Reason for the Season Pt 2
Let's fast forward about 100 years from the last post.
Enter the Puritans, a sect of Calvinists. They had it in their heads that the Church of England (the Anglican Church) wasn't separated enough from the Catholic Church and moved to Holland to get away from the persecution. After a while Holland didn't want them anymore either. So they went back to England and somehow procured a charter to head to the Virginia Colony. Let me repeat that: THEY WERE HEADED FOR VIRGINIA. Of course the Atlantic Ocean is a breeding ground for nasty storms and they were blown off course. All things considered, the change in trajectory wasn't that bad. They could have ended up in Greenland.
Anyway, most of them lived through that and finally landed. It was one of those "Omg, this isn't where we were supposed to go" moments. They were in no condition to travel in any direction by any means so they just set up camp and tried not to die. The first winter was bad. After that, the native people decided these white strangers weren't so bad and decided to help them. Over the course of that year, the colonists learned how to communicate with their new friends, how to grow food, and how to generally survive in New England.
THAT is what we are celebrating. Friendship, generosity, charity, and life. The fact that the natives WOULD help the white strangers instead of letting them die. This holiday is in no way about the genocide of the native peoples, that came later.
If you want to be pissy about something that happened 500 years ago, save it for October 12. If you really want to get your panties in a twist, read up on the "Holy" Roman Empire and all the misfortune they wrought that is still affecting us today. In the meantime, let me enjoy this time with my family.
Enter the Puritans, a sect of Calvinists. They had it in their heads that the Church of England (the Anglican Church) wasn't separated enough from the Catholic Church and moved to Holland to get away from the persecution. After a while Holland didn't want them anymore either. So they went back to England and somehow procured a charter to head to the Virginia Colony. Let me repeat that: THEY WERE HEADED FOR VIRGINIA. Of course the Atlantic Ocean is a breeding ground for nasty storms and they were blown off course. All things considered, the change in trajectory wasn't that bad. They could have ended up in Greenland.
Anyway, most of them lived through that and finally landed. It was one of those "Omg, this isn't where we were supposed to go" moments. They were in no condition to travel in any direction by any means so they just set up camp and tried not to die. The first winter was bad. After that, the native people decided these white strangers weren't so bad and decided to help them. Over the course of that year, the colonists learned how to communicate with their new friends, how to grow food, and how to generally survive in New England.
THAT is what we are celebrating. Friendship, generosity, charity, and life. The fact that the natives WOULD help the white strangers instead of letting them die. This holiday is in no way about the genocide of the native peoples, that came later.
If you want to be pissy about something that happened 500 years ago, save it for October 12. If you really want to get your panties in a twist, read up on the "Holy" Roman Empire and all the misfortune they wrought that is still affecting us today. In the meantime, let me enjoy this time with my family.