What are the spiritual origins of Thanksgiving?


SPIRITUAL IQ QUIZ — The Thanksgiving celebration is not uniquely American (or if you’re Canadian, an October thing). Festivities expressing gratitude for prosperity and abundance occur in practically every culture, dating back to ancient Greece and Rome, and beyond.

So if you need an escape between family feuds and football, we give you six trivia questions about the spirituality of a holiday named after gratitude. Answer by clicking the radio buttons below:


1. Thanksgiving was originally a harvest celebration. Which of the following is not a traditional harvest celebration?






heraclescornucopia2. According to Greek mythology, the cornucopia was one of the horns of Amalthaea, the goat who nursed the god Zeus when he was a baby. What did it produce?






3. Which country’s ambassador became enamored of the concept of Thanksgiving on a visit to the U.S., and brought it to his homeland?






4. The first Thanksgiving in North America was celebrated in what year?






thanksgiving5. In the United States, Thanksgiving has been an annual celebration since 1863. In what year did it become a federal holiday?






6. In Roman mythology, the cornucopia was the horn of the river god Achelous. After Hercules broke it off in a fight and the water nymphs filled the horn with flowers and fruit, to which deity was it offered?








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2 Responses to “What are the spiritual origins of Thanksgiving?”

  1. Tracy Reply 27. Nov, 2009 at 8:11 am

    Whoa, this is a hard one, I got 3/6 and that’s just with lucky guessing!

  2. Richard Reply 27. Nov, 2009 at 11:30 am

    A quiz that makes you think, thanks! I learned a few new things from it.