Contributor: What kept me going this holiday season and giving thanks

In a year marked by political upheaval in apparently every conversation, a The unrelenting scourge of political violence and d The highest political assassination Since 1968, Thanksgiving has been on time. In fact, it always does. And it always reminds us that long ago Americans were addicted to the constant rage of clickbait. Ours was a nation rooted in gratitude.

That feeling can feel very unfamiliar—perhaps even foreign—these days. Our national political and cultural discourse, especially online, has become a perpetual fever dream. Social media, which at its advent offered the promise of greater community and interpersonal communication, is now fueling the adrenaline rush of digital warfare. It seems that every news cycle and every social media feed brings more reason to believe that America is splitting into warring political tribes.

Thank goodness, though, for continuing to be the most unique and timeless of American holidays. Thanksgiving, and the broader holiday season that begins, is our annual reminder that gratitude isn’t just an emotion among many people—it’s our foundation, the glue that holds us together. And the more we forget this, the more we risk irreversible national divergence.

Consider how our current political climate destroys gratitude. Gratitude requires perspective, but perpetual anger eats perspective. Gratitude requires humility, but algorithmically eliminates justification for confirmation bias. Gratitude requires being with family, community, and God, but the digital world keeps us fearful, distant, and anxious. Nothing about our politics and our ear-splitting online shredding inspires a healthier and more holistic view of our lives.

The Thanksgiving season offers a respite from this hustle and bustle. This time of year forces us to step back from the hustle and bustle. It invites us to think about the blessings that we do not think we have received and the tasks that we cannot necessarily avoid. It reminds us American Cultural Heritage – A shared moral vocabulary, biblical framework for meaning, commitment to promise common good – is what we must preserve for future generations.

That being said, even in today’s environment, cultural forces that often try to redefine other civic traditions have a harder time rewriting a holiday that revolves around basic institutions like the family. religious devotion And a common dining table. There’s a reason for its versatility: the holiday’s charming, time-tested simplicity.

America needs this simplicity – and common sense – more than ever. Family, community and faith are the best antidotes to the pervasive malaise and social decay of our age. The fall-winter holiday season returns to an America that, while often defunct and controversial, has always been a source of enduring human meaning. And it is these same enduring resources that, if rediscovered and explored in new ways, can still lift us out of the atomism, collective despair, and malaise that define our political and cultural landscape today.

This holiday season, I thank my family – above all, my wife and our beautiful daughter, who is In the process of changing. I am grateful to have found it in recent years The promise of revival To the ancient religion of my fathers. I am grateful to my dear friends who have served as stability against the destructive political and social struggle. Day sickness – Some plot elements that have I hit the mark personally. And I am grateful to live in what is still, wars and all, the greatest country in the history of mankind.

Maybe you think you don’t need all these things in your life right now. But you can change it. You can pursue a serious romantic relationship and get married. You can have children and start a family. You can make friends. You can discover, or rediscover, the religion and enduring wisdom found in scripture. And you can recognize, especially as we approach the July 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, everything about America that we have to be thankful for.

Politics, politics and law are undoubtedly very important parts of people’s lives. I have many strong opinions on these matters, and maybe you do too. But the mistake many Americans are making now is to look to these areas as their source of meaning and fulfillment. That is unpleasant: politics, policy and law are the wrong sources of meaning. Fortunately for us, true sources of meaning still exist. Better yet, these beds are plentiful as always. And it’s the perfect time of year to fall in love with them again.

Josh Hammer’s latest book is “Israel and Civilization: The Fate of the Jewish Nation and the Fate of the West.”” This article was produced in collaboration with The Creators Syndicate. X: @josh_hammer