This is a holiday tradition I love.
At my in-laws, someone (usually the youngest at the table) always reads George Washington’s Thanksgiving Proclamation at the dinner table.
To put us all in the mood, here it is:
Whereas 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; andWhereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me “to recommend to the people of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness”:
Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the Beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquillity, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted; for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and, in general, for the great and various favors which He has been pleased to confer upon us.
And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations, and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions; to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our national government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shown kindness to us), and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally, to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be best.
Given under my hand, at the city of New York,
the 3d day of October, AD 1789
George Washington
posted November 25, 2009 at 8:56 am
Very nice sentiments. Our modern ideals pale in comparison to the clearer view of life from people of faith, and especially from pre industrial times. “Given under my hand”… does that mean this was an under-handed address?
The image is rather similar to traditional artistic interpretations of a scene from the garden of olives. George the saviour? Probably an over-reaction on my part, anyone can pray in the woods.
posted November 25, 2009 at 9:06 am
Greg:
You obviously didn’t get the word that our Founding Fathers were either rank atheists or believers in an impersonal, deistic kind of god. They would certainly never impose a message of gratitude on a public committed to religious neutrality!
posted November 25, 2009 at 9:07 am
Very nice but George Washington was a Mason, member of an organization that the Catholic Church considers an enemy of the faith. Also he was a Deist more than a Christian just like most of the other Founding Fathers. Their merit was in founding a nation where all religions had a place to be practiced in freedom, but in it were the seeds of relativism; if all religions can compete equally in an open market of ideas, which one is true? The praying image of Washington in the woods is over the top and is a piece of national propaganda to ensure what was once a religious population.
posted November 25, 2009 at 10:18 am
Indeed, it is now a well-known fact, even though it would come as a surprise to most of them, that our Founding Fathers were what might be termed post-modern Machiavellis, who either wrote to disguise instead of reveal their true thoughts or to manipulate the masses.
Yes, my two comments are written in a similar vein.
posted November 25, 2009 at 10:28 am
“If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, ‘thank you,’ that would suffice.”
–Meister Eckhart
posted November 25, 2009 at 10:51 am
Although Washington’s religious beliefs are a little hard to pin down with certainty, this Thanksgiving Proclamation is clearly Deist as pointed out in the above two comments.
I find it really funny how a certain group of people keep trying to say that the Founding Fathers were good orthodox Christians and that this country was founded on Christian principles. It simply isn’t true.
Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson seemed to have the best grasp Christianity. I am particularly impressed with “Jefferson’s Bible”, one of the first efforts to identify the historical Jesus, kind of like an early Jesus Seminar. What a relief to know that our Founding Fathers were not fundies.
posted November 25, 2009 at 11:13 am
For those who are curious about such things, there are some who contend that Washington converted to Catholicism on his deathbed.
Check out this link.
Dcn. G.
posted November 25, 2009 at 12:00 pm
Well I find the site to reaching Greg, but at least we can see that Washington was a good guy in his desire to curtail religious intolerance against Catholics (Guy Fawkes Day).
posted November 25, 2009 at 5:42 pm
According to the Deism website, http://www.deism.com, Deists pray only prayers of thanks and appreciation, never prayers of requests or favor. Given that, it seems the closing paragraph of the prayer goes beyond Deism, when Washington invokes the Almighty for a number of blessings and favors for the sake of the nation. So, it is tricky to try to tie down the religious sentiments of many of the founding fathers. They were a mixed bag of Christians, Deists, non-believers and more.
Regardless of Washington’s personal religious faith, I think it’s a marvelous prayer than any sincere Catholic can offer, especially on our national day of Thanksgiving. I intend to share it with my co-workers when I go in to work tonight. I’m not sure how many Deists there are among them, but I have no doubt they’ll appreciate the prayer, Christians and all. Thank you, Deacon Greg.
posted November 25, 2009 at 6:41 pm
Leave it to some of the readers on this blog to try and smear the reputations of our founding fathers (and mothers).
Although they were human, and thus flawed, they were men and women of conviction who took upon a courageous effort to build a nation based on principles. It is a sad testament to our times that people will make every effort to disparage these great people. Regardless of whether Washington was a Mason, a Deist or a Catholic, he was, undoubtedly, a man of great moral courage who lived in difficult times. I challenge anyone to name someone who, today, would have taken the risks people like Washington, Jefferson, Adams and many others took back in those revolutionary days. Right now we are stuck with a President who can give one helluva speech, but incapable of making executive decisions and a Congress full of abortionists and relativists.
I for, one, am proud of these great Americans and their accomplishments.
And, to quote an American icon, “That’s all I got to say about that!” (Forrest Gump)
posted November 25, 2009 at 9:20 pm
I am thinking anyone who says the problem with Thanksgiving is that it distracts attention from the one true religion has truly missed the entire point of this truly American holiday.
It is also to my observation the least commercialized of all holidays. Which has made it my favorite
posted November 27, 2009 at 9:58 pm
George Washington was a Freemason, as are millions of men of good will and faith. That the Catholic Church thinks being a Mason is antithetical to the Church’s interests says far more about the Church–all of it bad–than it does about the Masons.
I would trust a Mason with my child before I would trust any priest.