Religion

Washington Post –  The Supreme Court agreed last month to hear a case that asks a remarkable question: Can the government require a homeowner to obtain a permit before inviting friends to his house for prayer?

Grand v. City of University Heights centers on an Orthodox Jewish minyan — a prayer quorum consisting of at least 10 adult men — but the legal principles at stake extend well beyond one faith.

The case will arrive at the court after years of neighborhood intrigue and municipal politics, where attempts to convene a minyan in a private home devolved into allegations of anti-Jewish animus, police surveillance, zoning hearings and cease and desist orders.

In January 2021, Daniel Grand, an Orthodox Jewish homeowner in University Heights, Ohio, emailed roughly a dozen friends inviting them to his house for a Shabbat minyan. Soon afterward, a neighbor informed the city about Grand’s email, complaining and asking the mayor to “put a stop to this.” Under the city’s zoning ordinance, “houses of worship” require a special-use permit. Acting on the complaint, the mayor called Grand regarding what he described as an “urgent matter.” Later that day, a city official ordered Grand to “immediately cease and desist” using his home as a “place of religious assembly” until he obtained the permit.