4 I The Lovell Chronicle I November 22, 2012
CHRONICLE
tIHIOHS
Thanksgiving
and unity in the
words of Lincoln
President Abraham Lincoln is in the minds of many
Americans these days with the release of the new Steverl
Spielberg movie "Lincoln." And so since we are celebrating
Thanksgiving this week, we thought it might be appropri-
ate to look back to the time in 1863 when Lincoln officially
proclaimed Thanksgiving as a national holiday.
Until 1863, states scheduled their own Thanksgiving
celebrations at different times, but Sarah J. Hale, an editor
for the popular women magazine "GodeyL Lady Journal"
wrote to Lincoln on Sept. 28, 1863, urging him to issue a
proclamation, saying a national day of Thanksgiving would
establish "a great Union Festival of America."
Of course, the U.S. was in the throes of the Civil War, so
Lincoln was no doubt looking for something that could uni-
fy the nation. With our nation somewhat divided in this day
and age, his words issued on Oct. 3, 1863, ring true today:
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
The year that is drawing toward its close has been filled
with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To
these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we
are prone to forget the source from which they come, oth-
ers have been added, which are of so extraordinary a na-
ture that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften the heart
which is habitually insensible to the ever-watchful provi-
dence of Almighty God.
In the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and
severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign states to
invite and provoke their aggressions, peace has been pre-
served with all nations, order has been maintained, the
laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has
prevailed everywhere, except in the theater of military con-
flict; while that theater has been greatly contracted by the
advancing armies and navies of the Union.
Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the
fields of peaceful indu.stry.o the national defense have
not arrested the plow, the shuttle, or the ship; the ax has
enlarged the borders oPoJ settlements, and the mines,
as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have
yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population
has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has
been made in the camp, the siege, and the battlefield, and
the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented
strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of
years with large increase of freedom.
No human counsel hath devised, nor hath any mortal
hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious
gifts of the Most High God, who while dealing with us in
anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.
It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be
solemnly, reverently, and gratefully acknowledged as with
one heart and one voice by the whole American people. I
do, therefore, invite my fellow-citizens in every part of the
United States, and also those who are at sea and those who
are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe
the last Thursday of November next as a Day of Thanksgiv-
ing and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in
the heavens. And I recommend to them that, while offering
up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliv-
erances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence
for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend
to His tender care all those who have become widows, or-
phans, mourners, or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in
which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore
the interposition of the Almighty hand to heal the wounds
of the nation, and to restore it, as soon as may be con-
sistent with the Divine purposes, to the full enjoyment of
peace, harmony, tranquility, and union.
In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and
caused the seal of the United Stated States to be affixed.
Done at the city of Washington, this third day of Octo-
ber, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred
and sixty-three, and of the Independence of the United
States the eighty-eighth.
Abraham Lincoln
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PREPARING!
How did people vote?
The religious breakdown
America's voters are overwhelming-
ly Christian: 78 percent of voters identi-
fied themselves as Christians in exit polls
Nov. 6. That is down just 3 percent from
81 percent, the highest Christian partic-
ipation in the previous three elections.
Despite some of the pre-election rhetoric
about the nation being overrun by non-be-
lievers of various stripes, this obviously
did not happen.
Of the remaining 22 percent of voters,
9 percent followed other religions, such
as Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism and Is-
lam. Twelve percent fell into the "unaffil-
iated" category, which includes atheists
and agnostics, but primarily consists of
people who are religious but did not choose to iden-
tify themselves with a particular religion.
Further study of this information from polls
conducted by the Pew Forum on Religion and Pub-
lic Life reveals several important conclusions.
First, white evangelical Protestant voters con-
tinue to punch above their weight. Even though
they make up only 19 percent of the nation's popu-
lation, they accounted for 23 percent of the voters.
The same held true for mainline Protestants, al-
though to a lesser degree; their 15 percent of the
population resulted in 16 percent of the electorate.
Both Protestant groups voted for Romney, the
evangelicals by a margin of almost 4-to-1. Despite
theological misgivings about Romney's Mormon-
ism, they actually gave him a higher percentage of
their vote than they did to McCain four years ear-
lier. This also was a point higher than he gained
among the Mormon population.
Second, white Catholics voted for Romney in
percentages similar to mainline Protestants. While
mainline Protestants preferred Romney 55 percent
to 44 percent, white Catholics voted for him by a
margin of 59 percent to 40 percent.
Third, minority religious voters favored
Obama. More than 75 percent of Hispanic Cath-
olics voted for Obama, while 95 percent of black
Protestants did so. Together, they accounted for 14
percent of the electorate, compared to 61 percent of
the white Christian vote.
Nothing is particularly surprising in these
numbers. They are similar to the voting preferenc-
es for Republican and Democratic candidates in
the previous three elections.
One religious trend within the country's popu-
Paul P.M.
nesher
Religion Today
lation did not play out as expected. The
role organized religion plays among the
U.S. population has been decreasing.
This year, for the first time, the num-
ber of people who reDo themselves as
unaffiliated with : hfi 'Y]gion has 'hit
20 percent, according tq pew's pollsters.
While this group went overwhelming-
ly for Obama, they did not actually vote
in large numbers. They made up only
12 percent of the voters on election day.
This poor turnout indicates that neither
party is addressing their concerns.
A third of young people (ages 18-28)
belong to the unaffiliated crowd, those
who check the "none of the above" box
when it comes to religious identity. Many pundits
have identified this as a problem for the Republi-
can Party, fearing that this identification will con-
tinue as these voters get older. This will probably
not be the case. College-age people, as a group, al-
ways rebel against their parents when they leave
home, and dropping out of church is part of that.
When they marry and have children, they tend
to join churches and other religious institutions
again.
The real problem for the Republican Party is
its identification with religious policies and views
that are insensitive to women. The reopening of
the debate over reproductive matters has alienated
many female voters. The suggestion that workers
at religious institutions should have fewer health-
care rights than those employed at other business-
es does not sit well with many women. Similarly,
the views on rape expressed in religious terms by
some male Republican candidates further dam-
aged the party's image among women.
In the end, it seems that people largely voted
for the party that made them feel welcome. Repub-
licans attracted those who were white, Christian
and male, winning their votes by large numbers.
Democrats attracted majorities among those vot-
ers who did not belong to all three of these catego-
ries. Add these results to the roughly 40 percent of
the white male Christians who voted for Obama,
and that explains the election's outcome.
Flesher is director of UW's Religious Stud-
ies Program. Past columns and more information
about the program can be found on the web at
www.uwyo.edu/RelStds. To comment on this col-
umn, visit http://religion-today.blogspot.com.
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Editor .......... . ...................................................................... David Peck
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00C'00°v0000icle
HI'OH
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