Pagan Thanksgiving Traditions: Paganism is an umbrella term that encompasses various earth-centered spiritual practices and religious beliefs. Within the realm of Paganism, there are diverse traditions and customs related to expressing gratitude and celebrating harvest seasons. Although Paganism is not typically associated with the American Thanksgiving holiday, there are some traditions and principles shared between them. One of the core principles of Paganism is a deep connection with nature and the cycles of the earth. Many Pagan traditions honor the changing of seasons and express gratitude for the abundance provided by the earth. This aligns with the essence of Thanksgiving, which is centered around appreciation for the bountiful harvest.
Our Little Thanksgiving
A few years ago, I wrote a blog post about my family’s emerging Thanksgiving traditions. In my opinion, it was golden. There are few things I would change today.
A couple of my kids have grown up and gone their own way and don’t always come to my house for this holiday, so we’ve scaled down food-wise… we make fewer starchy dishes, and just add dried cranberries to the dressing, instead of making the fresh uncooked cranberry sauce. Also, we make Turkey Breast of Wonder in the crockpot. Its so delicious, much less fuss, and frees up the oven for other baking.
We still use our Thanksgiving playlist, and the fourth season Thanksgiving episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer is still optimal viewing. Later, per my youngest daughter’s request, we go see the lights on the town square. I hate the cold, but its worth it to get to the square for kettle corn and hot chocolate.
We try to remember to make toasts. If I can remember to buy cider (Angry Orchard hard cider for this mamma), and get out the goblets, then I can usually remember to initiate making toasts. I hope you and yours are having a lovely holiday. Here is my favorite toast…
Hail the Gods, Ancestors, and Nature Spirits!
From the Kindreds, we receive
and to the Kindreds, we give.
Together we share,
and from this we live.
My Family’s Thanksgiving Traditions – A Work in Progress
Posted on November 20, 2011 by tressabelleThanksgiving used to be one of those holidays I didn’t care much for. After all, it’s a feast-based holiday that doesn’t even fall close to a harvest time. It’s completely culture based; a celebration of our European ancestors‘ survival in the new world. Thanksgiving may seem redundant to us Pagans/Heathens who celebrate the themes of thanks-giving on other harvest holidays like Lúnasa, the Autumn Equinox, and Samhain.
But lately I’ve kind of gotten into the Thanksgiving spirit. What meaning can Pagans/Heathens derive from Thanksgiving? First in my thoughts are that it links us to our American culture (as opposed to ancient/ancestral culture) and our to our immediate family. It can also be a time to reflect on the other harvest holidays. But most of all, I agree with my daughter when she says, “I like it because it’s a thing. We eat these certain foods just on this day, not any other time of the year.”
But I want to make this Thanksgiving more than just the food. For those of us not interested in football, Thanksgiving can turn out to be a rather boring holiday if we don’t strive to do something about it. So this year, I’ve decided to pep up our celebration a little.
The way I was raised, Thanksgiving was just about the feast, there was no praying or saying what you were thankful for. Now, not to knock other people’s traditions, but I always hated being a guest at someone else’s Thanksgiving and being trapped into saying what I was thankful for. Being put on the spot like that really ruined a few holidays for me. I was trying to think of what a suitable alternative to this would be that would give the feast a bit more ceremony but not put anyone on the spot. So I came up with making toasts! I’m going to get out the goblets for our drinks and anyone who wants to can make a toast; to something/someone they like (or are thankful for), or a hail to a deity or ancestor, etc. I think it’s a great alternative to a formal prayer or statement of thanks, and will be lots of fun. And it’s not going to be a go-around-the-table-it’s-your-turn-you-have-to-do-it thing. Besides, it’s a good way to “heathen it up”; the International Handbook on Alcohol and Culture says toasting “is probably a secular vestige of ancient sacrificial libations in which a sacred liquid was offered to the gods…”
After the toasting, I thought it would be nice to have some good Thanksgiving themed music to listen to while we eat. But there’s a serious lack of decent Thanksgiving songs (compared to Xmas) except for Christian hymns (forget that!). However, I did a little searching for pop songs with a thankfulness or harvest theme, or just songs that seemed to have a Thanksgiving mood attached to them. Here is the play list I came up with:
The Thanksgiving Song – Adam Sandler (so silly, maybe a little inappropriate, but had to include it)
What a Wonderful World – Louis Armstrong
Thank You – Led Zeppelin
Corn Rigs – Paul Giovanni (The Wicker Man)
Turn!Turn!Turn! – The Byrds (I know its Biblical, but I like it anyway)
Thanksgiving Theme – Nince Guaraldi Trio (Peanuts Thanksgiving)
Kind and Generous – Natalie Merchant
Lovely Love my Family – The Roots
In My Life – The Beatles
John Barleycorn – Steeleye Span
Be Thankful for What You’ve Got – William DeVaughn
Thank U – Alanis Morissette
The Scythe – Gaia Consort
Meadowlarks – Fleet Foxes
Oh and the food! You know, I’ve seen a lot of recipes that try to take the usual Thanksgiving fare and “fancy it up”, or combine two or more dishes (pecan pumpkin pie, chocolate chip pecan pie, etc.), but we usually like to have the classics… roasted turkey (not ham, that’s for Ostara!), crock-pot cornbread dressing, green bean casserole with French fried onions, mashed potatoes and giblet gravy, and of course pumpkin pie (never forget the cool whip!) and pecan pie. The only thing I’m fancying up this year is the sweet potatoes; instead of making our usual candied sweet potatoes (never mashed, never marshmallows!), I’m going to make roasted sweet potatoes with cinnamon meringue topping. I’m also reviving my old recipe for a fresh (uncooked) cranberry sauce; it’s basically fresh cranberries ground up with an orange, maybe an apple, and some sugar.
I found out the hard way years ago that I hate having all the food on the table and having to pass it around. When I was a kid I was impressed by the iconic image of all the food dishes on the table- we had every meal “buffet style”. Now I know why. Also, when I was growing up, we always had our Thanksgiving meal at noon (dinner), then the leftovers for Supper. We still do. Maybe it’s a Southern thing. Recently I heard that some people save the whole thing for the evening?! I don’t know how anybody can wait that long.
And of course there are other things that make the holiday more to our liking… its fun to watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on TV while the food is cooking. It wouldn’t quite be the same without it. We never used to snack before the big meal on Thanksgiving, but I saw a snack mix recipe I thought would be neat to have between dinner and supper that includes bugles and candy corn.
Then later, if the weather is nice and if we’re not all zonked out on tryptophan, we could go outside and take pictures in the fall foliage, or play Pokean, a Zuni shuttlecock game that’s kind of a cross between hackey-sack and badminton.
More likely though, we’ll want to veg in front of the TV. I’d like to see “Leif Ericson: The Boy Who Discovered America”. If its good maybe it will become one of our Thanksgiving traditions. Another idea is starting a collection of Thanksgiving episodes of favorite TV shows. I thought of this after watching the Thanksgiving episode from season four of Buffy the vampire Slayer. Classic.
Nordic Wiccan
Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada as a day of giving thanks for the blessing of the harvest and of the preceding year. Several other places around the world observe similar celebrations. It is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States and on the second Monday of October in Canada. In Germany, Erntedankfest, is first Sunday in October. In Australia, Mabon falls around March 20th. Or in Switzerland, The Federal Day of Thanks, Penance, and Prayer, is third Sunday in September. Thanksgiving has its historical roots in religious and cultural traditions and has long been celebrated in a secular manner as well.
Prayers of thanks and special thanksgiving ceremonies are common among almost all religions after harvests and at other times. The Thanksgiving holiday's history in North America is rooted in English traditions dating from the Protestant Reformation. It also has aspects of a harvest festival, even though the harvest in New England occurs well before the late-November date on which the modern Thanksgiving holiday is celebrated.
In the United States, the modern Thanksgiving holiday tradition is commonly, but not universally, traced to a 1621 celebration at Plymouth in present-day Massachusetts. The 1621 Plymouth feast and thanksgiving was prompted by a good harvest. Pilgrims and Puritans who began emigrating from England in the 1620s and 1630s carried the tradition of Days of Fasting and Days of Thanksgiving with them to New England (Northeastern United States).
As President of the United States, George Washington proclaimed the first nation-wide thanksgiving celebration in America marking November 26, 1789, "as a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God". In modern times the President of the United States, in addition to issuing a proclamation, will "pardon a turkey", which spares the bird's life and ensures that it will spend the duration of its life roaming freely on farmland.
In the United States, certain kinds of food are traditionally served at Thanksgiving meals. Firstly, baked or roasted turkey is usually the featured item on any Thanksgiving feast table (so much so that Thanksgiving is sometimes referred to as "Turkey Day"). Stuffing, mashed potatoes with gravy, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, sweet corn, various fall vegetables (mainly various kinds of squashes) and pumpkin pie are commonly associated with Thanksgiving dinner. All of these are actually native to the Americas or were introduced as a new food source to the Europeans when they arrived.
The poor are often provided with food at Thanksgiving time. Most communities have annual food drives that collect non-perishable packaged and canned foods, and corporations sponsor charitable distributions of staple foods and Thanksgiving dinners. Additionally, pegged to be five days after Thanksgiving is Giving Tuesday, a celebration of charitable giving.
Thanksgiving for the annual harvest is one of the oldest holidays known to man though celebrated on different dates. The Israelites were instructed to keep the feast of Tabernacles (Sukkoth) a celebration, a holy convocation that was to last eight days. The Old Testament is filled with commands to gather harvest and rejoice. The ancient Greek harvest festival was called Thesmophora and celebrated Demeter, the founder and Goddess of the harvests. The symbols of Demeter were poppies and ears of corn, a basket of fruit and a little pig. The Roman Goddess of the harvest Ceres, had a festival, which occurred on October 4th and was called the Cerelia. Celtic Pagans and Angelo Saxon’s had huge celebrations – Lughnasadh and Mabon. These were to honor the first and second harvest blessed upon them by their Goddess and God.
Lammas, also called Lughnasadh, falls at the beginning of the harvest season. The Earth is fruitful and abundant, crops are bountiful, and livestock are fattening up for winter. Lammas in Norse is compared to Freyfaxi , or Freyr Fest. As a fertility deity Freyr would be intimately tied to the land and the food grown upon it. It was a time for celebration with horse races and a feast for God Freyr. Thor was also honored as is his wife Sif, whose golden hair reminds us the wheat fields. Traditionally, three stalks of the first grains are bound together into a sheaf and kept as an amulet of fortune. Sometimes it was also left in the field for Odin’s horse Sleipnir.
Mabon is the Autumn Equinox. The Autumn Equinox divides the day and night equally, and we all take a moment to pay our respects to the impending dark. We also give thanks to the waning sunlight, as we store our harvest of this year’s crops. The Druids call this celebration, Mea’n Fo’mhair, and honor the The Green Man, the God of the Forest, by offering libations to trees. Offerings of ciders, wines, herbs and fertilizer are appropriate at this time. Wiccans celebrate the aging Goddess as she passes from Mother to Crone, and her consort the God as he prepares for death and re-birth.
On or around September 21, for many Pagan and Wiccan traditions it is a time of giving thanks for the things we have, whether it is abundant crops or other blessings. For the Nordic, it is time for a Winter Finding ceremony to bid farewell to the passing summer and to prepare for the rigors of winter. The Norse, like the other pre-industrial societies of Europe, depended heavily on a successful harvest in the fall to make it through the winter and so they took this time to thank the Gods for all that had been given during the harvest and to ask their protection during the cold of winter.
In some Germanic countries, people worried about the fate of their grain harvest. If there was a great deal of wind during the harvesting season, it could be because Odin wanted a share of the crop. To keep him happy, a few spare sacks of flour were emptied into the wind.
A magical Mabon beverage: hot apple cider. Apples rules the heart, cider alone is a self-love potion. By spicing it with cinnamon, ruled by the Sun, we are in essence, ingesting the sunlight.
For many locations, Mabon coincides with the final harvest of grain, fruits, and vegetables. Mabon, also called Harvest Home, is the time of thanksgiving. The beauty and bounty of summer gives way to the desolation of winter and the darkness overtakes the light.
No matter when you give thanks, take time in Autumn to do it. Honor the Divines. Take the opportunity to recharge your spiritual batteries. Align yourself with the Earth's shifting energies. Say 'Thank You'.
A great spirit is here in these green and golden woods. Her voice moves the branches. Fluttering leaves an old oak shakes herself. Sky arching above my head. Disk of the Sun a halo above my head. Here's to our foremothers, the renegades of Salem. May their spirit remain strong in the land. May our youth always be independent, think for themselves and be resourceful. This Thanksgiving day we prostrate ourselves on this beautiful Earth and let her absorb our shortcomings. Let our souls, like a taproot, remain connected to her and drink deeply from her wellsprings of rejuvenation. Strengthen us. Open us. Allow us to see that we are all one. May our insight translate into loving kindness and compassionate action in our families and society. ~ Daruma
Pagan thanksgiving traditions
We walked into my Gram's house early in the morning. I had promised to come over and help her cook. Knowing her though, it would be mostly done. Every year Gram hosts our family Thanksgiving. She puts on a full spread, Turkey, Roast Beef, Mashed Potatoes and Cauliflower, Green Bean Casserole, Sweet Potato Casserole, Rolls, Apple bread, and Pies. OH! The pies! Every pie you can imagine; Apple, Berry, Cherry, Pumpkin. Grams knew how to bake a pie!
The house was warm and smelled like apples and cinnamon. My son ran straight for the kitchen with his coat still on. Standing in the entry slowly shedding my winter coat I could hear their voices floating out from the hearth of Gram’s home.
"Grammie, can I have some?"
"Shhhh, don't tell anyone I let you lick the spoon."
I knew that scene, I had been the one "sneaking" a lick of Gram's spoons many moons ago. I smiled and took my time as I imagine my parents did when I was young. The morning was filled with chopping and cooking and taste testing. The rest of our family arrived throughout the morning. The adults settling in family room and the children flitting from room to room and sometimes running outside with the dogs.
The afternoon was filled with family and laughter and the infamous board game Battle Royale. At some point while my brother and my uncle were arguing the rules of Munchkin, my Grams emerged from the kitchen and announced it was time to set the table. Family tradition dictated that anyone who couldn't drink wine with dinner had to set the table. My son, nieces and nephew all jumped and scrambled for the dining room. The rattle of the china and the tinkling of the silver and crystal punctuated early evening sounds. My uncle poured us all a glass of sherry and we toasted the children. The first Thanksgiving after my son was born, I was invited to partake in the children's toast.
My mother, "We give thanks for the children and wish for them to grow strong and healthy in the love and light of the Sun and Moon…"
My uncle, "…and may they keep their greasy paws out of the lavender lemon pound cake"
Laughing, we drank to the toast and wandered into the dining room. My 12-year-old niece was putting the last fork on the last napkin. The name plates were carefully balanced on the top of each plate, the handwriting and spelling gave away that they were clearly the handiwork of my 4-year-old nephew.
My son was standing, arms crossed, feet spread wide, every inch the eldest cousin acting as overseer. Just a few weeks shy of his 13 th birthday he was looking forward to no longer being part of the “kids crew”. I wanted so much to tell him to hold on to this moment to be thankful for it… too soon it would be just a memory.
The men headed for the kitchen to retrieve the food and bring it to the table. They loved this part. Each of them entered from the kitchen with a flourish and laid his dish on the table with care and grace as if serving a royal feast. It took several trips to get it all from the hearth to the table. The final dish, a great turkey, perfectly golden crispy skin shining in the chandelier light, steam rising from it fogging my dad’s glasses. He slowly lowered it to the table and announced:
“Be it known! The feast is about to begin.”
He took his seat and my Grams rose from the head of the table. She spread her arms wide and gave the blessing:
“O Queen of Creation; bless this food, Bring us health and wealth, strength and joy, peace and love;”
No sooner had her bum contacted her chair than the din of the feast began. Clanking serving spoons and cries of “pass the potatoes”, “some salt please”, “who has the pepper” …
When the eating began a happy quiet descended on the table. After having had a taste of everything on her plate Grams looked up and said;
“This year I am Thankful for the bounty of my little garden, and for my children who have given me so many beautiful grandchildren.”
“Grammie, you said the same thanks last year!” The 4-year-old is an astute little character.
“Yes, my love, because I am thankful for them all over again this year”
“My teacher says that Thanksgiving is when the Pilgrims came and they almost starved, but the First People saved them, and they had a big dinner” My 6-year-old niece used her best know-it-all voice to make her declaration. She is so much like my sister that I am often left wondering if she isn’t just a little clone.
Grams looked at me over the rim of her glasses, “Care to take this one dear?” Of all my siblings, I alone had taken up the mantle of The Teacher. Usually Grams handled these sorts of things but earlier this year she had declared her retirement.
“Well, the history that is taught in schools isn’t wrong, but it isn’t all the way right either. There are some historical references that indicate that most of the traditional story of Thanksgiving is close to accurate.”
I looked around the table, most everyone had heard this before, but they all gave me their full attention. As if hearing it for the first time. “But we don’t celebrate the Thanksgiving of the nation. We celebrate the thanksgiving of our family. We hold our feast on the Autumnal Equinox, nearly two months before theirs. We are giving thanks for the abundance of the year. Grammie’s garden, which brought you most of the veggie dishes on the table. Uncle Bran’s farm which gave us this beautiful turkey. Your dad’s butcher shop that provided the roast. Aunt Sam’s salon which gave you those awesome mermaid locks.”
She beamed a gap-toothed grin at my sister. “but mostly we gather to give thanks for each other. We are truly blessed to have such a large and loving family. The universe has been kind to us. We are healthy, we have homes and all this food. There are many who don’t have even half of what we have.”
All the adults were nodding, the teenagers yawning, but the little ones… the ones who really needed to hear this were all eyes and ears. “Hundreds of years ago our ancestors worked very hard to feed their families. They grew everything themselves. They raised their own animals for the slaughter. And the success of their harvests was never guaranteed. When the year was prosperous and the harvest fruitful, they would give thanks to the Earth and whatever local Gods they worshipped”,
“But what if it wasn’t! Auntie, what happened when the harvest was bad?”
I continued, “Well Matty, they still gave thanks to the Earth and their gods. You give thanks for what you have, you do not mourn what you don’t have. What point would there have been for them to grieve their lack?”
Every year is the same. My family sitting around the great oak table passing food, sharing stories and love. The children squabbling over who’s roll is bigger. The adults reveling in the energy of the youth.
Children are the future of our world. That they can hear this explanation and learn it in their hearts is the miracle of youth. They are ripe and ready for the lessons that will teach them to be the leaders we need. Our harvest is not vegetables, it is not the berries of the vine, it is not the grain of the field; it is our children. We must tend them and guide them to grow strong. When they are harvested from the kinder-garden and thrust into the world they need to be ready for the trials they will face.
A Story by Lady Sisterwolf
This aligns with the essence of Thanksgiving, which is centered around appreciation for the bountiful harvest. In Paganism, thanksgiving rituals often involve offerings and ceremonies dedicated to the Earth Mother or other deities associated with fertility and harvest. Pagan traditions emphasize the importance of reciprocity and the concept of giving back to the earth.
This can be seen in the rituals and practices performed during the harvest season, where Pagans often express gratitude by offering food, drink, or other gifts to the earth or deities. Pagan Thanksgiving traditions can also include communal feasts or gatherings, where people come together to share food and celebrate the blessings of the harvest. These feasts serve as a way to foster a sense of community and unity, similar to the spirit of Thanksgiving in American culture. Furthermore, Paganism encourages mindfulness and awareness of the present moment. This aspect of the practice aligns with the idea of expressing gratitude for the present abundance. Just as Thanksgiving prompts individuals to pause and reflect on their blessings, Pagan traditions emphasize the importance of being present and appreciating the gifts of life. While Pagan Thanksgiving traditions may vary depending on the specific tradition or belief system, they often share common themes of gratitude, reciprocity, and a deep connection with the earth. These traditions provide an alternative way to celebrate the harvest season and express gratitude for the abundance in one's life..
Reviews for "Harvest Deities and Their Role in Pagan Thanksgiving Traditions"
1. John - 2 stars
I have to say, I was quite disappointed with the Pagan Thanksgiving Traditions event. As someone who believes in Christian values, I found it offensive to partake in practices that go against my faith. While I appreciate the diversity of cultures and traditions, I believe it would have been more appropriate to keep the event centered around the values of Thanksgiving that are commonly accepted in society. The organizers should have been mindful of those who may not be comfortable participating in Pagan rituals and created a more inclusive atmosphere.
2. Sarah - 1 star
I attended the Pagan Thanksgiving Traditions gathering with an open mind, hoping to learn something new. However, I left feeling very underwhelmed. The event lacked organization and failed to provide any meaningful information about Pagan traditions. It seemed to be more of a gathering for people already familiar with Paganism, excluding those who were genuinely interested in learning. Additionally, I found some of the rituals to be quite strange and inexplicable. Overall, it was not an enjoyable experience, and I would not recommend it to others.
3. Michael - 2 stars
I had high hopes for the Pagan Thanksgiving Traditions event, but unfortunately, it fell short of my expectations. The rituals and practices felt disconnected and lacked coherence. It seemed like a mishmash of different traditions thrown together without any clear purpose or meaning. I was left feeling confused and unfulfilled. The organizers could have provided more explanation and context to help attendees understand the significance behind the rituals. Overall, it was an underwhelming experience that left me questioning the purpose of the event.