Agudath Israel of America has joined a legal brief in a landmark case now before the Minnesota Supreme Court over whether religious schools may set hiring and employment policies in line with their faith and values. The case could have wide implications for Jewish and other religious schools across the United States.
The dispute began after a Catholic school in Minnesota declined to renew the contract of a librarian who had worked there. The school said it acted after the employee publicly announced plans that, in its view, were completely at odds with the institution’s religious code. She sued, but a Minnesota appellate court ruled for the school, saying the Constitution protects religious institutions from government interference in their internal governance and identity. The librarian then appealed to the state’s highest court.
In its joint brief, Agudath Israel argued that religious schools, including yeshivas and Jewish educational institutions, do more than teach academics. They are meant to pass on values, faith, and spiritual identity to future generations, and therefore must retain full autonomy over internal personnel decisions. The organization said civil courts are not competent to decide internal religious questions and should leave those judgments to the institutions themselves.
Agudath Israel legal counsel Daniel Kaminitzki said, “בתי ספר דתיים חייבים להיות חופשיים לפעול על פי האמונה שהם מלמדים” and added that, for yeshivas and other faith-based schools, the right to hire and retain staff who support the institution’s religious mission is essential to religious freedom. The group said the Minnesota ruling could affect thousands of schools nationwide and help protect parents’ ability to choose schools where religious life is part of the education.
