A viral video of Jews wrapping tefillin with “overwhelmingly positive reception” is seemingly enough to get one suspended from a country club in Boca Raton, Fla. That’s according to the Dhillon Law Group, which filed a lawsuit on behalf of an Orthodox Jewish family that said it was unfairly suspended from the Boca Grove Country Club for practicing its Jewish faith.

Host punished

Isaac Scharf invited Jewish influencer and comedian Jake Adams to the club to play golf in December 2024, according to the suit. At the club, Adams filmed a video for his “Jewish country clubs” series, which featured him playing golf, touring the club and its amenities, and adding comedic flair. He also filmed himself donning tefillin, assisted by Scharf.

The video, which he posted on Jan. 6, went viral, and shortly thereafter, Scharf was suspended from all amenities for 90 days, because the footage “contained references to religious practices that have been deemed offensive to a reasonable person.” (At press time, the Instagram post had 23,835 Likes.)

The club later extended the suspension to Scharf’s wife and five children, including a 1-year-old daughter.

Matthew Sarelson, a partner at the law firm, stated that it was clear after reviewing the documentation that this was “serious discrimination.”

“This may be the most egregious religious discrimination case I’ve ever handled,” Sarelson said. “Boca Grove didn’t just target one man. They punished an entire family for participating in an innocuous act of Jewish faith.”

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Despite the “overwhelmingly positive reception of the video,” according to the suit, “the board’s anti-Orthodox members were furious.”