Why Is Thanksgiving Always Thursday?
There are a number of things that Americans take for granted on Thanksgiving, and it’s important to remember that eating well with friends and family is a luxury that many can’t afford (and you definitely shouldn’t be doing it this year anyway). ; and that the country you live in was indigenous before it was colonized by the Puritans in the 1600s, but the most down-to-earth, reliable, yet perplexing fact of the holiday is that our annual gluttony celebration will always happen on Thursday …
In the midst of making silly faces, you can stop and ask yourself why you are eating turkey and all fixed foods on Thursday instead of Friday or Monday like most other national holidays. The reasons why Thanksgiving took its place on the calendar goes back a long way in our politics, with powerful people proclaiming when the country would gather around the table to pray and eat.
The Puritans have set a precedent
The concept of Thanksgiving is rooted in the puritanical past of the United States. Even before the American Revolution and the signing of the Constitution, colonial leaders called for gratitude days to celebrate various community triumphs, such as battling Native Americans victoriously or experiencing a dangerous cold snap.
In exploring the origins of the holiday, Time magazine cites historian Diana Carter Applebaum’s book Thanksgiving: An American Holiday, American History , which notes that other days of the week are not suitable for official Thanksgiving due to the busy religious schedule. …
At first, Thanksgiving did not have a specific day of the week, but some days were considered more appropriate than others. Puritans keep the Sabbath as a biblical ordinance and do not interfere with their Thanksgiving Day. Since Saturday was busy preparing for Saturday and Monday was the next day, this was not the best choice. Friday was ruled out because it was a Catholic fast, and any Friday prayer day would have a Roman connotation. However, Thursday was a lecture day in Boston. The ministers offered afternoon sermons for those who had free time to attend religious meetings on weekdays. Perhaps for this reason, early Thursday has become a favorite day for fasting and Thanksgiving. Although other days were sometimes chosen, Thursday became the traditional choice.
George Washington formalized it
After the United States threw off the yoke of colonial rule and became an independent state, George Washington tried to formalize the gratitude with a holiday. On October 3, 1789, the first president announced that Thursday, November 26, would be National Thanksgiving Day to commemorate God and the Constitution.
As you read the Washington proclamation, you can pick up the very religious overtones of the first Thanksgiving:
Therefore, I recommend and appoint Thursday, the 26th day of November, the next day, which the people of these states will devote to the service of this great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be – So that we all can then unite and express our sincere and humble thanks to Him
Abraham Lincoln formalized it even more
Thanksgiving is not quite as brutal a religious ceremony as it used to be (depending on how you personally decide to celebrate it). Abraham Lincoln made Thanksgiving more to appreciate the privilege of living in a democracy rather than paying tribute to the Most High.
The Civil War had something to do with this: in late 1863, even as the nation was waging a devastating war with itself, the Union army was finally expecting victory. Also on October 3, Lincoln issued a proclamation declaring Thanksgiving as an annual holiday, celebrated on the last Thursday in November. The date of the present Thanksgiving served more purpose than paying religious reverence; both told USA Today biographer Ronald C. White Jr. : “[Lincoln] is always looking for ways to unite the nation in a terrible time of war.”
Congress made it official
There was a point of controversy over the date of Thanksgiving, and that happened in 1939 when Franklin D. Roosevelt was president. After the Great Depression gave American merchants a legitimate sense of economic paranoia, many of them lobbied Roosevelt to postpone Thanksgiving a week so that the holiday would not interfere with sales of Christmas trees. The president has pledged, which has generated backlash from various governors, who have pledged to keep the holiday on November 30 or whenever the last Thursday arrives.
Some states, however, have moved their observation of the holiday to an earlier period of the month, causing a weekly scheduling conflict between Thanksgiving in different states. As the National Archives explains:
For two years, two days were celebrated as Thanksgiving – the President and parts of the nation celebrated it on the second to last Thursday in November, while the rest of the country celebrated it the following week.
Fortunately, Congress stepped in on October 6, 1941. To keep everyone happy, he officially made Thanksgiving, which falls on the fourth Thursday in November, even when there are five Thursdays a month. The decision was made in the immediate aftermath of the attacks on Pearl Harbor, and national unity formed around the country’s nascent involvement in World War II.
So, there is definitely a reason why you have celebrated Thanksgiving on the same day of the month all your life. This is rooted in our country’s religious beliefs and efforts to build collective enthusiasm during the war. And that sounds pretty American, doesn’t it?