Should Christians Apply for Religious Exemption to Avoid the COVID Vaccine?

Let me start by saying that this topic is very polarizing in today’s culture, even among Christians themselves. It is more important than ever to do your own research so you can be firmly grounded in why you believe what you believe about the COVID vaccine (or anything, really). Please don’t take my words or anyone else’s as the only source of truth on the subject and don’t forget the source that should matter the most to you if you are a Christian is God’s Word.

With that said, I started my journey on a Biblical approach to the vaccine about six weeks ago when my employer mandated the vaccine for all employees. They did, however, give the option to apply for a religious or medical exemption. This left me with the choice many Americans are being faced with: take the vaccine, lose my job, or figure out if the exemption applies to me. I really didn’t like the second option. I wasn’t thrilled with the first option. And I didn’t feel I had enough background to fully apply for the third option, so I started digging into what both the science and the Bible say.

I started out skeptical that the Bible had a firm standing on the subject either way. I couldn’t think of a single verse off the top of my head for either standing. It did, however, become clear that the Bible did have quite a bit to say on the subject. Let me be clear on one thing first before I give my conclusion. There is no verse in the Bible that literally says “do or don’t take the vaccine”. We can, however, draw wisdom and logic from the Bible to apply to the vaccine situation.

After all the research and prayer, I did decide to apply for the religious exemption when/if it is required (my employer has since paused the requirement given current court orders so I have not actually submitted yet). My view of the science and/or lack of science around the vaccine gave me well-founded concern that I would be, or potentially would be, violating God’s instructions in the Bible if I got vaccinated. If you are interested in the logic and Bible references I studied in order to come to that conclusion, my religious exemption form is included in the bottom of this blog post.

Let me end with how I started. Please do your own research. You are, of course, welcome to use my form below as a starting point. Keep in mind that the more we personally dig into God’s Word, the closer we get to Him and the better we understand how to apply HIS Word in this cultural moment.

Leave No Doubt – Just Live It

Jeff’s Religious Exemption Form:

Question #1 – Describe how receiving a COVID-19 vaccine conflicts with your religious beliefs, practices, or observances. Please be a specific as possible in describing your religious belief, practice, or observance and how it supports your request for an accommodation. 

1. In the book of 1^st Corinthians, my religion teaches that my body is a holy temple in which God dwells and my body is not mine alone, therefore I need to honor and protect it.  The COVID vaccine has not been out long enough to truly understand the long-term impact on the human body. Taking the vaccine would be putting me at risk of putting something in my body that could alter or hurt it.  If the vaccine would have long term negative effects, it would be dishonoring to my God and against His teachings.  Bible (my Holy book) verses to support this are listed in question #3. 

2. My religion believes God created us in His image and it is “very good”, as stated in the book of Genesis.  He also created each human uniquely, as the book of Psalms suggests, so changing or manipulating my DNA could be in violation of His design for me.  Some of the vaccines are mislabeled as “vaccines”.  They are more like gene therapy in which the vaccine enters cells to instruct the manufacturing for the spike protein.  This is a foreign actor in our cells which creates a change in our DNA in which God did not intend.  Bible (my Holy book) verses to support this are listed in question #3. 

3. According to the Bible (my holy book), all human life is sacred, including life in the womb, as suggested in Psalms and Jeremiah. Science also shows that life begins at the point of fertilization. Given that testing and development of the COVID vaccines included cell lines from tissues of aborted humans, using any such vaccines would violate God’s instruction.  While the vaccines themselves don’t contain tissues or cells from aborted humans, any vaccine using cells derived from aborted tissue in their development or testing is still wrong and against what I believe my Creator (God) and holy book (Bible) say.  Using any vaccine in which aborted tissue/cells is used at any point in the process would be contributing to an act (murder) which is against the teachings of my religion and God.  More details are given in question #3. 

4. Proverbs warns me not to be deceived, but to be discerning. There seems to be a significant amount of misinformation, intentional lack of research in certain areas, excessive use of force, manipulation of data, misdirection, and agendas (political or otherwise).  Note, I am not talking about just one political party or group of people.  (All the above is happening on both sides of the aisle, so to speak.)  If I were to take the vaccine knowing there is so much uncertainty surrounding it, I would be going against the promptings of the Holy Spirit (God). I am the main income earner in my family. If the vaccine where to disable or harm me, I would no longer be able to support my family. This is a reasonable concern given that the long-term effects of the vaccine are not known, many short term harmful reactions have been recorded, and COVID-19 virus in my age range has a greater than 98% survival and 90% non-hospitalization rate. (I can also add myself to this statistic since I had a relatively mild case of COVID 19 in March of 2021.) More details are given in question #3 

Question #2 – Have you received other vaccinations at any other point in your life? If so, how do your religious beliefs, practices, or observances distinguish between the COVID-19 vaccine and other vaccines you may have received? 

Yes, I have received other vaccines, however they were all before the age of 14 and agreed to by my parents on my behalf.  I have not received any vaccines in my adult years or after an age when my religious beliefs became my own.  Example:  I have never taken the Flu vaccine for some of the same reason(s) as listed above.  

Question #3 – If you have any *documentation, other authority, or information you would like to share with us that will help us understand your religious beliefs, practices, or observances and how receiving a COVID-19 vaccination conflicts with those, we encourage you to share those with us.  

*Examples include, but are not limited to, a written statement from religious/spiritual leaders; written religious/spiritual material(s) describing/supporting the religious belief, practice, or observance; and/or statements and explanations from you that discuss the nature and tenets of your asserted religious beliefs and information about when, where, and how they follow the practice, belief, or observance.  

1. Bible Verses to support my belief that my body is a holy temple:
   1. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (NIV)  –  “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirt, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price.  Therefore honor God with your bodies“
   2. 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 (NIV) – “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirt dwells in your midst? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person; for God’s temple is sacred, and you together are that temple.”
   3. 1 John 4:15 (NIV) – “If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God.” 
2. Bible Verses to support my conclusion on gene therapy:
   1. Psalm 139:13-14 (NIV) – “For you (God) created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”
   2. 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 (NIV) – “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirt dwells in your midst? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person; for God’s temple is sacred, and you together are that temple.” 
   3. Genesis 1:27 (NIV) – “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”
   4. Genesis 1:31 (NIV) – “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.  And there was evening, and there was morning – the sixth day.”
3. More information on aborted tissue/cells: 
   1. Bible Verses to support my belief that all life is sacred:
      1. Psalm 139:13-16 (NIV)  – “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”
      2. Exodus 20:13 (NIV) – “You shall not murder.”
      3. Jeremiah 1:5 (NIV) – “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart” 
   2. Examples to support my claim regarding aborted tissue/cells and scientific definitions:
      1. The cell lines HEK 293 (Pfizer/Moderna) and PER.C6 (Johnson & Johnson) are both derived from aborted human tissue.  While the vaccines don’t have any aborted issue in them, they are here today because they once used aborted tissue.
      2. Science itself says human life begins at the Zygote stage (fertilization). This means any intentional termination of a pregnancy would be killing a human being.
         1. Quotes from Science Textbooks to show human life starts at fertilization: 
            1. “Before We Are Born” Essential of Embryology and Birth Defects 10th Edition by Moore, Persuad, Torchia
               1. “Embryology is concerned with the origin and development of a human being from zygote to birth”
               2. “There are different opinions of when an embryo becomes a human being because opinions are often affected by religious and personal views. The scientific answer is that the embryo is a human being from the time of fertilization because of its human chromosomal constitution.  The zygote is the beginning of a developing human.” 
            2. “The Developing Human” Clinically Oriented Embryology 11th Edition by Moore, Persuad, Torchia 
               1. “Human development begins at fertilization…. The highly specialized, totipotent cell marked the beginning of each of us as a unique individual.” 
4. More info on not being deceived, but instead being discerning 
   1. Bible Verses to support 
      1. Proverbs 12:19-22 (NIV) – “Truthful lips endure forever, but lying tongue lasts only a moment. Deceit is in the hearts of those who plot evil, but those who promote peace have joy. No harm overtakes the righteous, but the wicked have their fill of trouble. The Lord detest lying lips, but he delights in people who are trustworthy.” 
      2. Psalm 119:73-75 (NIV)  – “ Your hands made me and formed me; give me understanding to learn your commands. May those who fear you rejoice when they see me, for I put my hope in your word. I know, Lord, that your laws are righteous, and that in faithfulness you afflicted me.” 
      3. Leviticus 19:11 (NIV) – “ Do not steal.  Do not lie.  Do not deceive one another” 
      4. Romans 12:1-2 (NIV) – “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will. ” 
   2. Examples to support my strong belief in being skeptical about the information surrounding COVID and its vaccine. Again, I must be discerning and wise, as per Proverbs.  Below are some of my thoughts on why I am skeptical of the information surrounding COVID.  
      1. Possible and likely manipulation of data by both political parties and groups with an agenda.
      2. Misdirection on severity or lack of severity of COVID in general including both not taking COIVD seriously and taking it too seriously. 
      3. Misdirection on severity or lack of severity of COVID among children along with pushing of agenda (either side) in their education. 
      4. Intentional censorship and mistreatment of independent doctors or scientist who don’t support the others’ position or agenda. 
      5. Lying and misdirection in the Fauci emails along with the intentional promotion of such for a political or power gain. 
      6. NIH cover up about the funding of gain of function research in China along with the intentional promotion of such for a political or power gain. 
      7. Intentional lack of research on the natural immunity of people who have already had COVID. 
      8. Intentional fear mongering to promote division (either side). 
   3. My religion believes the Bible is the inerrant word of God which provides the direction for my life. The Bible is the only religious text that holds that standard. As such, I will not provide any documentation from religious leaders on why the COVID vaccine should not be administered into my body. 
   4. Examples of me practicing my religion: 
      1. Regular (almost weekly) attendance at my church. (Where I practice, worship, and grow deeper in my religion) 
      2. I serve on a vision planning board for my church. 
      3. I am a partner/speaker in a non-profit ministry which teaches apologetics of my religion.
      4. I donate money monthly to ministries which support my religion. 
         1. My church 
         2. Pro-life ministries 
         3. Directly to missionaries spreading/supporting my religion  
      5. I taught Biblical based leadership, apologetics, and logic at homeschool co-ops 
      6. I served in other ministry programs in the past by working with kids and young adults of all ages to teach them about my religion.