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 16:57:40 GMT

@traveler wrote:
Your date makes more sense as a harvest date. US Thanksgiving date was based on Christmas shopping.

Actually what is the end of harvest and time to celebrate/mark the gratefulness depends on where you live. Even in central Ohio, there is still much to be done in bringing in the crops at this time of year (commercially or personally) and preparing them for winter.

So the timing of US Thanksgiving to mark the end of harvest isn't 'off' for many areas of the country.

And as to Canada's Thanksgiving, Happy Thanksgiving to my great uncle and cousins who moved there many decades ago.

We miss them, but know they love their home there. We are grateful everyday for them and their love.

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

tansy — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 17:05:57 GMT

Happy Thanksgiving, Canada!

Here’s an explanation aboutretailers wanting more time for Christmas shopping.

https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2012/11/21/165655925/how-did-thanksgiving-end-up-on-thursday

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

Cakers3 — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 17:19:28 GMT

@traveler wrote:
Your date makes more sense as a harvest date. US Thanksgiving date was based on Christmas shopping.

@traveler ??? I think you are misreading the history of Thanksgiving in the US.

It was never originally established for Christmas shopping since Christmas "shopping" was a non-entity during Washington and Lincoln's time.

Those dates, wavering between the last Thursday and the fourth Thursday was finally settled by Congress last century, in part due to retailers request but the original Thursday was never about Christmas.

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

sunshine45 — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 17:23:59 GMT

As an annual celebration of the harvest and its bounty, moreover, Thanksgiving falls under a category of festivals that spans cultures, continents and millennia. In ancient times, the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans feasted and paid tribute to their gods after the fall harvest. Thanksgiving also bears a resemblance to the ancient Jewish harvest festival of Sukkot. Finally, historians have noted that Native Americans had a rich tradition of commemorating the fall harvest with feasting and merrymaking long before Europeans set foot on their shores.

https://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/history-of-thanksgiving

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

meallen616 — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 17:27:26 GMT

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

sunshine45 — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 17:35:42 GMT

happy thanksgiving to my canadian family members.....some born there, some chose canada as their country, some there because they were not able to come to the US. we talked with them yesterday and they were planning their feasts and a day spent with family and friends.

looking forward to our days to come in november.

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

qbetzforreal — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 17:43:37 GMT

On December 26, 1941, President Franklin Roosevelt signed a joint resolution of Congress changing the national Thanksgiving Day from the last Thursday in November to the fourth Thursday. Two years earlier, Roosevelt had used a presidential proclamation to try to achieve this change, reasoning that earlier celebration of the holiday would give the country an economic boost.

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

Northray — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 17:45:20 GMT

@sunshine45 wrote:
As an annual celebration of the harvest and its bounty, moreover, Thanksgiving falls under a category of festivals that spans cultures, continents and millennia. In ancient times, the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans feasted and paid tribute to their gods after the fall harvest. Thanksgiving also bears a resemblance to the ancient Jewish harvest festival of Sukkot. Finally, historians have noted that Native Americans had a rich tradition of commemorating the fall harvest with feasting and merrymaking long before Europeans set foot on their shores.

https://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/history-of-thanksgiving

Of course, the celebration of Autumn is not new. But American Thanksgiving is just that, giving thanks for your blessings, it had nothing to do with the Fall solstice. As it was started by the Puritans who were a Christian branch, fleeing religious persecution in Europe. The fact that this thanksgiving occasion falls during Autumn does not mean we are celebrating the Fall solstice but it's just a happy coincidence they chose this time to give thanks. I'm sure they were giving thanks for the rich harvest they had that year maybe and for their new friends the Indians but it was not a celebration of the Fall solstice.

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

traveler — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 17:45:32 GMT

Then, in 1939, President Franklin Roosevelt moved Thanksgiving from the last Thursday (which could be either the fourth of fifth Thursday in November depending on the year) to the third Thursday of November in order to create a longer Christmas shopping season.

However, several states refused to acknowledge the change. So from 1939-1941, the country was divided and celebrated Thanksgiving on two different days.

On December 26, 1941, to end the confusion, Congress stepped in and passed a law making Thanksgiving the fourth Thursday of November. Now the country celebrates the holiday in unison and follows the day with the start of the Christmas shopping season.

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

traveler — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 17:47:44 GMT

Yes, the mythology of of Thanksgiving with Pilgrims and Indians had nothing to do with Christmas shopping. Guess I should have specified modern Thanksgiving.

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

Northray — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 17:51:58 GMT

@traveler wrote:
Yes, the mythology of of Thanksgiving with Pilgrims and Indians had nothing to do with Christmas shopping. Guess I should have specified modern Thanksgiving.

Is it a myth? We'll never know unless we were there at the time. I can't imagine tho, they had to start a story/myth to celebrate a time to give thanks anyway. And if they had, something better could have been constructed.

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

Cakers3 — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 18:09:36 GMT

The Pilgrims did not institute the idea of a harvest thanksgiving.

Our Native Americans celebrated harvest long before the Pilgrims showed up.

In fact, in historical cultures around the world the harvest has always been celebrated.

Looking forward to the yearly "discussion" on when Christmas really happened.

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

dex — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 18:26:52 GMT

As a Canadian I will say that I like the idea of spreading the holidays apart more.Cant eat turkey for Christmas if thanksgiving leftovers are still in the freezer.

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

Northray — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 18:52:57 GMT

@Cakers3 wrote:
The Pilgrims did not institute the idea of a harvest thanksgiving.

Our Native Americans celebrated harvest long before the Pilgrims showed up.

In fact, in historical cultures around the world the harvest has always been celebrated.

Looking forward to the yearly "discussion" on when Christmas really happened.

They weren't instituting the idea of "harvest thanksgiving", see my post above. They were just instituting or practising the idea of giving thanks for all things, family, probably a good harvest as that was food, friends, being alive, being able to practice your religion. Just a state of being thankful for all things as is encouraged in the bible.

Re: Happy Thanksgiving, Canada

Northray — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 18:57:53 GMT

@dex wrote:
As a Canadian I will say that I like the idea of spreading the holidays apart more.Cant eat turkey for Christmas if thanksgiving leftovers are still in the freezer.

Happy Thanksgiving! You guys eat turkey to celebrate too? Think you'd learn from our mistake and pick a tastier bird.lol