What our first President said to America’s oldest synagogue

by Jonathan Brown on August 14th, 2010

Now that President Obama has stepped into the debate over building an Islamic cultural center and mosque near the site of the World Trade Center, it’s worth remembering what President George Washington said to the Jews of Newport, Rhode Island.

They weren’t the first congregation of Jews in the colonies, but – after the long war for independence – the members were prospering and the group was growing. And they wanted to know if the United States’ new Constitutional government would recognize and defend the same rights for Jews that, at the time, were afforded to Christians.

In 1790 – President Washington’s first full year in office – the head of Newport’s Hebrew Congregation (as they called themselves) used the flowery, diplomatic language of the time to ask for tolerance. Here’s an excerpt:

Deprived as we heretofore have been of the invaluable rights of free Citizens, we now with a deep sense of gratitude to the Almighty disposer of all events behold a Government, erected by the Majesty of the People — a Government, which to bigotry gives no sanction, to persecution no assistance — but generously affording to all Liberty of conscience, and immunities of Citizenship: — deeming every one, of whatever Nation, tongue, or language equal parts of the great governmental Machine.

Washington’s reply:

The Citizens of the United States of America have a right to applaud themselves for having given to mankind examples of an enlarged and liberal policy: a policy worthy of imitation. All possess alike liberty of conscience and immunities of citizenship. It is now no more that toleration is spoken of, as if it was by the indulgence of one class of people, that another enjoyed the exercise of their inherent national gifts. For happily the Government of the United States, which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens, in giving it on all occasions their effectual support.

Are bigotry and persecution motivating opposition to the Cordoba Islamic center in Manhattan? Perhaps. It’s clear they’re playing a big role in the fights against other proposed mosques across the U.S.

There appears to be wide-spread agreement that the site of the September 11th attacks in New York City is hallowed ground. President Obama said exactly that in his comments yesterday at a ceremonial feast, breaking the day of fasting that’s part of Islam’s holy month of Ramadan.

But the Muslim congregation in Manhattan doesn’t want to build a cultural center or mosque on Ground Zero. They want to build it two blocks away, at the site of a former Burlington Coat Factory.

President Obama said yesterday, “The principle that people of all faiths are welcome in this country, and will not be treated differently by their government, is essential to who we are.”

In 1790, President Washington essentially repeated the words of Moses Seixas to say, “the Government of the United States… gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance….” But Washington himself wrote this:

It is now no more that toleration is spoken of, as if it was by the indulgence of one class of people, that another enjoyed the exercise of their inherent national gifts.

It is coincidence that the correspondence between the Hebrew Congregation of Newport and President Washington began August 17, 1790 – 220 years ago. It’s far more interesting that both letters are hanging on the wall of Newport’s Touro Synagogue, the oldest in the United States.

As America argues over building the Cordoba center, we should consider what remnants of this debate will still be in its archives 220 years from now – and what Americans then will say about us.