Date: August 4, 1988
By: Ronald Reagan
The celebration of Thanksgiving Day is one of our Nation's most
venerable and cherished traditions. Almost 200 years ago, the first
President of these United States, George Washington, issued the first
national Thanksgiving Day Proclamation under the Constitution and
recommended to the American people that they "be devoted to the
service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author
of all the good that was, that is, or that will be." He called upon
them to raise "prayers and supplications to the Great Lord and
Ruler of Nations," not merely for continued blessings on our own
land but on all rulers and nations that they might know "good
government, peace, and concord."
A century ago, President Grover Cleveland called for "prayers and
song of praise" that would render to God the appreciation of the
American people for His mercy and for the abundant harvests and rich
rewards He had bestowed upon our Nation through the labor of its
farmers, shopkeepers, and tradesmen. Both of these Proclamations
included something else as well: a recognition of our shortcomings and
transgressions and our dependence, in total and in every particular, on
the forgiveness and forbearance of the Almighty. Today, cognizant of our
American heritage of freedom and opportunity, we are again called to
gratitude, thanksgiving, and contrition. Thanksgiving Day summons every
American to pause in the midst of activity, however necessary and
valuable, to give simple and humble thanks to God. This gracious
gratitude is the "service" of which Washington spoke. It is a
service that opens our hearts to one another as members of a single
family gathered around the bounteous table of God's Creation.
The images of the Thanksgiving celebrations at America's earliest
settlement - of Pilgrim and Iroquois Confederacy assembled in festive
friendship - resonate with even greater power in our own day. People
from every race, culture, and creed on the face of the Earth now inhabit
this land. Their presence illuminates the basic yearning for freedom,
peace, and prosperity that has always been the spirit of the New World.
In this year when we as a people enjoy the fruits of economic growth
and international cooperation, let us take time both to remember the
sacrifices that have made this harvest possible and the needs of those
who do not fully partake of its benefits. The wonder of our agricultural
abundance must be recalled as the work of farmer who, under the best and
worst of conditions, give their all to raise food upon the land. The
gratitude that fills our being must be tempered with compassion for the
needy. The blessings that are ours must be understood as the gift of a
loving God Whose greatest gift is healing. Let us join then, with the
psalmist of old:
O give thanks to the Lord, call on His name,
Make known His deeds among the peoples!
Sing to Him, sing praises to Him,
Tell of all His wonderful works!
Glory in His holy name;
Let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!
Now, Therefore, I, Ronald Reagan, President of the United States of
America, do hereby proclaim Thursday, November 24, 1988, as a National
Day of thanksgiving, and I call upon the citizens of this great Nation
to gather together in homes and places of worship on that day of thanks
to affirm by their prayers and their gratitude the many blessings God
has bestowed upon us.
In Witness Where Of, I have here unto set my hand this fourth day of
August, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-eight, and
of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and
thirteenth.
