Lori Wishne, Cecelia Soibel, Harriet Lipnick, Terry Heiken, Irene Schankman, Harvey Heiken, Beverly Rehfeld, Oscar Goldberg, Judi Scissors and Andrew Rehfeld, Ph.D. at The National Museum of American Jewish History

Last week a full minyan (group of 10) from our community set off on a mini-mission to Philadelphia. The trip was the inspiration of Harvey Hieken, a long time supporter of our community, who is also a founding member of the National Museum of American Jewish History. Harvey had contacted me soon after I began my service last fall to suggest that our community organize a trip to the museum and city. The suggestion has lead to our planning for an expanded mini-missions program that we will be developing into the coming year.

The centerpiece of our trip was a visit to the National Museum of American Jewish History, located on Independence Mall in the heart of Philadelphia’s Old City. The museum is an absolute gem documenting the history of Jews in America.  We spent the afternoon on a docent-lead tour of the three main floors. The story of American Jewish History is very positive, from the early letter by President George Washington (a copy of which is displayed) signaling the American founders’ intent to maintain the Jews as coreligionists, through the post -WWII years when American Jews have thrived.  Our history has not been without blemish, and the Museum does not whitewash this fact, covering various forms of formal and informal segregation that we have faced even on this side of the Atlantic—for example, so called “Jew-laws” that restricted access to political rights in the 19th century. But the history is primarily one of celebration and one rightly to be celebrated. Through its state-of-the-art displays, the museum brings this history alive.

The group also spent half a day on a docent-lead walking tour of historic Philadelphia, which documented how the freedoms that have allowed our community to thrive were first established. We visited a working replica of Benjamin Franklin’s printing shop, where the first copies of the Declaration of Independence were printed, and of course we visited the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall (where the Declaration was signed, the Constitution written, and the first sessions of our US Congress were held).

Thanks to the determination of Harriet Lipnick, we also were able to tour the Philly-Shul, a 19^th-century structure that continues to serve the downtown community of Philadelphia. It is worth taking a look at the history of this in video and text that can be found by clicking on this link. The structure is a living breathing testament to the freedoms that our community has enjoyed in the United States.

Our mission to the City of Brotherly Love ended with a tour of the Barnes Foundation, the astounding eclectic collection of art recently relocated to the broad boulevards of Benjamin Franklin Parkway.

Many thanks to Harvey Hieken for his vision, to Mindee Fredman for her staff work planning our itinerary, and to Lori Wishne for staffing the trip on-location. A wonderful time, and I hope you will consider joining us on a mini-mission in the future. Stay tuned!

Shabbat Shalom,

Andrew