I am an occasional viewer of Dr. Henry Louis Gates’ PBS television show, “Finding Your Roots”. In it, he traces the ancestry of well-known personalities in our modern culture. He often finds a surprise for his guests.
One of those people was actor, John Lithgow (Season 7, Episode 7, April 13, 2021). Gates discovered that Lithgow’s 9th great-grandfather was William Bradford. It was revealed that in 1607, a 17-year-old Bradford was imprisoned in Britain for being a Puritan Separatist. To escape religious persecution, he, with other nonconformists, migrated to the Netherlands.
From there, William Bradford sailed on the Mayflower to Plymouth Rock. As one of the original Pilgrims, he survived the first difficult winter in the New World. Half of his fellow colonists died of exposure, starvation, or scurvy. Bradford distinguished himself among the other settlers and was selected as the second governor of Plymouth Colony.
Dr. Gates shared all of these findings with Lithgow, but never mentioned that on November 29, 1623, Governor Bradford established the first truly American holiday – Thanksgiving. It is hard to imagine that Gates’ expert research team overlooked the origin of such an important observance. But in this day of political correctness, media denies the intended purpose of Thanksgiving which is to show gratitude to God for His blessings.
From the earliest age, students are wrongly taught that the Pilgrims’ primary objective for the holiday was to give thanks to the Native Americans for helping them survive their first trying year. They are further encouraged to misapply the annual celebration as an opportunity to express appreciation to other people for what they have done for them. However, there is no mention of God because to offer gratitude to Him would acknowledge His existence and our obligation to worship Him.
In our increasingly atheistic society, denial of God has slipped into our most venerated holidays. Like a motionless alligator almost imperceivably slides from the shoreline into the water, we hardly notice how the world’s agenda has subtly crept into our holiest days. Be on your guard, don’t deny God by not showing gratitude to Him, this Thanksgiving, and every day of your life.