ABSTRACT According to the standard liberal egalitarian approach, religious exemptions from generally applicable laws can be justified on the grounds of equal respect for each citizen’s conscience. I contend that claims of conscience cannot justify demands for exemptions, since they do not meet even the most inclusive standards of public justification. Arguments of the form ‘My conscience says so’ do not explicate the rationale behind the practices that the claimants seek to protect. Therefore, such arguments do not constitute even pro tanto reasons for exemptions. Rather, they are what Francis Bacon called idola fori – ‘idols of the marketplace’ – conventional justifications that are deemed rational and even self-evident, while in fact they are not.

中文翻译：

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宗教豁免、良心要求和偶像

摘要 根据标准的自由平等主义方法，基于对每个公民的良知的平等尊重，宗教豁免普遍适用的法律是合理的。我认为，良心的主张不能证明豁免要求是正当的，因为它们甚至不符合最广泛的公共正当性标准。“我的良心如此说”这种形式的论据并没有说明索赔人寻求保护的做法背后的基本原理。因此，这些论点甚至不构成豁免的直接理由。相反，它们是弗朗西斯·培根 (Francis Bacon) 所说的偶像——“市场偶像”——被认为是合理甚至不言自明的传统理由，而实际上它们并非如此。