Long before Europeans settled in North America, western Europeans observed Harvest Home festivals to celebrate the successful completion of gathering-in the season's crops. In the British Isles, Lammas Day (Loaf Mass Day), observed on August 1, was often held to celebrate a good wheat harvest. If the wheat crop was disappointing, the holiday was usually canceled. Another important precursor to the modern Thanksgiving holiday was the custom among English Puritans of designating special days of thanksgiving to express gratitude for God's blessings. These observances were not held regularly; they usually took place only in times of crisis or immediately after a period of misfortune had passed. Puritan thanksgiving ceremonies were serious religious occasions and bore only a passing resemblance to modern Thanksgiving celebrations.
Posted by freeformwritersblock
at 7:41 AM CST
Updated: Thursday, 27 November 2003 7:45 AM CST
