In 1691, the first Thanksgiving, where the protestant pilgrims thanked their Lord, Jesus Christ, for giving them a bountiful harvest, began. That could never happen today.
The ACLU and lawyers for non-Christian religions would have a court injunction prohibiting any and all reference to Jesus Christ because that would insult their sensibilities.
Our “public” schools, colleges, universities, and business entities have taken any reference of God or Jesus Christ out of all of our holidays (which were originally holy days).
Christmas is now called “winter holiday.” Thanksgiving is now called “fall festival.” Easter no longer celebrates the resurrection but is called “spring break” and celebrates bunny rabbits and colored eggs. Workers were given these holidays to attend church; now they work that day because it has become a day of “monster sales.”
The military services are reducing or flat out removing anything that refers to God or Jesus Christ. Just today a judge in Santa Monica, California ordered the removal of a manger scene that has been displayed for years. A cross out in the middle of the Joshua Tree National Monument that was put up before it was a national monument to honor our fallen military ended up as a case of religious discrimination before our Supreme Court.
Even though 75 percent of Americans declare themselves to be Christian (believers in Jesus Christ), the 4 percent who don’t believe in Jesus Christ and the 13 percent who don’t believe in religion period, have sadly managed to eliminate God in our schools, military and the workplace.
Leon Ceniceros
Mesa
sockratties posted at 8:12 am on Wed, Nov 21, 2012.
You're right leon, and it's a good thing.
DemocraticDad posted at 9:42 am on Wed, Nov 21, 2012.
Last time I checked, the U.S. Constitution provides for a Democracy, not a Theocracy. No one is telling you that you can't have your religious opinion and worship as you please. However, that same Constitution guarantees that legislation cannot be based on your religious opinion, or that of any other citizen. That is the way it is, because that is the way the Founding Father's wrote it (wisely in my opinion). If you, or any other citizen, are unhappy with anything in the Constitution the Founding Father's also wisely provided for an Amendment process.
Arizona Willie posted at 9:46 am on Wed, Nov 21, 2012.
More like 30% of us are agnostics.
We don't know if there is a " God " or not, but there sure doesn't seem to be much evidence of it.
But we sorta / kinda hope there is a Hell because we have met some people who surely deserve to go there.
Cerulean posted at 9:48 am on Wed, Nov 21, 2012.
The Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians shared a harvest feast that is today called Thanksgiving.
“Throughout that first brutal winter, most of the colonists remained on board the ship, where they suffered from exposure, scurvy and outbreaks of contagious disease. Only half of the Mayflower’s original passengers and crew lived to see their first New England spring. In March, the remaining settlers moved ashore, where they received an astonishing visit from an Abenaki Indian who greeted them in English. Several days later, he returned with another Native American, Squanto, a member of the Pawtuxet tribe who had been kidnapped by an English sea captain and sold into slavery before escaping to London and returning to his homeland on an exploratory expedition. Squanto taught the Pilgrims, weakened by malnutrition and illness, how to cultivate corn, extract sap from maple trees, catch fish in the rivers and avoid poisonous plants. He also helped the settlers forge an alliance with the Wampanoag, a local tribe, which would endure for more than 50 years and tragically remains one of the sole examples of harmony between European colonists and Native Americans.” ( http://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving )
I thank the native Americans who are a generous and thoughtful people. Without their expertise and knowledge of the land, my forebears would not have survived.
Rich posted at 10:10 am on Wed, Nov 21, 2012.
Leon,
"The last Christian died on the Cross." Neitzsche
downtownresident posted at 4:18 pm on Wed, Nov 21, 2012.
DemocraticDad,
Sorry to disappoint you, but the last time I checked, the constitution provided for a republic, not a democracy!
bubba posted at 4:21 pm on Wed, Nov 21, 2012.
Engaged Voter ...He probably deleted it himself. All tou have to do is click "Report" on the bottom right and within a few minutes it's gone. I've done this to some of my own posts to make corrections being there is no "Edit" option. But I've never clicked "Report" on anybody elses posts. If they want to be foolish or abusive, let 'em.
bubba posted at 4:30 pm on Wed, Nov 21, 2012.
Just as an observation. It's funny Leon is concerned that religion is being eliminated. I take it he claims to be a Christian, but chastises food banks for helping people that need it. His favorite term for those that feel empathy are "Liberal-Democrat Bleeding Hearts" Leon you realize Jesus Christ was a "Bleeding Heart Liberal" don't you?
DemocraticDad posted at 6:15 pm on Wed, Nov 21, 2012.
@ downtownresident,
The real reason the whole argument concerning Democracy vs. Republic came about is because a bunch of conservative Republicans, and conservative broadcasters like Rush Limbaugh, didn't like the idea that "Democracy" sounded like Democrat, so they opted to push the word "Republic" because it sounded like Republican. The truth is, the United States of America is a Democratic Republic and it is very obvious why modern day Republicans don't push that term.
As you can see by this list of quotes, I am in good company in my use of the word Democracy to really mean Democratic Republic.
Democracy is worth dying for, because it's the most deeply honorable form of government ever devised by man.
Ronald Reagan- President
Democracy cannot succeed unless those who express their choice are prepared to choose wisely. The real safeguard of democracy, therefore, is education.
Franklin D. Roosevelt - President
The ignorance of one voter in a democracy impairs the security of all.
John F. Kennedy -President
The government, which was designed for the people, has got into the hands of the bosses and their employers, the special interests. An invisible empire has been set up above the forms of democracy.
Woodrow Wilson - President
We can have democracy in this country, or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both.
Louis D. Brandeis – US Supreme Court Justice
As citizens of this democracy, you are the rulers and the ruled, the law-givers and the law-abiding, the beginning and the end.
Adlai E. Stevenson – Governor Illinois, UN Ambassador, Presidential Nominee
Our democracy, our constitutional framework is really a kind of software for harnessing the creativity and political imagination for all of our people. The American democratic system was an early political version of Napster.
Al Gore – Vice President
And one of the frustrating parts, but it's an inherent part of our democracy, is we have separation of powers.
George Pataki – Governor New York
As free citizens in a political democracy, we have a responsibility to be interested and involved in the affairs of the human community, be it at the local or the global level.
Paul Wellstone - US Senator Minnesota
Our democracy is the centerpiece of who we are as a nation. And it is the fondest hope of all Americans that we can help bring democracy to every corner of the world.
Barbara Boxer – US Senator California
Abortion on demand, throughout the full nine months of a pregnancy, for virtually any reason, became public policy in the United States of America. No other developed democracy had, or has, such a permissive abortion regime.
Robert Casey – Governor Pennsylvania
The defense of our democracy against the forces that threaten it from without has made some of its failures to function at home glaringly apparent.
Wendell Willkie – Presidential Nominee
Two hundred years ago, our Founding Fathers gave us a democracy. It was based upon the simple, yet noble, idea that government derives its validity from the consent of the governed.
Paul Tsongas – US Senator Massachusets
Dale Whiting posted at 7:21 pm on Wed, Nov 21, 2012.
Bubba,
You've nailed Leon on his head! I've observed numerous times on this blog that the US is no longer a Christian Nation. [Assume for argument's sake that it once was.] Would the Prince of Peace on Earth lay claim to this corner of His earth? Could he attend church on Sunday and hear sermons preached about turning the other cheek, forgiving seventy times seventy, going the extra mile and loving our enemies [for loving our allies is easy, isn't it!]. Just look at who are allies are. Just look at how many times we've decided to wage war and not work for peace.
So, Leon, if you miss Christmas, how about following the Prince of Peace? Invite an illegal alien for Thanksgiving dinner! Jesus would be proud of you!
P.S. The winter solstis was a pagan holiday, one which early christians co-opted. Jesus was born in the Spring time.
bubba posted at 5:51 am on Thu, Nov 22, 2012.
mrconservative says "He was - is - the Son of God. He helped the poor, This IS the conservative's definition of a bleeding heart liberal.
bubba posted at 10:06 am on Thu, Nov 22, 2012.
Accuracy....Very nice post. My good wishes out go out to all. Imperfect as we may see it, in one aspect or another, we are all still living a gifted life in this great nation.
bubba posted at 11:58 am on Thu, Nov 22, 2012.
Engaged Voter ...Accuracy had a respectful, nonoffensive Thanksgiving related post that is missing also. Gremlins working over this thread?
Engaged Voter posted at 12:56 pm on Thu, Nov 22, 2012.
Aaand they're gone! That was quick!
Someone should probably stop reporting comments and either add something constructive, or help with Thanksgiving dinner preparation. :)
Accuracy posted at 2:55 pm on Thu, Nov 22, 2012.
Arizona Willie posted this one before: “Looks like the cancellation worked!! Didn't know we could do that until the other day when someone mentioned it here. I wonder if we can cancel other people's posts or just our own. It should be just our own. Someone cancel this one and see if it disappears.”
---------------------------------------
All I can say concerning whatever person is continually cancelling these, under Leon Ceniceros’ Letter to the Editor . . . . Is, Happy Thanksgiving – Turkey!!
bubba posted at 3:15 pm on Thu, Nov 22, 2012.
Accuracy...Good one !![beam]
Arizona Willie posted at 9:12 pm on Thu, Nov 22, 2012.
I got my own post cancelled but if anyone else tried to cancel the one I asked to have cancelled, it didn't work.Apparently we can cancel our own but not other posters so if your post disappears and you didn't do it --- it was an editor or copy boy or someone in the office that has the power to cancel poss -- it wasn't any of the posters.
Cerulean posted at 12:37 pm on Sat, Nov 24, 2012.
Before Hypatia of Alexandria was brutally murdered by a religious mob in the year 415 ce; She wrote, “"Fable should be taught as fable, myth as myth, and miracles as poetic fancies. To teach superstitions as truth is horrifying. The mind of a child accepts them and only through great pain, perhaps tragedy, can the child be relieved of them. Men will fight for superstition as quickly as for the living truth -- even more so, since a superstition is intangible, you can't get at it to refute it, but truth is a point of view, and so is changeable."
DrJCA1 posted at 11:37 am on Sun, Nov 25, 2012.
For those of you who feel that your beliefs should be forced on the rest of us, think about the delightful history of religion. More wars have been started over religion than any other topic. More people have been killed becuse, "my god and my religion is the one true one and you and your religion are evil". Most despots in the past have claimed a religious background for their hoffific acts, including Hitler, Mousselini, Pope Urban and the crusades, the various inquisitions, the KKK in America (good protestants all), the black panthers, most skinhead groups, andof course all politicians. Yes, I reealize that people of true faith in any religion do not do bad things, that does not negate the negatives. Your faith is YOUR property and ends at my mind and physical presence.
As a side note, more people declare themselves as not religious each year because of the hypocracy and evil in so many of these group's hierarchy and leaders. Finally, since 90% of everything in the bible cannot ever be proven (and religious scholors admit this), excepting the actual historical figures (Pontious Pilate, Herod, etc), stop trying to shove your beliefs down my throat.
Engaged Voter posted at 12:01 pm on Mon, Nov 26, 2012.
Great posts, Cerulean and DrJCA1.
Both respectful, nonoffensive posts.
Let's hope they don't fall victim to the rabid mob. ;)