Thanksgiving: What did the Rebbe say? Must a Jew eat turkey? Meaningful - Rabbi Chaim Dalfin

so it's ad of Thanksgiving tonight Americans will celebrate Thanksgiving giving thanks to God for being in a free country for having freedom from enemies it started and was officially recognized by Abraham Lincoln President Lincoln 1863 I believe and the question is what do we Jews do and what does the re the who cared for every person on Earth especially for Jewish people what's his opinion so the Reb spoke about it in 1986 at the and the did not say go and celebrate Thanksgiving go and buy turkey with gravy he didn't say that but the implication of what he said was that it's a positive thing to celebrate freedom so therefore to make it short and sweeten right to the point if someone celebrates this day wants to celebrate it should be done with that sense of GRA of gratitude to God Almighty for living in a free country for having freedoms and for us Jews what are freedoms not being a wild free individual doing whatever you want no freedom is the Torah given freed freedoms and they're so wonderful they're so special they're beautiful and I want to say something else when you eat your turkey make sure it's a kosher turkey and make sure you make a blessing bless you God the king of the universe everything is created with his words not it was created there being created now make a blessing in Hebrew in English in any language and then eat it slowly think about it and guess what you don't need the gravy first of all it's not that healthy or the or the uh jelly whatever the stuffings whatever they're adding today to the turkey I want to see you eat a piece of turkey what we call LMA for the mitvah of turkey then you're celebrating Thanksgiving you're not celebrating cuz you want to stuff yourself with turkey and food and then fall asleep on the couch or drink a lot of beer no you want to talk about God Freedom helping each other why do you need gravy for that okay you want some gravy take some gravy but big deal don't make the centerpiece of your life a turkey I remember when I was in California years ago the hardest day for me was Thanksgiving why because when my congregants would call me to their Thanksgiving dinner if I didn't come I was a sinner and when I came I had to have not just turkey the gravy and the jelly and and the stuffings let's not lose focus of the day let's make the best out of this day holy turkey kosher turkey and why turkey that's different opinions I've read about you know for whatever reason it's turkey mha Feinstein for those that are looking says that it is not forbidden to eat turkey on Thanksgiving it is not considered the prohibition of following the ways of the non-jews a rabbi out here from burrow Park uh the he says it is but most rabbis disagree with him so you're not doing a sin you're not doing a crime but remember if you're celebrating Thanksgiving celebrate it with with Holiness make it meaningful that's the point let's do whatever we do to celebrate such special days a special special thoughts make it meaningful for the children for the for the for the young people for the older people not just they going to turn on the TV and watch the Dallas Cowboys against whoever they're playing or the Green Bay Packers right tradition in America Thanksgiving is two football games on a Thursday wow ladies and gentlemen eat your turkey enjoy your Thanksgiving but really give thanks to Hashem and we give thanks every morning every day but nevertheless if you want to take this day and make a focus of giving thanks go for it but don't look down at someone else who doesn't celebrate Thanksgiving maybe they don't have the money maybe they don't have the interest maybe they don't have family let us only be POS positive let us be happy let us bring Redemption to the world peace and tranquility and we'll live together in such a beautiful world that God gives us it's like like it says in in the midrash it's a garden it's beautiful let's take out the beauty of the world let's live with the beauty God bless you all Happy Thanksgiving shalom