Shavua Tov
As we celebrate the Fourth of July, we also mark an extraordinary milestone in our nation’s history the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. This semiquincentennial invites us not only to celebrate America’s remarkable journey, but also to reflect on the enduring relationship between the American experiment and the Jewish experience.
Few countries in history have provided the opportunity for Jewish life to flourish as the United States has. Since the earliest days of our republic, American Jews have been able to contribute to every aspect of our nation’s civic, cultural, economic, and military life while remaining proudly and authentically Jewish. The story of American Judaism is, in many ways, a story of gratitude for freedoms protected, opportunities embraced, and communities built.
That promise was captured beautifully in one of the most remarkable letters ever written by an American president. In 1790, President George Washington responded to the Hebrew Congregation of Newport, Rhode Island, assuring the fledgling Jewish community that the new nation would reject mere tolerance in favor of true equality:
“The Government of the United States… gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance.”
He concluded with words that continue to inspire generations:
“May the Children of the Stock of Abraham, who dwell in this land, continue to merit and enjoy the goodwill of the other inhabitants; while every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig tree, and there shall be none to make him afraid.”
Those words remain among the clearest expressions of the American promise a nation where people of every faith may live openly, contribute fully, and belong completely.
The history of Jewish Community Centers is woven into that promise. JCCs emerged as places that helped newly arrived Jewish immigrants become Americans while preserving the richness of Jewish tradition, learning, and community. They were places where families learned English, built friendships, developed leadership skills, found recreation, and discovered that one could fully embrace both American citizenship and Jewish identity.
Today, that mission has evolved in an equally important way.
Our responsibility is no longer simply to help Jews become Americans. Rather, it is to help Americans remain deeply connected to being Jewish and to Jewish community. At a time when belonging cannot be taken for granted, the Tucson J continues to be what it has always aspired to be the town square of our community, where everyone belongs and some people join. Here, Jewish values are lived, friendships are formed, children discover who they are, older adults remain connected, families celebrate together, and our entire community experiences the joy of Jewish life.
Our connection to America has also been expressed through service. Since its founding in 1917, the Jewish Welfare Board (JWB), now a part of the Center for Jewish Peoplehood at JCC Association, has ensured that Jewish servicemen and servicewomen serving our nation never have to leave their Judaism behind. Through the extraordinary work of the JWB Jewish Chaplains Council, Jewish chaplains have provided spiritual care, pastoral support, religious resources, and a Jewish presence for members of the United States Armed Forces and their families during times of war and peace alike. Their service reminds us that patriotism and Jewish identity have long stood side by side.
Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks z”l reminded us that, “Freedom is sustained not by the state but by the moral habits of its citizens.” The work of institutions like the Tucson J helps cultivate those habits—kindness, service, responsibility, generosity, and community. They are the qualities that strengthen both our Jewish community and our American democracy.
Music has always helped tell the American story, and many of its most beloved songs were written by Jewish composers whose families experienced the promise of this country firsthand. Perhaps no song captures gratitude for America more beautifully than Irving Berlin’s God Bless AmericaWritten by an immigrant who arrived in the United States as a young Jewish refugee from Eastern Europe, the song is both a prayer and a profound expression of thanksgiving for a nation that gave his family refuge and opportunity.
Irving Berlin also gave us Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor inspired by Emma Lazarus’s immortal words inscribed on the Statue of Liberty. Lazarus, herself a proud American Jew, transformed the statue into a beacon welcoming generations of immigrants seeking freedom and hope. Her words continue to remind us that America’s greatness has always been strengthened by those who arrived on its shores dreaming of a better future.
Neil Diamond’s America celebrates that same journey. While written generations later, it captures the courage, optimism, and determination of millions of immigrants, including countless Jewish families, who crossed oceans believing that America offered not only opportunity, but the freedom to live openly as themselves while contributing to something larger than themselves.
More recently, Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton beautifully returned us to George Washington’s vision. In the song One Last Time, Washington sings of the hope that every citizen might one day “sit under their own vine and fig tree,” directly echoing both the Hebrew prophet Micah and Washington’s letter to the Newport congregation. It is a powerful reminder that the American ideal is ultimately one of peace, dignity, security, and shared responsibility a vision deeply rooted in the Jewish tradition itself.
As we gather this weekend with family, friends, and neighbors, may we celebrate the blessings of liberty, give thanks for those who have safeguarded it, and recommit ourselves to building a community worthy of the freedoms we have inherited.
As fireworks light the skies this Independence Day, may we also celebrate the light that has allowed Jewish life to flourish in America for nearly two and a half centuries. May we continue to strengthen our nation by strengthening our communities, our friendships, our institutions, and our shared commitment to one another.
Happy Independence Day
Cochenu b’Achduteynu | כחינו באחדותינו | Our strength is in our unity.
Am Yisrael Chai | עם ישראל חי
Todd Rockoff
President + CEO, Tucson J
