Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1914-11-25
SPIRIT OF FEST|V|TY
IS TRUE KEY NOTE
OF THANKSGIVING
THE TURKEY is THE EMBLEM
OF THE NATIONS FESTAL
DEVOTIONS

From the early days when the
Saxon kings tethered their steeds
hard by the banquet board" so that
the foam of the chargers hecked the
beard OF the eater, to the present time
the spirit of the amply loaded board
is the spirit of festivity and OF good
will. Thanksgiving day would be
robbed of the particular flavor it pos
sesses IL ii were a day of severe OBJ
servation. The spirit Of Thanksgiv-
ing without the sanctifying grace of
the spread board would be a spirit of
cheerlessness. The Thanksgiving tur-
key is as much a part of the day as
are the devotions that the day calls
forth. The devotions would be dry
and sapless if the day were made a
virtual penance, as would be the case
without the turkey regnant upon the
platter, while the family gathers about
the board to give thanks for home
blessings as a part OF the liberal por-
ton that Providence has dispensed
to the nation. The Thanksgiving tur-
key is the emblem of the nations de-
votion.
The assembling of the congrega-
tions in the churches is but part
of the devotion Of the day. 1t is, in
fact, the symbolic part. 1t is ex-
pressive Of the spirit of the people
in praise TO the Diety for the general
blessings TO the nation. The actual
spirit of thanksgiving is that which
takes account of the unison of the
family in the act Of praise as ii par
takes of the provisions of the day.
Charles Lamb says that one should
not only say grace at meat, but a
hundred times day for the good of
living. The grace said at the Thanks
giving board-and even those unused
TO such invocation should observe il
upon that occasions a grace for
the blessings Of God which the
Thanksgiving dinner then sets forth.
Back of all nationality lies the fam
lily. This is the foundation stone in
the social system. The city. the state
nhe nation are outgrowths OF the
family. The people expressing their
thanks to Almighty God for the bless
ings conferred upon the community
in it's several organizations is not as
sacred a symbol as the family at
meat in recognition of the goodness
of God to its members. The purity
and sweetness of the family tie, the
power and influence of the family
teaching, the conservation and devo-
ton of the heads of the family cir
cle-these are the things that fill the
measure Of Thanksgiving as the
myriad household groups gather
about the well-laden boards to return
thanks for the good things of God to
them. From the youngest to the eld-
est in these groups the real spirit Of
Thanksgiving is set forth even though
many of them do not dwell upon the
spirit Of praise in fact. For, after all,
true thanksgiving is to be in the
spirit of praise and not simply to ex-
press forms of devotion. These latter
are essential as the symboling forth
Of the gratitude of the nation, but
the simple loving and the goodness Of
the family group is the basis of the
real thanksgiving spirit
The churches will be we'll attended,
and the discourse, the worship and
the singing will all direct the mind
toward the mighty advance of the
nation that was formed from the scat
tered colonies of the Atlantic sea-
board and will point to, the beginnings
Of Thanksgiving day upon the bleak
coasts Of New England. All this is
well. God, who made and has kept
tiit Alitil lCdH ptoplt a. HdNiOil' hdS
done more by that act TO attest the
spirit OF his fatherhood than by any
other act in the history of nations or
of peoples. All should unite in wor-
ship in the churches and return home
to enter into the praise of the family
circle.
In the family circle will be found
the turkey i'm the setting of the ac-
cessories of one of the biggest din
ners of the year. IL is to be hoped
that all may have a Thanksgiving
dinner, so that all may enter into
the praise for the goodness of the
giver Of every good and perfect gift
Without the turkey, the accepted sym
bol of American rejoicing at Thanks
giving time, the day would be incom-
plete; with II the spirit and essence
of the occasion is present.
o give thanks unto the Lord for