Who was the first Jewish believer in North America? It all depends on what one means by the word, “first.” In truth, only the Lord knows. Hugh J. Schonfield says, “When Christopher Columbus set out on his voyage that led to the discovery of the New World, there were … Jewish Christians among the members of his own crew.” Unfortunately, he offers no documentation. Others have tried (unsuccessfully, in my opinion) to prove that Christopher Columbus, himself, was a Christian of Jewish descent.
Arthur Hertzberg reports of a later period, when:
“A family of Jewish extraction had come … to North American shores, to join the Pilgrims. Moses Simonson landed in Plymouth Harbor in 1621, two years after the Mayflower; he and his family were reputed to be “from the Jewish settlement in Amsterdam.” The Simonsons had probably already turned Christian in Holland before joining the Pilgrims, or, at the very least, they converted in Plymouth. One of their daughters is known to have married a grandson of Miles Standish and John Alden.”