Tomorrow is July 4th – and America’s 250th birthday. This is a special occasion and marks a new milestone in our country. To be honest, it does not feel like 50 years have passed since we celebrated our country’s bicentennial. I remember vividly my parents making us watch Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops on PBS that night (you can watch part of that concert).

The Jewish Federation of Greater Portland signed on to a letter (see below) commemorating the 250th anniversary of our nation's founding. The letter calls on American Jews to promote unity, democratic values, and a more inclusive vision of our nation’s ideals. It is our opportunity to express gratitude to America since American Jews have been an integral part of this country and its story from the very beginning. 

Grateful Are We 
An American Jewish Declaration for America’s 250th 

Jews are guided to start each day with a statement of gratitude, and so it is fitting as the United States celebrates its 250th anniversary, we, American Jews, pause to express our profound gratitude.

Grateful are we for a nation that, unlike so many others through Jewish history, did not merely tolerate Jewish life, but made possible its flourishing.

From the earliest days of the American experiment, Jews were drawn to the promise of a nation founded not on bloodline, monarchy, or established religion, but on liberty, covenant, and the dignity of the individual. Having known the weight of persecution and exclusion, Jews recognized in America’s founding ideals something rare in human history: the possibility of belonging without surrendering our identity.

American Jews were not merely beneficiaries of this promise. We helped construct it. Jewish patriots supported the Revolutionary cause with blood, treasure, and the wisdom of our sacred texts. The Liberty Bell, commissioned in 1751, bears a defining expression of the American spirit with a quote from the Hebrew Bible (Leviticus 25:10), “Proclaim Liberty Throughout The Land… .” The conviction that we are all created equal, which was enshrined in our Declaration of Independence, was found in the Bible’s creation story, with its teaching that we are all made in the image of the Divine. Jewish merchants from the Caribbean, together with Jewish Patriots in the Colonies, aided the Continental Army by supplying arms. On July 4, 1788 Jews joined clergy and civic leaders on Independence Mall in Philadelphia to celebrate the ratification of the Constitution, a charter that offered freedoms unprecedented in the modern world.

And in 1790, President George Washington gave an enduring voice to the American promise in his letter to the Hebrew Congregation in Newport, declaring that “For happily the Government of the United States [...] gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance...”

Here, Jewish immigrants arrived with little and built lives of dignity.
Here, Jewish communities established synagogues, schools, charities, businesses, and institutions of civic life. Here, Jews rose not because success was guaranteed, but because freedom made striving possible. 
To us, being American means fidelity to a civic covenant. 

We believe in individual liberty: free citizens must be able to live, speak, worship, assemble, and pursue their own paths, so long as they do not infringe on the rights of others. 

We believe in equality of opportunity: every person should have the chance to rise through effort, talent, and perseverance.

We believe in the rule of law: justice must be impartial, rights protected, and power constrained.

We believe in freedom of conscience and expression: truth emerges not through coercion, but through open discourse, moral courage, and democratic persuasion.

We say this with clear eyes. America has not always lived up to its own ideals. Its history is marked by acts and periods of injustice, exclusion, and failures that wounded many communities, including at times our own.

Yet America’s greatness has never rested on perfection. It rests on the enduring power of its ideals and the willingness of citizens to struggle to live up to them.

That is our charge now.

At a time of division, distrust, and fragmentation, we recommit ourselves to strengthening the bonds of citizenship, renewing a culture of democratic responsibility, and modeling a patriotic pluralism that makes room for deep difference within shared national purpose. We also commit ourselves to teach these values to our children and our children’s children.

We are proud to contribute to helping America more fully realize the promise of a more perfect union.

Grateful are we. Committed are we. Hopeful are we.

God bless America!
 

Tomorrow also marks the 50th anniversary since the "Raid on Entebbe." On July 4, 1976, the Israel Defense Forces successfully rescued 94 Israeli passengers and 12 crew members who had been taken hostage at the Entebbe Airport in Uganda, a week after their French jet airliner had been hijacked by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Red Army Faction. 

Here is an interesting article that details the decision-making process by the Israeli government on whether to negotiate with the terrorists or approve the daring raid.

Finally, I want to share an update on the situation in Venezuela. Two large-scale earthquakes killed at least 2,200 people, over 11,000 injured, and numbers are rising. The tremors also caused rampant property damage throughout a country already grappling with economic and political instability. 

Our partner, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC), is on the ground assisting both the Jewish and broader communities. 

Within the Jewish community, nine are dead and others missing. Fifteen homes were destroyed outright, 36 have been determined to be too damaged for habitation, and 43 are unsafe to occupy pending inspection.

I should also point out a joint delegation of experts from the Israel Defense Forces, together with other representatives from the State of Israel, are in Venezuela assisting local authorities with structural assessments, search and rescue operations, and recovery efforts following the disaster. This is happening despite the absence of diplomatic relations between the two countries since 2009.

Thank you to those who have already contributed to our Venezuela Relief Fund. Our funds are providing rapid delivery of food, safe drinking water, hygiene kits, and essential non-food items (e.g. flashlights, clothes, toilet paper, cooking items, diapers) to people across the country. If you would like to make a contribution, you can do so here.

Shabbat shalom and I hope you and your family have a safe, fun, and celebratory July 4th. Happy 250th to the United States of America and go Team USA in the World Cup.