Happy Kwanzaa, everybody! President Obama marked the start of the week-long holiday this way:
Michelle and I extend our warm thoughts and best wishes to all those celebrating Kwanzaa this holiday season. Today marks the first day of the week-long celebration of African-American history and culture through the seven principles of Kwanzaa: unity, self determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith.
To many, Kwanzaa serves as a time of reflection–taking lessons learned from our past and looking forward to a more promising tomorrow. It reminds us that though there is much to be thankful for we must recommit ourselves to building a country where all Americans have the opportunity to achieve their dreams.
As families across America light the Kinara today in the spirit of unity, our family extends our prayers and well wishes during this season.
Investors. com columnist Andrew Malcolm used the occasion to note that "Obama and his spokesmen describe the president's religion as 'Christian.' " In an editorial titled "Obama hails Kwanzaa holiday, so why not Easter?" Mr. Malcolm writes:
In his Thanksgiving messages Obama has also strangely omitted mention of God, the usual addressee in American prayers of Thanksgiving. Although Obama has been actively involved in the secular Easter egg roll at the White House, he has also not issued traditional messages marking Easter, one of the top two annual holidays of Christians.
Hmmm, is it possible Mr. Malcolm overlooked this God-thanking Thanksgiving proclamation from 2011?
As we gather in our communities and in our homes, around the table or near the hearth, we give thanks to each other and to God for the many kindnesses and comforts that grace our lives. Let us pause to recount the simple gifts that sustain us, and resolve to pay them forward in the year to come.
And as for the president failing to hail Easter, how about this?
"For me, and for countless other Christians, Easter weekend is a time to reflect and rejoice. Yesterday, many of us took a few quiet moments to try and fathom the tremendous sacrifice Jesus made for all of us. Tomorrow, we will celebrate the resurrection of a savior who died so that we might live....So to all Christians celebrating the Resurrection with us, Michelle and I want to wish you a blessed and Happy Easter. And to all Americans, I hope you have a weekend filled with joy and reflection, focused on the things that matter most.
From all of us at TRMS, have a joyful, reality-based, holiday.
