Everyday is a Day for Thanksgiving in Judaism

In my mind, there are two holidays of Thanksgiving: the Jewish holiday of Sukkot and the American festival of Thanksgiving. I love them both. Both involve a great deal of preparation and food. Both call us to share our harvest with those around us. Both inspire us to open our homes with the warmest of hospitality to others. And both require blessings that force us to open our eyes to the beauty that abounds.

The reality is that in Judaism everyday is a day for thanksgiving. Our faith encourages us to say one hundred blessings each day: to stop and offer gratitude for our bodies, our minds, our souls, our teachers, our Torah, our sustenance, our heritage, our families, and for so much more.

Beyond prayer, we show our gratitude by recalling our history and by sharing our abundance with God and with those in need. In the book of Deuteronomy, when we first come into the land and reap our harvest, we are commanded to bring some of every first fruit to Temple. As we hand over our basket of plenty to the Priests, we are meant to recall our entire history from Abraham until now. By sharing the stories of our past, we gain a greater appreciation of who we are and teach the next generation the values that they should hold.

Rejoicing on a festival is a religious duty the Talmud teaches. While Thanksgiving is not a Jewish festival, it is a sacred occasion as we bring together so many people we love. We can acknowledge and elevate the sanctity of our Thanks- giving celebrations by adding Judaism to our tables ñ by sharing blessings of gratitude, by telling the stories of our family journeys to America and to Charlotte, by rejoicing fully, by sharing our abundance with those in need and by performing mitzvot -- acts that bring healing to our world.

A Prayer for the Thanksgiving Feast By Rabbi Naomi Levi from her book Talking to God.

For the laughter of the children, For my own life breath, For the abundance of food on this table, For the ones who prepared this sumptuous feast, For the roof over our heads, The clothes on our backs, For our health, And our wealth of blessings, For this opportunity to celebrate with family and friends, For the freedom to pray these words, Without any fear, In any language, In any faith, In this great country, Whose landscape is as vast and beautiful as her inhabitants.

Thank You, God, for giving us all these. Amen.

Judy Schindler
Rabbi