MP proposes to introduce Thanksgiving Day as a public holiday

Thanksgiving Day celebrations. Photo: nv.ua

On 16 October 2023, the Parliament registered a draft law on the celebration in Ukraine of "Thanksgiving Day to God", which will be marked on an "interfaith level". The corresponding draft law was published on the Rada website.

The initiator of the bill, MP Viktor Mialyk, proposes to make Thanksgiving Day a day off, and it will be celebrated on the last Sunday of September.

In an explanatory note, the MP noted that the introduction of Thanksgiving Day is necessary so that "the Ukrainian people can turn to God with gratitude for His mercy, which was shown to the Ukrainian people in different historical times and is manifested today".

"On this day everyone will have a special occasion to address the Almighty with a prayer for cleansing from sins and spiritual healing, with gratitude for well-being and good harvests in our country, asking for the preservation of peace, unity and independence of our state," Mialyk wrote.

Earlier, parliamentarians already wanted to introduce in Ukraine Thanksgiving Day, which was supposed to be a day off. Then it was proposed to celebrate the new holiday on 22 October, as this time is the "autumn season, rich in the harvest of fruits and vegetables".

Before Volodymyr Zelensky cancelled the celebration of Christmas on January 7, the days of four religious holidays were officially defined as days off in Ukraine. After the cancellation of Christmas celebrations, the number of days off was reduced to three.

As reported, the Ukrainian President signed a law cancelling the Christmas celebration on 7 January.

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