America’s Jews Are Americans

  By Timothy D. Naegele[1]

What is happening in Israel should not impact America’s Jews, especially if they are not immigrant Jews.  My ancestors came from England, Germany, Ireland and Scotland; and while they are nice places to visit—when the weather is good—they are not my countries.  They are totally foreign to me; and I have zero allegiance to any of them.  What happens to them does not affect me.

American Jews are every bit as American as I am.  Judaism is the religion of choice for them, just as my family members have chosen to be Christians—and principally, Catholics, Episcopalians and Lutherans.  I have been free to select my religion, or none at all; and the same thing is true of America’s Jews.  Some have done what I have, or they have elected not to affiliate with any religious group.

Today, there are an estimated 4,200 “religions, churches, denominations, religious bodies, faith groups, tribes, cultures, movements, or ultimate concerns” in the world.[2]  As Americans, we are free to pick and choose among them, or select none at all.  Christianity is the world’s largest religion, with an estimated 2.4 billion followers.  Islam is second, with an estimated 2.0 billion followers.  Judaism is among the smaller religions, with an estimated 14.7 million followers.[3]

Unless an American Jew chooses to wear a Star of David or kippah, no one should be able to tell that person is a Jew.  And the same thing is true of Christians unless they wear a cross.  No American Jew should encounter anti-Semitism, nor be afraid to express his or her religious preference.  As I said more than a decade ago: 

I believe in this country, and I believe in Americans of all colors, faiths and backgrounds.  The United States is the only true melting pot in the world, with its populace representing a United Nations of the world’s peoples.  Yes, we fight and we even discriminate, but when times are tough—like after 9/11—we come together as one nation, which makes this country so great and special.  Also, all of us or our ancestors came here from somewhere else.  Even the American Indians are descended from those who crossed the Bering Strait—or the “Bering land bridge”—according to anthropologists.[4] 

America’s Jews are part of this phenomenon.

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© 2023, Timothy D. Naegele

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[1]  Timothy D. Naegele was counsel to the United States Senate’s Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and chief of staff to Presidential Medal of Freedom and Congressional Gold Medal recipient and former U.S. Senator Edward W. Brooke (R-Mass).  See, e.g., Timothy D. Naegele Resume-21-8-6  and https://naegeleknol.wordpress.com/accomplishments/  He has an undergraduate degree in economics from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), as well as two law degrees from the School of Law (Boalt Hall), University of California, Berkeley, and from Georgetown University.  He served as a Captain in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War, assigned to the Defense Intelligence Agency at The Pentagon, where he received the Joint Service Commendation Medal (see, e.g., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commendation_Medal#Joint_Service).  Mr. Naegele is an Independent politically; and he is listed in Who’s Who in America, Who’s Who in American Law, and Who’s Who in Finance and Business.  He has written extensively over the years (see, e.g., https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/articles/ and https://naegeleknol.wordpress.com/articles/), and studied photography with Ansel Adams.  He can be contacted directly at tdnaegele.associates@gmail.com

[2]  See https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_religions_and_spiritual_traditions (“List of religions and spiritual traditions”)

[3]  See https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_religious_groups#Largest_religious_groups (“Major religious groups”)

[4]  See https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/2010/02/26/america-a-rich-tapestry-of-life/ (“America: A Rich Tapestry Of Life”)