President George Washington made it clear that the United States would be a safe place for those of all faiths.
In August 1790, a little over a year into his presidency, George Washington went on a goodwill tour of the New England states. One of his stops was in Newport, Rhode Island. As was common for Washington after he was elected president, different individuals or groups wrote him to offer their hope for the success of his administration and the country.
One of these individuals was Moses Seixas, warden of the Touro Synagogue in Newport. He wrote a letter to Washington welcoming him to the city. Seixas’ letter mentioned the history of persecution of the Jewish people and his hope that the new American government would be one “which to bigotry gives no sanction, to persecution no assistance.”
This is the letter George Washington wrote in response:
Gentlemen:
While I received with much satisfaction your address replete with expressions of esteem, I rejoice in the opportunity of assuring you that I shall always retain grateful remembrance of the cordial welcome I experienced on my visit to Newport from all classes of citizens.
The reflection on the days of difficulty and danger which are past is rendered the more sweet from a consciousness that they are succeeded by days of uncommon prosperity and security.
If we have wisdom to make the best use of the advantages with which we are now favored, we cannot fail, under the just administration of a good government, to become a great and happy people.
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 were the indulgence of one class of people that another enjoyed the exercise of their inherent natural rights, 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.
It would be inconsistent with the frankness of my character not to avow that I am pleased with your favorable opinion of my administration and fervent wishes for my felicity.
May the children of the stock of Abraham who dwell in this land continue to merit and enjoy the good will 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.
May the father of all mercies scatter light, and not darkness, upon our paths, and make us all in our several vocations useful here, and in His own due time and way everlastingly happy.
G. Washington
The Touro Synagogue in Newport, Rhode Island is the oldest in America.
George Washington’s response has two important aspects. Firstly, he makes a distinction between religious toleration and religious liberty. Toleration was the practice in Europe and other parts of the world in which the political powers would allow or disallow the practice of any faith whenever it suited them. On the other hand, religious liberty is the most American of concepts – the idea that the freedom to practice one’s religion openly and in accordance with one’s conscience is an inalienable right granted by God that government cannot take away.
Secondly, Washington clarifies that those of the Jewish faith are afforded the same rights to religious liberty as any other faith. This is more significant than it appears. Given the Jewish people’s history of persecution, professor and scholar Harry Jaffa believes that this was the first time in history that a nation’s leader addressed those in the Jewish community as equals.
Washington’s letter is full of Biblical references, including the words “everyone shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig tree.” The founding generation, Washington included, read the Bible regularly, both the Old and New Testaments, and understood its importance in establishing a country with good and virtuous people. The “vine and fig tree” is from the Old Testament Book of Micah 4:4, a Bible verse Washington quoted regularly. The inclusion of this verse conveyed Washington’s hope that the United States would be a place of peace, security, and prosperity for the Jewish people.
The United States is not immune to individual acts of hate, bigotry, or anti-Semitism. Sadly, this has been prevalent in societies worldwide since humans organized themselves. However, George Washington wanted to ensure that our country would begin its journey as one that did not persecute anyone because of their religious beliefs. This has been a foundational American principle ever since.
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Reading the Bible with the Founding Fathers by Theodore Parker