The Spirit of Passover and the American Story: Liberation and new beginnings are themes of the Jewish holiday that can help us to revitalize our sense for the prospects and future of our country. (Sam B. Girgus, Apr 03, 2026, The Bulwark)
Mary Antin was one such person, and her story merits reflection. After leaving czarist Russia as a teenager, Antin came to America, which she later characterized as “The Promised Land,” a new Jerusalem, thereby recalling the sensibility and vision of the founding Puritans. She wrote of her “faith in America” as a “healing ointment.” She claimed that “I am the youngest of America’s children, and into my hands is given all her priceless heritage.” She writes, “Mine is the whole majestic past, and mine is the shining future.”
Ours, too, is the shining future, even if it doesn’t seem so bright right now. Ride with us and we will do our best to help you hold on to your belief in the American project.
Antin is a representative figure of the historic Jewish passion for reopening and renewing the American story; freedom from the violence of the pogroms of her childhood was an important part of her adopted country’s great promise. Such freedom is a core part of the American idea, and it has a natural symbolic connection to the Passover narrative of liberation.
The best part of Passover is always when a kid or guest realizes how American it is.