The Briefing with Albert Mohler

Episode: Wednesday, November 26, 2025
Host: R. Albert Mohler, Jr.
Theme: Thanksgiving, Gratitude, Secularization, and Christian Apologetics

Episode Overview

Dr. Albert Mohler delivers a cultural and theological commentary on the significance of Thanksgiving in America. He examines the roots of the holiday, how its meaning has shifted in a secular society, and what the enduring impulse of thankfulness reveals about humanity's innate awareness of God. Mohler uses the occasion to reflect on gratitude as an essential apologetic and doctrine, urging Christians to recognize and honor the Giver—the one true God—behind all blessings.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Thanksgiving as a Distinctly American and Theological Holiday

• Travel and Cultural Pause:
  • Mohler notes the vast movement of Americans during Thanksgiving week, highlighting it as "one of the biggest travel days in the United States of America" (00:21).
• Historical Roots:
  • The holiday’s origins in colonial America, referencing the Pilgrims and subsequent presidential proclamations, especially Abraham Lincoln's formalization of Thanksgiving (01:10).
  • "Thanksgiving has some of the deepest roots because it goes back...to the origins of our national story" (01:18).

2. The Question of Thankfulness in a Secular Age

• Thankfulness Without God:
  • Mohler challenges the notion of expressing thanks in a secular context: “What are millions and millions of Americans thinking as they’re thinking thankful thoughts? ... To whom are they thankful?” (02:08)
• Shift in Societal Understanding:
  • Historically, Thanksgiving was universally understood as directed toward God, the Creator and sustainer of all things (02:45).

3. The Apologetic Power of Gratitude

• Thanksgiving as Evidence for God:
  • Even secular people feel and express thankfulness, raising the apologetic question: "To whom are they thankful if not God?" (05:40)
  • Memorable analogy: “It just doesn’t make any sense to be thankful to evolution. It doesn’t make any sense whatsoever to be thankful to a blind, secular world created only by chance that has no meaning in it” (06:01).
• Personal Nature of Gratitude:
  • "Thankfulness is a very personal action. We are thankful. Not to the second law of thermodynamics. We're thankful to a person" (06:25).

4. Reflections on Atheism and Cultural Traditions

• Richard Dawkins Example:
  • Dawkins, a prominent atheist, enjoys Christmas carols and is drawn to Christmas services, despite denying Christian claims (04:38).
  • Mohler comments: “He thinks that's cultural. I think it's a lot more than cultural.” (05:11).

5. Biblical Foundations for Thankfulness

• Romans 1 Exposition:
  • Mohler cites Romans 1:18-23, emphasizing how all humanity suppresses the truth of God's existence and fails to give thanks (12:18).
  • “For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking and their foolish hearts were darkened." (13:41)
• Universal Impulse and Suppression:
  • The instinct to give thanks is universal but often suppressed or misdirected because of sin (14:21).

6. The Theology and Practice of Thanksgiving

• Christian Response:
  • Christians are called to be consistently thankful and not to suppress the truth of God as the giver of all good gifts (16:30).
  • “We are to say we are thankful to the one true and living God, the Maker of heaven and earth, who has given us all things and who has made us in his own image….” (16:56).
• Thankfulness in Everyday Life:
  • Special days like Thanksgiving help remind us of God’s goodness, but all of life should be lived in gratitude (18:07).
• Superiority and Humility:
  • Mohler explicitly warns against any Christian condescension: “We’re not the people smart enough to figure out how thankful we should be. ... It is all of grace.” (19:25).

7. The Role of Thanksgiving in Worship and Family

• Central to Worship:
  • Thanksgiving is a central element of classical Christian worship and family life (22:01).
• Recalling Special Meals and Rituals:
  • Not every meal is memorable, but special meals remain, as in Passover. Thanksgiving rituals hold theological weight, even if not biblically mandated (23:53).

8. Evangelistic Opportunity and Hope

• Opening in the Culture:
  • Mohler sees the act of giving thanks—even among non-believers—as a potentially evangelistic moment: “Maybe there’s a vulnerability, an opening in their hearts to be reminded or to be told, maybe for the very first time, why they’re thankful and to whom they're thankful….” (26:38)

9. Prayer and Blessing for the Listeners

• Mohler concludes with a pastoral prayer, blessing listeners and encouraging them to embrace thanksgiving as a deeply theological and countercultural act (27:23).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Illogic of Secular Thankfulness:

  • "It just doesn’t make any sense to be thankful to evolution. ... Thankfulness is a very personal action. We are thankful. Not to the second law of thermodynamics" (06:01–06:25).

• On the Universality of the Thankfulness Impulse:

  • “Even the most secular do feel thankful. They don’t really understand why. ... I say that with the hope that they will come to know why they are thankful” (25:11).

• Scripture Cited:

  • "For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him..." (Romans 1:21, quoted at 13:41).

• On Christian Humility:

  • “It is all of grace. It is all God’s grace displayed. It was grace that we were made in the first place. ... It is by God’s grace that we came to saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.” (19:25-20:12)

Timestamps for Major Segments

• 00:00–02:45 — Introduction, Thanksgiving as American tradition, and historical roots
• 02:45–06:25 — Secularization of Thanksgiving and the apologetic of gratitude
• 04:38–05:11 — The Richard Dawkins example
• 06:25–12:18 — The personal nature of thankfulness and the impossibility of secular gratitude
• 12:18–14:21 — Romans 1 explained, suppression of the truth, and thankfulness as an impulse
• 16:30–19:25 — The Christian vocation of thankfulness and warnings against superiority
• 22:01–23:53 — Thankfulness in worship and family traditions
• 25:11–26:38 — The universal impulse to thankfulness and evangelistic opportunities
• 27:23–End — Final blessings and exhortations for a God-honoring Thanksgiving

Summary Note

Dr. Mohler’s Thanksgiving commentary challenges both Christians and secular listeners to consider the true object of thankfulness, asserting that gratitude itself reveals a longing for relationship with the Creator. He encourages believers to recognize, celebrate, and share that truth—without pride but with humility and joy. The episode intertwines theology, cultural critique, and pastoral exhortation, calling Thanksgiving a profound opportunity for both worship and witness.