ArchitectGuy on Israel

JTA
Supreme Court ruling in Sabbath accommodation case has far-reaching consequences for observant Jews
Ron Kampeas
June 29, 2023

In a case that drew support from a broad array of Jewish groups, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously that employers had to show a “substantial” burden to deny workers religious accommodation. In a decision released Thursday, the court sided with Gerald Groff, an evangelical Christian mail carrier who asked not to work on Sundays, his Sabbath. Jewish groups that do not often line up on the same side of church-state issues before the court were of a single voice in this case. Justice Samuel Alito, writing the opinion, sought to substantially narrow a 1977 decision that faith groups have for years said is so broad in setting the standard for religious accommodation that it is meaningless. READ MORE

TABLET MAG
‘I Speak English, but I Don’t Speak American’
Abigail Pogrebin
June 28, 2023

What is it like to be an Israeli living in America? Over 500,000 Israeli expats live in the U.S., with the largest enclaves in New York, California, Florida, and New Jersey. They often maintain the Hebrew language in their homes and gravitate toward fellow Israelis through social networks, synagogues, Jewish community centers, or more recently, the Israeli American Council, founded in 2007, which is the largest Israeli American organization in the U.S. Many Israelis came to the U.S. for education or job opportunities; some came because of disappointment in Israel’s schools, economy, or religious/sectarian pluralism. Some miss Israel’s sunlight, its shuk (market), or the ineffable power of living in a country that almost didn’t come to be. Conversely, some prefer America’s diversity, and its invitation to practice Judaism without Orthodoxy. READ MORE