Blog

By: Ben Kreshtool, Ritual Director

Independence Day, the quintessential American holiday, has a unique Jewish connection. While most of us celebrate July Fourth with a day off work, spent with friends barbequing and watching fireworks, it's important to reflect on our nation's founding. I'm struck by the image of Thomas Jefferson, feather pen-in-hand, authoring our nation's Declaration of Independence. Jefferson wrote each line with focus and intention, much in the same way as a Jewish ritual scribe.

One of the items in Beth El's collection is a gorgeous silver quill and ink holder, the writing implement of choice for a Sofer, or ritual scribe. While times may have changed, the laws for writing a Torah have not. A Torah must be written by hand using a quill and natural ink; Tefillin and Mezuzot must also be written in this way. Many Jewish laws stipulate the writing of these sacred texts. Even the styling of letters has come to be called ST”M (pronounced Stam) which is an acronym for Sefer Torah, Tefillin, and Mezuzot. The care required to write these texts demonstrates their inherent holiness; each letter must be written with intent and must be written flawlessly. Any mistakes and the whole section could be invalidated, causing the Sofer to start over. Our most sacred texts have been written this way for countless generations.

In the fifth grade, my class took a trip to Philadelphia where we visited Independence Hall, the place where the Declaration of Independence was signed. I remember being in the room and seeing quills on the tables in the room, and we learned about how Thomas Jefferson had drafted the Declaration of Independence using such a quill. The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution are likewise sacred documents. The ideas contained within those documents are compatible with many Jewish beliefs and values such as community, justice, and liberty. When the Declaration of Independence says that all men are created equal, it really is just another way of saying that all people are created B'tzelem Elohim, in the image of God, a core Jewish value. 

The Torah has shaped human history for all people, not only Jews. It's themes and ideas so influenced America's Founding Fathers that they used its sacred words to craft their own understanding of democracy. So too in time, did the Declaration of Independence inspire oppressed people throughout the world to claim their own destiny and to claim their individual liberty. 

While Thomas Jefferson has long put away his quill, the Sofer continues to use their quill as our ancestors have always done, starting with the letter bet and continuing to inscribe the story of our people on the klaf and always on our hearts.

I hope you'll join us for Seersucker Shabbat, one of my favorite summer events here at Beth El. While we usually host Seersucker Shabbat on the Shabbat closest to the Fourth of July, this year we will have it on Saturday, July 14th at 10:00am.