In 1979, President Jimmy Carter gave a speech that described America as in a bit of a funk. Decades later, as we prepare to celebrate our country’s 250th birthday, the vibes (as the youths say) are different but once again off. There’s so much playing out on the national stage that feels discordant, absurd, and divorced from our ideals. For many, it feels like an odd time for a big celebration.

But as anyone who has ever been in a funk will tell you, you get out not by hunkering down but by building and creating. So, this semiquincentennial, rather than gloss over any conflicted feelings, I’m suggesting we go ahead and harness them. Ask not about the state of your country’s paint, but what you can do with your brush, if you will.

Jokes about the reflecting pool aside, there’s something to be said for our potential as a community to contribute to our country’s future. In a conversation with The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg, Yehuda Kurtzer of the Shalom Hartman Institute pointed out that Jews are uniquely positioned to have an outsized impact on America’s moral trajectory. And it’s important that we honor this.

America and American Judaism have imprinted on each other. As a minority community, we have been shaped by the broader society and have invested significant energy into shaping that same society. Now is the time to lean into this legacy. Just as we must focus on building Jewish identity within our current context, we must also commit to reinforcing our national values. Strengthening America for the better must continue to be a core American Jewish undertaking—to the benefit of all.

Our desire to be part of a well-functioning, pluralistic, and democratic society also informs our work at Federation. We believe in the importance of a broad range of views across the Jewish community and across American society. We also seek to support and galvanize our community to make an impact according to Jewish tradition and values. By supporting an ecosystem that facilitates meaningful connection, discussion, and action, we are working to trigger positive changes both within our community and at scale.

There are people today who describe America as a country in decline, with the infighting and all our challenges serving as evidence that our country’s best years are behind us. But I don’t buy this. Nothing about the American story or the story of the Jewish people was ever guaranteed and yet, somehow, in every era, we have found a way to strive closer to our ideals.

Things can seem rough out there and still, it is within our power to meet our country at this crossroads and nudge it towards the core principles from the Declaration of Independence (with an important revision):

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all people are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among them are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.