Faith

Massachusetts Governor John Hancock’s Thanksgiving Proclamation, 1791

Massachusetts Governor John Hancock’s Thanksgiving Proclamation, 1791

John Hancock

In consideration of the many undeserved Blessings conferred upon us by GOD, the Father of all Mercies, it becomes us not only in our private and usual devotion, to express our obligations to Him, as well as our dependence upon Him; but also specially to set apart a Day to be employed for this great and important Purpose:

I have therefore thought fit to appoint, and the advice and consent of the Council, do hereby accordingly appoint. Thursday, the seventeenth day of November next, to be observed as a Day of Public THANKSGIVING and PRAISE, throughout this Commonwealth: – Hereby calling upon Ministers and People of every denomination to assemble on the said Day – and in the name of the Great Mediator, devoutly and sincerely offer to Almighty God, the gratitude of our Hearts' for all his goodness towards us; more especially in that HE has been pleased to continue to us so great a measure of Health – to cause the Earth plentifully to yield her increase, so that we are supplied with the Necessaries, and the Comforts of Life – to prosper our Merchandise and Fishery – And above all, not only to continue to us the enjoyment of our civil Rights and Liberties; but the great and most important Blessing, the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The problem with Africa
Commentary

The problem with Africa

Tina McCormick

When I was growing up in Copenhagen, my mother had a three row Peugeot station wagon to accommodate six children and two dogs. After twenty years and about 300,000 miles and countless overhauls and repairs, it was time to let go. The beloved chariot, apparently no longer reparable or useful, was left at a junk yard to be shipped to Africa. There, we were told, it would be used as a cab. This story of our car turned cab in Africa has intrigued me for the past twenty years. With no details of the car's whereabouts, its final destiny still strikes me as fascinating. Someone in Africa had the ingenuity to resurrect our car and use it for a purpose. This, indeed, is a story of hope. Unfortunately, we rarely hear such stories when we hear about Africa.

The western media tends to report mostly negative stories about the African continent and highlights the outrageous and dramatic aspects of life in Africa. Most of the images that come to mind when we think of Africa are those of starvation, disease, brutal conflict, and child soldiers. According to the media, Africa seems like a continent in ruins, beyond hope. The story of Africa has turned into a single narrative of misery and inspiring stories of success and hope are rare. Much of this negative presentation of Africa has to do with the needs of NGOs to raise funds for their projects and for what has been termed the "White Savior Industrial Complex." (Cole, 2012) To any charitable organization vying for funds, bad news tends to be good for business. Similarly, the United Nation's "Millennium Development Goals," devised in 2000 to define a series of targets on poverty reduction, tend to be misused, with Africa routinely described as falling short.

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