Permanent daylight saving time threatens Jewish prayer
Orthodox Jewish organizations are opposing the Sunshine Protection Act of 2025, which would make daylight saving time permanent. They argue that later sunrises would delay morning prayers and complicate the start of the workday for observant Jews.
Why it matters
This highlights the intersection of federal legislative changes and the practical religious requirements of minority communities.
Hear this story Each morning before work or school, Orthodox Jews recite the first of three daily prayers, whether alone or gathered at a synagogue in fellowship. Men don ritual shawls and leather prayer boxes, the time of the prayer dictated not by a clock but by the rising of the sun .
“The later the morning is, the later that prayers can be taking place,” said Rabbi A.D. Motzen, national director of government affairs for Agudath Israel of America, an organization representing Orthodox Jews.
That’s why many Orthodox Jews, he said, are concerned about the prospect of proposed legislation that would make Daylight Saving Time permanent.
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