Jews for the HHS Mandate

It is all too tempting for American Jews to join movements that purport to protect religious freedom. But there is one such undertaking today that the Jewish community should stay far away from: the conservative crusade to overturn the Affordable Care Act’s contraception mandate. This is not because Judaism takes a particularly strong stance in favor of contraception—it does not. And it’s not because the religious freedom case against the mandate is legally dubious—it is not. Rather, Jews—especially of the conservative persuasion—should not should not join forces with their Christian counterparts on this issue because doing so would be a short-sighted strategic mistake that would undermine—rather than preserve—religious liberty in America.