Six rabbis representing congregations that existed in the Colonies when the United States declared its independence two centuries ago, presented President Ford with the gift of an ancient shofar and a letter reaffirming the loyalty of American Jews to the nation and their rededication to the principles of liberty and justice on which it was founded. The presentation was made Monday at ceremonies in the Oval Office of the White House. It was both a Bicentennial tribute and a personal gift to the President who marked his 69rd birthday today.
The rabbis, who were warmly greeted by Ford, were: Edward L. Cohn, Kahal Kadosh-Beth Elohim, Charleston, S.C.; Dr. Louis Gernterstein, Shearith Israel, New York City; Theodore Lewis, Jeshuat Israel (Touro Synagogue) Newport. R.I.; E.N. Musleah, Mikvah Israel. Philadelphia; Sol Jacob Rubin. Mickve Israel, Savannah, Ga.; and Jack Spiro. Beth Ahaba-Beth Shalome. Richmond, Va.
The letter was in the form of a hand-written scroll on parchment. It said in part: “As our forefathers tendered President Washington felicitations on the occasion of his inauguration, expressing in those documents love of America and dedication on the part of the Jewish citizens to the majestic precepts and freedoms for which it was established, we, in this generation, would affirm their sentiments. May the blessings of liberty. justice and compassion be forthcoming unto our more than two hundred million citizens, in them and their progeny after them. May Washington’s promise. ‘To bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance,’ continue to be the bedrock of public policy.”
Ford, who said he was “very, very grateful for the letter,” observed that he was particularly pleased by the quotation from Gen. Washington’s response to the felicitations which had come from the Touro Synagogue in Newport. “I know your dedication to freedom is great and I reaffirm what President Washington said,” Ford told his visitors. The rabbis sounded the shofar which had been sounded at the first jubilee of American independence 150 years ago.
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.
