Human Resources Can Not Deny a Christian's Religious Exemption
Though I hold the position that filing for a religious exemption from the pharmaceutical mandate is a form of compliance with evil1, holding others to that standard would be conscience binding, placing the burden of my interpretation of Scripture upon them. As the Westminster Confession of Faith (20.2) says:
God alone is Lord of the conscience, and hath left it free from the doctrines and commandments of men which are in any thing contrary to his Word, or beside it, in matters of faith or worship. So that to believe such doctrines, or to obey such commandments out of conscience, is to betray true liberty of conscience: and the requiring of an implicit faith, and an absolute and blind obedience, is to destroy liberty of conscience, and reason also.
Here we have a clear case of a core document for Presbyterians, Congregationalists and some Baptists stating that no person may impose their interpretation of the “God of the gaps” upon anyone else. In other words, if something is not explicitly stated by Scripture, then personal conscience reigns.
Thankfully, I have mostly heard of Christian religious exemptions to the mandate being approved, but there are many cases of exemptions being denied by paper-pushing bureaucrats. The most notable of these refusals are those from the United States military, who has even denied hundreds of requests that were signed-off by chaplains2.
There is a deep flaw in the thinking, on both sides of this situation - at least for those who follow the Westminster Confession of Faith. Simply put, a human resources manager has no right to bind your conscience, and you have no need to request exemption. You need only inform your employer that, based upon your interpretation of Scripture, you are exempt. Though it may be cathartic to do so, you need not give them detailed reasons for your exemption, with chapter and verse citations and examples of other Christians interpreting the Bible in the same way. They are not your pastor who got his master’s degree in seminary. They are someone with a bachelor’s degree in human resource management. They are completely unqualified to determine the validity of your exemption.
No religious exemption letter that cites the Westminster Confession of Faith’s stance on conscience binding, and notes that there is no explicit verse of Scripture stating that a Christian must submit to physical alteration of their body by a secular authority, can be denied without violating the First Amendment.
Reason Federal Court on Military Religious Exemptions from COVID Vaccination https://reason.com/volokh/2021/11/22/federal-court-on-military-religious-exemptions-from-covid-vaccination/