https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/12/30/vaccine-resistance-evangelical-christianity/
Washington Post Editorial on Evangelical resistance to Covid vaccines.
There are many reasons I’ve heard for not taking Covid-19 vaccines. But, the anti-vaxxer community has three fundamental anti-vaxx messages for society:
- COVID-19 isn’t dangerous
- Vaccines are dangerous
- You can’t trust doctors or scientists
They then back these up with disinformation from various sources – mostly opinions, or fictionalized or distorted studies.
Along with all that, I’ve heard what’s mentioned in the article by white evangelicals – the vaccines either were made from, or benefited from the use of aborted fetuses.
This starts a whole discussion on abortion and the history of the procedure and faith, but for another time.
So, the facts are laid out in the article:
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is grown in fetal cell line PER.C6, which was derived from an elective abortion in 1985 in the Netherlands. But, there are no fetal cells or fetal DNA in the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
The Pfizer and Moderna mRNA vaccines are synthesized without the need for a cell line. The only possible objection against those is that their effectiveness was tested in certain lab experiments that used fetal cell lines. But if that is sufficient reason to decline them, that would also need to apply to a very long list of current medicines, including aspirin and statins.
And the Catholic Church has evaluated the matter and has said it is okay to take any of the vaccines for the common good of society. Or in other words, a way to “love our neighbors” is to get vaccinated.
But, alas this hasn’t resonated in the white evangelical community. Why?
SeePhas 