“I am a beneficiary of the Jew Bill.”

That’s how I began my remarks after a lecture at the Jewish Museum of Maryland on the 1826 bill that allowed Jews to hold public office.

Here’s what I learned.

There were two versions of the bill.

The “universal version” would have prohibited any “religious test” for office holders. The three living former Presidents, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison, supported the bill.

Despite that impressive endorsement, the bill failed because it would have benefitted Jews, Muslims, and atheists.

Subsequently, several Jews became prominent in the local business community, including defenders of Ft. McHenry during the Battle of Baltimore.

The “specific version,” which became law, applied to “every citizen of this state professing the Jewish religion…[who believes] in a future state of rewards and punishments.”

This compromise was eventually followed by legislation that ended discrimination against other Marylanders seeking elective office.

The art of compromise is a legislative lesson I learned many years ago.