(Jewish Group) How Lincoln aided Jews' assimilation into American life

[Behind the Aegis]

Much changed for Jews in America during the lifetime of Abraham Lincoln, whose warm relations with them are the subject of “Lincoln and the Jews: A History” (Thomas Dunne Books, available Tuesday) by Jonathan D. Sarna and Benjamin Shapell.

Immigration, mainly from Europe, expanded U.S. Jews' numbers from barely 3,000 in 1809, when Lincoln was born, to more than 150,000 in 1865, when he was assassinated. And though anti-Semitism was rampant, Lincoln did not share the anti-Semitic views then held by many Americans, including some of his Cabinet members and Civil War generals.

Indeed, Lincoln befriended Jews, relied on Jewish supporters and advisers from the early 1850s through his two presidential campaigns, and included Jews among his presidential appointees. The authors say Lincoln even shaped his rhetoric with Jewish sensitivities in mind, using inclusive language such as his Gettysburg Address reference to the United States as “this nation, under God” instead of calling it “a Christian nation.”


Read more: http://triblive.com/opinion/pagebooks/7959091-74/lincoln-jews-book#ixzz3UWitbMRr
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[MosheFeingold]

1. Lincoln claimed his mother was Jewish

I don't have time for the link, but there are interesting letters from the time from various Rabbis to the effect that Lincoln told them his mother was Jewish and he considered himself Jewish.

Shame he was a Republican, or I'd claim him.

[Behind the Aegis]

2. Thought you might like this too...

‘With Malice Toward None’

Exhibit at New-York Historical Society reveals rich relationship between Abraham Lincoln and the Jews.

On June 2, 1864, President Abraham Lincoln issued a parole pass to Charles Jonas, a Confederate prisoner of war, to return to Illinois to see his father on his deathbed. The soldier arrived in Quincy just in time to see his father, Abraham Jonas, still alive.

During the Civil War, Abraham Jonas and several of his sons, including Charles, were divided in their allegiance. Abraham Jonas, an English-born Jew, was a lawyer and political ally of President Lincoln and the only recorded person Lincoln referred to in a letter as “one of my most valued friends.” The small handwritten note that enabled Charles Jonas to take a three-month leave was a testament to Lincoln’s long friendship with his father.

That note, smaller than an index card, is on display at the New-York Historical Society, part of a stirring exhibition that opens to the public on March 20, “With Firmness in the Right: Lincoln and the Jews,” created in collaboration with the Shapell Manuscript Foundation, with many original letters, documents and images on display for the first time. The exhibition is inspired by the publication this month of “Lincoln and the Jews: A History” by Jonathan Sarna and Benjamin Shapell, a beautiful illustrated volume combining highlights of the Shapell collection and an engaging historical narrative.

Not only has it been 150 years since the end of the Civil War, but the first night of Passover this year, April 3, aligns with significant anniversaries. On that date in 1865, the Union Army captured the Confederate capital of Richmond, Va., leading to Gen. Robert E. Lee’s surrender to Gen. Ulysses S. Grant six days later. Five days after that, on April 15, which was the fifth night of Passover and also Good Friday in 1865, President Lincoln was shot. This year, the first night of Passover falls on Good Friday. The life of President Lincoln aligns so well with the holiday’s themes of freedom and liberation from slavery and oppression, that the book and exhibition are particularly timely — and may spark new seder conversations.

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[MosheFeingold]

3. Thank you!

Very interesting.