November, 1942
THE K I NG ’S BUS I NESS
410
This Day of Thanks
By HERBERT LOCKYER
I N 1864 SARAH JOSEPHA HALE, the Boston.widow who faithfully cam paigned for twenty years for a set o b s e r v a n c e of Thanksgiving Day, made possible ah institution which has meant much to America through out the years. Mrs. Hale, one of this land’s first woman journalists, was not satisfied with Thanksgiving’s be ing an off-and-on affair, and she be sought Abraham Lincoln until in 1864 he established the custom that there after, by annual Presidential procla mation, the last Thursday in Novem ber be observed as a national Thanks giving Day. Seventy-eight years later, we find ourselves a p p r o a c h i n g another Thanksgiving Day, but in a time of international crisis such as the world has never known before. One phase of George Washington’s Thanksgiving proclamation of 1795 sounds strangely apropos in view of current- develop ments abroad. He wrote, "Render this country more and more a safe and
propitious asylum for the unfortunate of other countries." It is a matter for profound gratitude that America is guarded by two mighty oceans and has provided a place of refuge for multitudes of helpless refugees. But if the tide of war should turn against this nation, one wonders how long it Would remain a safe and propitious asylum for its millions of inhabitants. As we read of the terrible destruc tion that has overtaken other nations, Americans should be thankful that they still live in a land that has never been overrun by a cruel foe, has never had its homes destroyed by bombs of attacking forces,. has never expe rienced the horror of real famine, has never witnessed long columns of deso late refugees fleeing for their lives from their homes. A World Prospect That Tests -Faith The gr&ce of gratitude is one we must cultivate, no matter what ad verse experiences may come our way.
By precept and practice, New Testa ment writers emphasize the truth that thankfulness is a virtue we must manifest in spite of untoward circum stances. “Rejoice alway” was the ex- h o r t a t i o n o f the much-afflicted apostle who, as he wrote, was languishing in a prison celL Alas, however, we find ourselves in a thankless world! The ruthless de struction of all that man has counted precious is an evidence that he is not grateful for all the blessings of Christianity and of a civilization that owes very much to the influence of Christian principles. The question be fore us is: Is it possible to be thank ful in a blighted world like ours? Can we still sing amid so much sorrow? With universal grief, can souls be grateful? Do tears and thanks go to gether? As blood is being spilt on many battlefields, can we still bless the Lord? What is there left to be grateful for? In a world o t blasted cities, destroyed
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