Proclaim Liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof
Many of you recognize this verse, from the book of
Leviticus. It is inscribed on the Liberty Bell which, upon ringing proudly in
Philadelphia in the year 1776, proclaimed the independence and liberty of this
great nation. Sixty-seven years ago, on May 14, 1948, on a Saturday afternoon, Israel’s
first Prime Minister, David Ben Gurion, proclaimed Israel’s independence, reciting
Israel’s Declaration of Independence, which stipulates that, “…the State of
Israel will be based on freedom, justice and peace as envisaged by the prophets
of Israel.”
It is by no mistake that those principles of freedom,
liberty, justice and peace -inscribed on the Liberty Bell and stated in Israel’s
Declaration of Independence - are the core fundamental values of both of our
countries. It is not incidental that those fundamental values, articulated so
clearly by our biblical prophets, form the bedrock of the strong alliance
between Israel and the United States. With those shared values at the
foundation of our special relations, it should come as no surprise that the United
States was the first nation to recognize the State of Israel, merely 11 minutes
after David Ben Gurion declared Israel’s independence, and it should come as no
surprise that Israel and the United States are closest allies. After all, it is
an alliance rooted in values founded in the book that binds us all together.
Nearly 150 years prior to the ringing of the Liberty Bell,
William Bradford stepped off of the Mayflower in the year 1620, and quoted the
words of Jeremiah: “Come let us declare in Zion the word of G-d.” How
prophetically accurate he was.
Let us look back with pride at the miraculous birth of both of
our nations. Let us uphold the values underscoring our democracies, dating back
to biblical times and inscribed in our foundational documents. Let us rejoice
in the modern revival of those values of freedom and liberty - as we celebrate
the Independence Day of this great nation, the United States of America.
Shabbat Shalom,
Yaron Sideman
Consul General Of Israel,
Mid-Atlantic Region
Consul General Of Israel,
Mid-Atlantic Region
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