TV-G | YouTube | 1h 13m
Released in November of 2021
SUMMARY: From rejecting Thanksgiving to holding multiple narratives at the same time to embracing myths this wide ranging panel on Thanksgiving is worth the hour as each person on the panel has a different perspective on Thanksgiving day.
The panel begins with author and activist Mark Charles detailing American exceptionalism throughout history that is codified in our documents and serves as the bedrock of Thanksgiving Day. Because of this Charles says that he cannot celebrate Thanksgiving because he cannot separate the day from its history. Next, professor Soong-Chan Rah explores the embedded story of the Thanksgiving narrative, why it is problematic, and a possible way forward.
Freedom House Executive Vice President Nicole Bibbins says that we have to hold multiple narratives of the Thanksgiving story at the same time – telling the good and bad simultaneously – while saying Christians are uniquely equipped to live in the tension.
The panel concludes with pastor Roberto Miranda who asks that perhaps the Thanksgiving myth is a gift. A chance to pause from the skepticism of everyday life.
KEY QUOTE: “For some Thanksgiving is a day of rejoicing. A day to give thanks for our nation, our families, our friends, our harvest. For others it is a day to come to the Thanksgiving table to break bread, (to) over eat. For some it is a day of mourning, (of) lament. And today we come to listen, to reason together, to learn, and to consider how best to engage this day of people of faith who seek God’s will.”
DID YOU KNOW? We have a learning capsule about Thanksgiving with resources to help faithfully learn about the holiday.
More curated shows on Thanksgiving:
SHOW: Why These Native Americans Observe A National Day Of Mourning Each Thanksgiving
Aquinnah Wampanoag tribe of Gay Head Moonanum James, former organizer of the annual National Day of Mourning and who died of cancer in 2020, explains why some Indigenous people do not celebrate Thanksgiving.
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SHOW: The Invention of Thanksgiving
A short five minute, visually engaging video with National Museum of the American Indian curator Paul Chaat Smith discussing what Thanksgiving strives to be while briefly touching on the meal that took place in 1621. This video was part of the Americans exhibit at the National Museum of the American Indian.
Read more
SHOW: The First Thanksgiving: What Really Happened
In an engaging six minutes, Uncivil History gives the context surrounding the Pilgrims arrival on the shores of Turtle Island, while dispelling some of the common myths associated with Thanksgiving.
Read more
Sunday to Saturday 