Dozens of US Navy SEALs and Special Warfare Command crewmen are taking legal action against the Biden administration and the Defense Department for their refusal to grant religious exemptions to the COVID-19 vaccine mandate. 

Attorneys with First Liberty Institute filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of 35 service members. The lawsuit outlined that multiple plaintiffs have religious objections to getting immunized against COVID-19 because "the vaccines were developed, tested, or produced using aborted fetal cell lines."

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced in August that all US troops will be required to get the COVID vaccine—a move that is supported by ...Joe Biden.

"The fact that the government has not granted a single religious exemption from the vaccine mandate shows that the Biden administration is engaged in an attempted ideological purge," said Mike Berry, General Counsel for First Liberty Institute. "Forcing a service member to choose between their faith and serving their country is abhorrent to the Constitution and America's values." 

Berry continued, "After all these elite warriors have done to defend our freedoms, the Navy is now threatening their careers, families, and finances. It's appalling and it has to stop before any more harm is done to our national security."

When one SEAL informed his superiors that he planned to seek a religious exemption from the vaccine, his commanding officer told him that he would have to surrender his Special Warfare pin.

And a new directive issued by the Navy states that if a SEAL declines the vaccine, the military could attempt to recover money that the government has spent on his training.

First Liberty points out that SEALs dedicate years of their lives in training to become the most elite fighting force. Yet, the Navy is willing to oust them or force them to repay the cost of their training simply for refusing a vaccine.

The lawsuit outlines that multiple plaintiffs have religious objections to getting immunized against COVID-19 because "the vaccines were developed, tested, or produced using aborted fetal cell lines." Those refusing to receive the vaccine "hold the sincere religious belief that all life is sacred, from conception to natural death, and that abortion is the impermissible taking of an innocent life in the womb."

In addition, many of the SEALs have already contracted and recovered from COVID-19, while some have had antibodies tests showing that they acquired natural immunity.

Berry urges all service members to "stay firm, stay strong in your faith. Continue to exercise your rights and hopefully our lawsuit will be successful."  

In Monday's order, US District Judge Reed O'Connor said, "The Navy service members, in this case, seek to vindicate the very freedoms they have sacrificed so much to protect. The COVID-19 pandemic provides the government no license to abrogate those freedoms. There is no COVID-19 exception to the First Amendment. There is no military exclusion from our Constitution."

"Forcing a service member to choose between their faith and serving their country is abhorrent to the Constitution and America's values," said Mike Berry, general counsel for First Liberty Institute. "Punishing SEALs for simply asking for a religious accommodation is purely vindictive and punitive. We're pleased that the court has acted to protect our brave warriors before more damage is done to our national security."

The news comes as the US Navy and Air Force are being accused of giving blanket denials to all requests for religious exemptions from the military's COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

All branches of the military are required by law to evaluate religious accommodation requests (RAR's) on an individual basis to ensure due process under the Fifth Amendment and protect service members' First Amendment right to religious freedom.

But the Navy has reportedly created a lengthy 50-step standard operating procedure to streamline the denials of the RAR's.

A Navy spokesman told CBN News in December there is no "blanket policy" about denying religious exemption requests. Each is allegedly considered on a case-by-case basis. There are, however, very strict guidelines that must be met, including a history of objecting to vaccinations. And anyone who refuses to get vaccinated, Christian or not, will be given a general discharge.

First Liberty points out that SEALs dedicate years of their lives in training to become the most elite fighting force. Yet, the Navy is willing to oust them or force them to repay the cost of their training simply because their beliefs keep them from receiving a COVID vaccine.

Meanwhile, dozens of congressional lawmakers recently announced their support for the group of Navy SEALs, arguing that their applications for religious exemptions from the mandate were unfairly denied.

"No right is more precious than the right to religious liberty," the lawmakers said in the brief addressed to Judge O'Connor. "That is why the very first clause of the very First Amendment explicitly states that 'Congress shall make no law ... prohibiting the free exercise' of religion." Subscribe for free to Breaking Christian News here

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