Comments on: Thanksgiving and the BT – Roundup

By: Steve Brizel

Steve Brizel — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 01:22:23 +0000

FWIW, I stand by my previous posts that one should try to celebrate the day, with or without the meal, by recognizing as a fulfillment of Hakaras Hatov, the uniqueness of this Malchus Shel Chesed.

By: Steve Brizel

Steve Brizel — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 01:19:25 +0000

Once again, IMO, R M Broyde’s article is a very important summary of the various halachic and hashkafic positions re Thanksgiving.

By: Rachel Adler

Rachel Adler — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 23:20:06 +0000

Just FYI if anyone was curious, that Thanksgiving from my post 3 years ago, (wow, I didn’t realize it had been that long since I was a poster here!) we ended up also hosting a dinner at my parents’ house in RI because there was also a bar mitzvah in California that fall, so a lot of people didn’t want to fly out twice, including my parents. So I never ended up having to deal with the kashrut and Shabbat issues. Though everyone gave great advice.

By: Menachem Lipkin

Menachem Lipkin — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 21:59:47 +0000

Just received a really nice article on the subject by Rabbi Marc Angel. Here’s the link:

http://www.jewishideas.org/angel-shabbat/thoughts-thanksgiving-2008

By: DK

DK — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 19:58:44 +0000

Anyone who actively denigrates celebrations of America as “goyish” or unnecessary should board the aliyah plane posthaste.

Or they can go back to Hundary and Poland. But they should do the right thing and leave this “treife medinah.”

By: David

David — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 18:46:27 +0000

Thanksgiving has been difficult for my family since although my in-laws keep kosher at home, they do not live within an eruv or within reasonable walking-distance to a shul. When we went to them last year we came for Thanksgiving, spent Shabbos within the frum community then came back for Motzai Shabbos/Sunday. They have recently moved closer to us but are still too far from shul. This year we are going for Thanksgiving but coming back home for Shabbos even though they would like for us to spend the entire weekend. This may sound harsh, but this is the decision my wife and I made. Our children really love going to shul, and they have a hard time feeling like it is Shabbos if they don’t. I also don’t like having them trapped without an eruv. I don’t want to be in a situation where I have to apologize to my kids for it being Shabbos.
Although I am not in the right wing “anti-Thanksgiving camp” I do feel uncomfortable about the way this huge Thursday night meal can make Shabbos feel like an afterthought.

By: FFB

FFB — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 16:24:18 +0000

Stop me if you heard this one:

A Jew goes to a reform rabbi with a shaalah: Should I say yaale v’yavo on Thanksgiving?
Rabbi: Yaale v’yavo?! What’s that?
The man goes to an old rav. Should I say yaale v’yavo on Thanksgiving?
Rav: Tenksgiving?! Vos is dos?

By: Steg (dos iz nit der šteg)

Steg (dos iz nit der šteg) — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 13:28:52 +0000

In my very limited and anecdotal experience, Canadian Jews are less likely to celebrate Canadian Thanksgiving than American Jews celebrate American Thanksgiving.

By: Yehuda

Yehuda — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 13:12:45 +0000

This comment might be more appropriate to Neil’s (2006) Thanksgiving post, but better late than never. While recognizing that the situation can change at any moment, and yes we can hope that it doesn’t, we should also recognize that America has been an incredible bracha for the Jews. Thanksgiving–along with other celebrations of America such as Independence Day, Memorial Day, Veterans’ Day, Flag Day, Presidents’ Day, et al.–is an opportunity for us to give thanks for this, to re/affirm its importance, and to strengthen ourselves in citizenship. We should use these days as opportunities to learn b’mishpacha the Declaration, the Articles of Confederation, the Northwest Ordinance, and the Constitution–the Four Organic Laws of the United States. (And for those who would adduce rampant assimilation against this “bracha” argument, I would point, in response, to a) our rampant backsliding in E”Y as detailed in TaNaKh, b) free will, and c) the oft-heard argument that this assimilation is caused largely by weak education in Torah [the import of this last item should be obvious]. Anyone who actively denigrates celebrations of America as “goyish” or unnecessary should board the aliyah plane posthaste.)

By: Chaya Houpt

Chaya Houpt — Sun, 19 Nov 2006 13:36:30 +0000

Great round-up, really interesting. I cut my ties to Thanksgiving not by becoming religious but by…marrying into a Canadian family!