Several hundred packed the hall at the Crystal Gateway Marriott last Sunday, April 6, celebrating the revival of Jewish activity to the Alexandria-Arlington area, inspired by Chabad-Lubavitch representatives, Rabbi Mordechai and Yehudis Newman.
The sixth anniversary celebration of Chabad-Lubavitch in Alexandria-Arlington seemed an ideal opportunity to honor U. S. Marine Corps assistant commandant General Robert Magnus —the highest ranking Jew in the U.S. Marine Corps—with the Freedom Military Leadership Award on behalf of the men and women of the US Military.
General Magnus proudly reminded city and county government officials of the Jewish community’s contribution to the US Military dating back to 1650 and every subsequent war.
(Source: Lubavitch.com)
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FYI: In 1658, a group of fifteen Jewish families, hearing about Roger William’s “Lively Experiment,” where the civil government was devoid of power over spiritual matters, sailed into Newport harbor. These Sephardim (the Hebrew word for Jews from the region in the Iberian Peninsula that is now Spain and Portugal), who like their ancestors were seeking a haven from religious persecution, founded the second Jewish settlement in the colonies and Congregation Jeshuat Israel (Salvation of Israel). In 1677, they purchased and consecrated property as a Jewish cemetery, a place where they could bury their dead according to Jewish tradition.