Share the Vision
The Ambassador John L. Loeb Jr. Visitors Center at the Touro Synagogue in Newport, Rhode Island stands at the corner of time and history. Physically located at Spring and Touro Streets, on the campus of the National Landmark Touro Synagogue, the new Visitors Center and Exhibit Hall celebrates all of our first amendment rights. It most specifically illuminates America’s guaranteed right of religious freedom and the clear separation of church and state.
…the Government of the United States...gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance... every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig tree, and there shall be none to make him afraid.
— George Washington, Letter to the Hebrew Congregation in Newport, RI
Newport and the colony of Rhode Island are the places where the ideas and ideals of religious liberty, tolerance of belief, and the separation of church and state were first practiced in the Americas. The Rhode Island colony was certainly the first political entity, perhaps in the world, to mandate the separation of church and state. The Loeb Visitors Center is being built to commemorate the development of these concepts and marks the role of the Jewish people in helping to build the multi-cultural foundations of a new nation. By bringing these ideals to an open, public forum and by encouraging the teaching of the stories to be found in our exhibits and materials, we hope to strengthen the commitment of future generations to these shared values. George Washington wrote to the Quaker assembly in 1789:
The liberty enjoyed by the people of these States, of worshipping Almighty God agreeably to their consciences, is not only among the choicest of their blessings, but also of their rights.
Story of the George Washington Letter
To educate the public on the role of the Founding Fathers (i.e.: Washington and Jefferson) as key figures in the dissemination of these concepts. Visitors will learn how George Washington was the key supporter of religious liberty and how through his campaign to have the Bill of Rights ratified in each state, he influenced the adoption of these ideals. Having written to other religious groups around the new nation, Washington’s now famous 1790 “Letter to the Hebrew Congregation in Newport“ stands out as a clear public statement of his views. It is representative of his efforts to ensure the Bill of Rights’ liberties for all American citizens, and continues to be relevant today;
Origins of Separation of Church and State.
To explain how Newport and the Rhode Island colony became the center of and originating focal points for the concepts of religious liberty, tolerance, and the separation of church and state in colonial America. The story begins in the 1600s under the leadership of colony founder Roger Williams and culminates with the ratification and adoption of the Bill of Rights in 1791;
Jews in Colonial America
To examine the history of Jews in Colonial and Revolutionary War America. Exhibits and Visitors Center materials will introduce the visiting public to people such as David Salisbury Franks, Moses Raphael Levy, Aaron Lopez, Haym Salomon and others who were an integral part of American society in both the public and private sectors. They lived, worked, and dressed in the same manner as their fellow colonists. Some, like Colonel Isaac Franks, who served on Washington’s military staff, played significant roles in building the new United States;
History of the Touro Synagogue
To explore the history of the Touro Synagogue, the oldest extant synagogue building in the United States, and its congregation. The building was designed by “America’s first architect,” Peter Harrison, and was dedicated during Chanukah festivities in December 1763, twelve years before the American Revolution. George Washington most likely visited during his Bill of Rights campaign trip in 1790, and the historic synagogue stands as a physical manifestation of the concepts and freedoms assured in the document’s First Amendment. The building itself is considered an architectural masterpiece, and is designated as a National Historic Site of the U.S. National Park Service.
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