Thank goodness for Facebook memories, or else I would have completely forgotten a blog post I wrote a decade ago (!!!) for Moment Magazine as part of my "bloggership" there.
Titled "Revolutionary American Jews," I wrote about the contributions that the Jewish patriots made to the war effort. You can check it out here: https://momentmag.com/revolutionary-american-jews/
This seems especially serendipitous as I plan on recording my "Jews of New England" presentation for the 41st IAJGS International Conference
on Jewish Genealogy to be held virtually this August tonight. If you're interested at all in Jewish genealogy, this conference is not to be missed. More information available here: https://s4.goeshow.com/iajgs/annual/2021/index.cfm.
In my presentation, I obviously talk a lot about Newport, RI, which was the main Jewish population center in New England during the colonial period. I've learned many don't know this, but Moses Seixas, warden of the Hebrew Congregation in Newport, Rhode Island, wrote a letter to George Washington upon his visit, in which he expressed hope that the new government would be committed to religious tolerance.
Washington's response is widely acclaimed as setting the tone for America's foundational commitment to religious minorities being safe in their homes and houses of worship: “to bigotry no sanction...every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig tree, and there shall be none to make him afraid.” The complete letter is available here: https://www.tourosynagogue.org/history-learning/gw-letter.
Wishing everyone a wonderful July 4th weekend, and if you're like me, lots of time spent on your genealogical research!
Please contact me at adina@myfamilygenie.com if you're interesting in exploring your family history. Free initial consultations.
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