Rosh Hashonah messages of President Roosevelt and Wendell L. Willkie, Republican presidential candidate, were made public today.
President Roosevelt’s message follows: “I feel confident that true Americans of every creed will join wholeheartedly with me in my greeting to those of Jewish faith upon the celebration of the Jewish New Year, and will re-echo my wish that each day of the coming year may witness some slight advancement on the road towards a more decent humanity.”
Willkie said: “I am happy to send my greetings to the Jewish people of America on the occasion of their celebration of the Hebrew New Year 5701. I am deeply impressed by back to the roots of our civilization.
“I know what Rosh Hashonah means to the people of your faith. I know that on that day in every land, the Jewish people gather in their synagogues, praying for peace and for the ultimate victory of right and justice. I ask the privilege of joining in your prayers and of pledging to you today, that insofar as it is within my capacity to keep so sacred a pledge the United States of America will never harbor racial or religious tolerance and persecution. Upon this principle our country was founded and upon it demands the perpetuation of democracy.
“God grant that the Hebrew New Year 5701 may bring to Israel throughout the world the same peace and protection that the Jews of our Democracy have always enjoyed and shall continue to enjoy in the United States of America.”
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.