Freehold township has asked a federal court to refrain from ruling on an ongoing dispute between the township and a local rabbi accused of running Shul out of his home, the Asbury Park Press reports.

The township filed a “request of abstention” Monday, asking the U.S. District Court in Trenton not to exercise its jurisdiction over a lawsuit filed by Rabbi Avraham Bernstein, Township Attorney Duane O. Davison told the APP.

The proper procedure, Davison said, is first to allow the township Board of Adjustment to decide its own matter: a request from Bernstein’s neighbor, Paul Sweda, that the board determine whether Bernstein’s home is a “house of worship,” which would violate township zoning ordinances.

Neighbors have said that between 50 and 70 people visit the Shul on Shabbos. Bernstein says that 10 to 20 attend, Davison has said.

The township used a surveillance camera to watch, and say they only see 35 to 50 people attending.

In May, Bernstein filed a lawsuit in state Superior Court asserting that the township had violated his religious rights under the federal and state constitutions, and under the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act.

Bernstein filed a second lawsuit in August, this time with the U.S. District Court. The suit alleged that the township’s use of the surveillance camera violated Bernstein’s right to worship freely and his access to court, and impaired the use and enjoyment of his property.

(Full story at APP.com)