n>One of the most enduring descriptions of American pluralism was composed by a religious Jew. In 1790, Moses Seixas led the dwindling Jewish community of the Touro Synagogue in Newport, R.I. He had struggled to sustain the religious observances that endowed Jews with a distinct identity: public readings of the Torah, circumcisions of baby boys, and the keeping of kosher dietary laws. Soon Newport’s remaining Jews would depart for other communities as opportunity there dwindled, and Seixas could have easily been forgotten in the annals of American history. Read Full Article »