A faith-based humanitarian organization is exempt from Title VII’s prohibition against religious discrimination when it terminated employees based on their religious beliefs, a Ninth Circuit panel rules in a 2-1 decision.

Religious discrimination is barred by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act but that prohibition does not apply to “a religious corporation, association, educational institution, or society with respect to the employment of individuals of a particular religion to perform work connected with the carry¬ing on by such [entity] of its activities,” according to the majority opinion.

When the employees were hired, they were required to submit personal statements describing their “relationship with Jesus Christ,” and to acknowledge their “agreement and compliance” with the organization’s statement of faith, core values, and mission. The organization terminated the employees when it subsequently discovered that they had denied and disavowed portions of the faith.

The Court majority agrees with a lower court decision that the organization’s “purpose and character are primarily religious,” and thus, falls within the scope of the Title VII exemption.

The dissenting opinion says that the majority is “fashioning brand new tests for applying the Title VII religious organization exemption.” The dissent says that the ruling “would hold any nonprofit organization can claim the exemption if the organization mentions a ‘self-identified religious purpose’ in its foundational documents; performs activities in furtherance of that avowed religious objective; and ‘holds itself out to the public’ as religious.” Spencer v. World Vision