| |
| THEY call us Jews. Those men whose family tree | |
| Springs from a line of noble ancestry, | |
| Who trace their title to the little band | |
| That in the Mayflower came to freedom’s land; | |
| Or those within whose veins doth proudly run | 5 |
| The blood of men who fought with Washington. | |
| How weak their proud pretensions are to ours | |
| Whose pedigree with undiminished powers | |
| We trace to him who first the truth made known;— | |
| “The Lord is One. He rules the world alone.” | 10 |
| |
| Yes, we are Jews;—proud scions of the race | |
| That first enjoyed Jehovah’s special grace; | |
| To whom was given in Sinai’s synagogue, | |
| By hand Divine, the glorious decalogue; | |
| Whose leader, Moses, formed the wondrous laws | 15 |
| Which still best serve Humanity’s great cause; | |
| Whose leader, Moses, formed the thoughts and deeds | |
| That inspiration give to modern creeds; | |
| Whose people still proclaim through every zone;— | |
| “The Lord is One. He rules the world alone.” | 20 |
| |
| Yes, we are Jews. Scourged by relentless hate, | |
| Our fathers wandered on from state to state; | |
| Were forced to dwell in narrow Ghetto lanes, | |
| Were fleeced by torture of their honest gains. | |
| And though of every privilege deprived, | 25 |
| The persecuted people grew and thrived. | |
| The nations might degrade them, might annoy, | |
| But God-anointed man could not destroy. | |
| And with our race the shibboleth has grown; | |
| “The Lord is One. He rules the world alone.” | 30 |
| |
| Yes, we are Jews. The People of the Book, | |
| Our duty ’tis to search out every nook | |
| Where evil lurks, where ignorance and shame | |
| Cast undeserved reproach on Israel’s name. | |
| On this Association falls the task | 35 |
| With pen and precept error to unmask. | |
| To teach the Gentile world for what we stand, | |
| To teach the Jew his passions to command. | |
| To penetrate the homes and spread the light, | |
| To preach the doctrine of Eternal Right. | 40 |
| Throughout the hostile world let Israel be | |
| A synonym of stern morality. | |
| Then will our prayer ascend to Heaven’s throne; | |
| “The Lord is One. He rules the world alone.” | |
| |
