LIBERTYINSTITUTE.org: VICTORY! Congregation Toras Chaim Free to Continue Worship in Private Home
Judge grants summary judgment upholding the religious liberty rights of Liberty Institute client to peacefully study tenets of faith
February 4, 2015
Today, at a hearing on a motion for summary judgment, Collin County District Court Judge Jill Willis ruled that members of a small Orthodox Jewish community have a right to continue meeting in a Dallas, Texas home for private worship.The Homeowners Association (“HOA”) and a member of the HOA had brought a lawsuit attempting to ban Congregation Toras Chaim from peacefully meeting for prayer, worship, and study in a private home.
Because the tenets of the Jewish faith instruct that Orthodox Jews may not drive or ride in a car on the Sabbath or on Jewish holidays, Congregation Toras Chaim members must meet to worship at a place within walking distance of their homes.
Alleged harms offered as evidence by the HOA included one neighbor having to stop a vehicle for a woman pushing a baby carriage to cross the street—and another having to stop a vehicle so that a blind person could cross the street. Read more: