A federal appeals court has ruled that a Christian nonprofit in Washington state has the constitutional right to hire only individuals who share its religious convictions.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a unanimous decision affirming that Union Gospel Mission of Yakima is exempt from certain nondiscrimination policies under the First and Fourteenth Amendments and may limit employment to those in agreement with its faith-based mission.

The dispute began in 2023 over the reach of Washington’s Law Against Discrimination, which prohibits employment discrimination based on criteria such as sexual orientation and gender identity. State officials sought to apply the law to the nonprofit's hiring practices, but a district court granted a preliminary injunction, later upheld by the 9th Circuit, as The Christian Post reports.

Legal Battle Centers on Religious Autonomy

Union Gospel sued both the Washington Attorney General and the state’s Human Rights Commission, arguing that being compelled to hire individuals who reject its theological tenets would undermine its religious purpose and operations.

At the heart of the 9th Circuit’s ruling is the Church Autonomy Doctrine, a legal principle ensuring that religious organizations can make internal decisions without government interference.

The court’s opinion stated plainly, “If a religious organization’s hiring of co-religionists for non-ministerial positions rests on its sincerely held religious beliefs, then the church autonomy doctrine forbids government interference with that hiring decision.”

Ruling Applies Narrowly to Religious Hiring

This decision does not provide a blanket exemption from the state’s nondiscrimination law. Other aspects of the regulation still apply to Union Gospel Mission, where religious alignment is not in question.

The Washington Supreme Court had previously interpreted the religious exemption in the law as applying only to ministerial roles. The federal appeals court disagreed, asserting broader constitutional protections.

Union Gospel’s concerns were not theoretical—it had over 50 open staff positions when the litigation began, many of which were non-ministerial but still required alignment with the mission’s spiritual values.

Faith-Based Group Cites Constitutional Protections

Represented by Alliance Defending Freedom, Union Gospel contended that forcing it to hire employees who do not uphold its religious standards—such as abstaining from sex outside biblical marriage—would conflict with its stated mission.

“Religious organizations shouldn’t be punished for exercising their constitutionally protected freedom to hire employees who are aligned with and live out their shared religious beliefs,” said ADF Senior Counsel Jeremiah Galus.

He continued, “The 9th Circuit correctly ruled that the First Amendment protects the mission’s freedom to hire fellow believers who share that calling.”

Dissent on Enforcement of Progressive Standards

The issue has sparked debate over where constitutional protections for religious liberty end—and where state enforcement of progressive nondiscrimination policies begins.

Critics of the state’s approach argue that forced conformity to secular norms in faith-based institutions threatens genuine diversity of belief. Washington’s effort to narrow the religious exemption to ministers alone appeared calculated to wedge personal identity politics into religious hiring decisions.

This ruling reaffirms that courtrooms shouldn’t micromanage who a faith group considers spiritually aligned enough for employment—especially when the employees are tasked with carrying out religious missions.

Ruling Reflects Broader Legal Trends

Though limited to one organization, the case highlights a deeper tension spreading across the country: can traditional religious institutions freely operate without having today's evolving activist standards imposed on their internal life?

The 9th Circuit—a court not exactly famous for siding with conservative causes—clearly believes they can. By applying longstanding constitutional doctrine, the court shut down Washington's attempt to compel compliance with ideological concepts many faith groups simply do not accept.

Any effort to prevent a Christian ministry from hiring Christians is not an act of neutrality. It’s ideology looking for a fight—and this time, theology prevailed.