Hakarat Hatov means Gratitude (or Thanksgiving if you prefer!)
Thanksgiving is a time for…check the boxes that fit your reality:
0 Family gathering?
0 Specific food choices?
0 Lions and/or Cowboys football?
0 Debating the historical origins of the holiday?
0 Booking flights and hotels?
0 Counting the blessings in your life?
As Jews, many of us tend not to use the “count your blessings” phrase too often. It sounds to some like language other people use. I think that may be a mistake for us.
During the High Holy Day season, we often talk about doing Cheshbon Hanefesh – an accounting of the soul. The idea is to review the past year and note the times we have hurt someone or fallen short from what we (and God) expect from our own behavior. Then we are supposed to go to those people and to God and atone – make amends – and try to restore our relationships.
Thanksgiving suggests a similar, yet slightly different, exercise. The Hebrew for gratitude is Hakarat Hatov. The literal translation of the two words is “recognizing the good.”
Cheshbon Hanefesh focuses on how we missed the mark. Hakarat Hatov demands that we take some time to take notice of the good things – both those we have done and especially those that others have done which we now value.
When President Lincoln formalized the holiday, he was asking that each American, in their own way, give thanks and praise. He did this in the months following Gettysburg, which was the turning point in the American Civil War and the end was seen to be nearing.
We teach Hakarat Hatov as a part of our Religious School curriculum. The idea is that no matter what negative things may happen, it is our job to find sparks of the divine in our world, to recognize and acknowledge them. I hope that as each of us may or may not begin to work our own pre-Thanksgiving checklists we each include a check box for counting blessings and giving thanks. Join me in recognizing the good.
L’shalom,
Ira J. Wise
0 Count Blessings
0 Give thanks