Nicholas Rowan, Staff Writer – October 09, 2020
Catholic and Jewish leaders Thursday afternoon sued New York after the implementation of increased coronavirus restrictions on worship services.
Both groups argued that the new restrictions, which took effect Tuesday in “red zone” parts of New York City, imposed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo and enforced by Mayor Bill de Blasio, are unnecessarily harsh and violate the First Amendment’s free exercise clause. Jewish leaders, led by the Orthodox group Agudath Israel of America, added that the restrictions single out Jews for special treatment because they impede the celebration of a series of holidays beginning Friday.
The group argued that it’s possible to hold safe, socially distanced services, in contrast to the protests against the restrictions that many Orthodox Jews have taken part in over the past week. Rabbi Chaim Zwiebel, executive vice president of Agudath Israel, added that the new 10-person limit on gatherings would make it impossible to celebrate the holidays Hoshana Rabbah, Shemini Atzeret, and Simchat Torah properly this weekend.
“Social distancing, masking, and all health precautions must, of course, be observed,” he said in a statement. “However, we think that it is possible to stay safe and at the same time have more than ten people in a Shul building that is meant to hold hundreds.”
Catholic leaders, led by Brooklyn Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio, in their suit said that the new restrictions and the 10-person cap “arbitrarily reduce capacity,” even after the diocese followed the state’s previous coronavirus restrictions.
“This religious community will be denied its most fundamental right, the free exercise of religion, for no legitimate reason whatsoever,” said Randy Mastro, the diocese’s attorney.