(it seems like) there is a risk/reward calculation that causes them to skipit. "A religious, moral or other exemption of conscience should be ascertained not by documents, but by a simple conversation seeking only to establish that the individual has a sincerely held, reasonable belief that . I see pastors offering to sign letters of religious objection. While the case received little attention outside of the legal world, it marked the culmination of more than 30 years of legal strategy by Christian conservatives who have sought ever-broader leeway to flout the law. In 1 Corinthians, Paul writes, do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own? A lot of things happened. This class of drugs impact dopamine and seratonin. The goal is not to vaccinate illegal immigrants, it is to remove them from the country. It might not be convincing to you or me and we can certainly have that discussion. Some have been saying I belong to Apollos (which is to say, Im a member of Apolloss faction), while others say I belong to Paul. Please know that I am asserting my right to a religious accommodation under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination against a sincerely held religious belief, practice or observance. Please think very carefully before answering this question. Jesus and Paul were actually muchharsher. A New Mexico state senator will "help you articulate a religious exemption" by pointing to the decades-old use of aborted fetal cells in the development of some vaccines. This includes objections that invoke religious beliefs in general terms, but upon further scrutiny, appeal to other factors. In most jurisdictions, employers are legally permitted to require vaccination as a condition of employment (and many employers may soon be required to do so under the anticipated OSHA emergency standard). And this may come just as Christians are about to need exemptions most. *** *** Religious Exemption Letter (Template) *** I appreciate your comments here of late about theissue. More importantly, stop blaming God for your moronicdecisions. people cite religious reasons for their reluctance to receive the shot. So if we are going to talk about being careful with sources and data, then lets begin by being careful with sources and data. The real problem is that when Christians present contrived demands for religious exemptions, they risk jeopardizing the whole undertaking. Moderna, Pfizer/BioNTech, Novavax - HEK293 cells are not used in production of the vaccine. As governments and businesses implement COVID-19 vaccine mandates, increasing numbers of people are seeking exemption on religious grounds. And a Texas-based. Maybe you do have objective religious groundswhat are they? It has become common for Christians to claim that being forced to take the COVID-19 vaccine is a violation of their religious convictions because their body is a temple, and they are commanded to keep it pure. This is associated with what God calls sorcery and divination. Your personal religious convictions do not sit under the judgment of others. Its biblicalanthropology. Get daily news, in-depth reporting and critical analysis from the journalists, activists and thinkers who are working to improve our world.. [5], This objection says very little. Why do people keep missing this? Those statements were made by people (Jesus, Paul) who spoke and/or wrote under infallible and inerrant direction and filling of the Spirit. Each of these, it seems, would violate the purity of their bodily temple, making it unsuitable as a vessel for the Holy Spirit. To be clear, stating you dont want to get the vaccine because your body is the temple of God is ludicrous. What have your pastors said? Whenever he gets a cold, even just a minor cold, it just lingers in his chest, and he has a really hard time.. A service of Logos Bible Software. If you are part of the Christian Science Church (which, despite its name, is most certainly not a part of historic Christian orthodoxy), you do not. People seeking an exemption on this basis are declaring themselves unwilling to harm their bodies, but this concern for physical well-beingwhile certainly validis a concern shared by everyone, religious or not. Were proud to publish real news 365 days of the year, completely free of charge to our readers. This should give Christians pause. There are also those who are highly educated who refuse to get vaccinated. Not to mention it is a bit ironic that people are insisting on the vaccine for others for fear of someone else making themsick. Get your FREE eBook about deconstruction: 'Before You Lose Your Faith'. This is a violation of the ThirdCommandment. He blogs as the Eccentric Fundamentalist. Similarly, if physical cleanliness was in view, then surely the COVID-19 virus itself would do at least as much to contaminate ones body. They do not contain any tissue from a fetus. "Our religion is predicated on the protection and preservation of health. I think it is 44% of white evangelicals have stated that they will not get the vaccine. The case made its way to the Supreme Court, where the justices sided with the Bible study group 5 to 4, writing that government regulations are not neutral and generally applicable, and therefore trigger strict scrutiny under the Free Exercise Clause, whenever they treat any comparable secular activity more favorably than religious exercise.. After all, natural illness is one of the main causes of impurity in Leviticus. The thinking is that something is better thannothing. So the Jews (o) call the body of a righteous man the habitation of the Holy Spirit. "I'm very troubled by religious exemptions," Rabbi Joseph Potasnik, executive vice president of the New York Board of Rabbis. If food is sacrificed to demons, then thats a pretty good reason to avoid eating it (1 Cor 8). As such, mainstream social and political discourse has begun to stray into theological territory, with uninspiring results. HEK293 cells are only used in testing to confirm antibodies are produced when the cells are exposed to thevaccine. Im happy to see how things play out first (and yes, time figures into my risk calculation aswell). There is a reason why U.S.A. are God's country. In some cases its deception but, in many cases, its a lack of education. I understand I dont have *every* fact at my disposal, but I try to make as good a calculation as I can and stick by it, until or unless I see evidence that makes me reevaluate it. As has been already mentioned, we ingest all sorts of unhealthy foods and beverages without blinking an eye. That definitely figures into my risk calculation, as does the fact that most vaccines have proven themselves safe overtime. Ive seen 1 Corinthians 6:19 quoted in countless vaccine exemption requests. I didnt just run out and get it, and Im not going to let my doctor push me into it without a lot more thought andconsideration. Yes, sin has tainted this, but the mandate that God gave permeated the creation in the design. Religious exemption forms have no legal standing The exemption forms being produced by some churches and by Liberty Counsel have no legal standing and do not have to be honored by employers or schools, according to lawyers contacted by BNG for confirmation. Nashville, Tennessee 37203 Also, whataboutism continues with arguments like, more people would get the vaccine if Biden didnt let thousands of unvaccinated migrants enter the country. You talked briefly about drugs that affect our mental state, and unless I was forced to take one of those, I would avoid ever taking one. The church has been involved in COVID controversies before, criticized for holding indoor services against public health orders last year and ignoring masking rules. The faith community does not hold authority over a persons beliefs. In its most robust form, such an exemption might rely on a provision within a churchs confessional statement explicitly forbidding vaccines or other medical interventions. "As His people, we are subject to His will and. "Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father." 1 Timothy 5:1. The decision could affect everything from traffic laws to racial discrimination. one person sharpens another. The temple of God objection is not a matter of conscience, its cowardice. Some Christians claim the various COVID vaccines have a connection to abortion. Religious freedom is an exceedingly important value, and it is a constitutional right recognized in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Smith, it appears that there is no constitutional requirement for the government, including the public schools that it operates, to provide religious exemptions when mandating vaccines to receive . He is a supervisor in Theology and Religious Studies in the Cambridge Divinity Faculty, and he teaches courses for Ridley Hall and the Faraday Institute for Science and Religion. by John Brummett | September 15, 2021 at 3:17 a.m. More, Matthew Arbo has a Ph.D. in ethics from the University of Edinburgh, currently serves as a research fellow in Christian Ethics at the ERLC, and has taught at Southeastern, Midwestern, and Southern Seminary in Christian Ethics and Public Theology. It isnt enough to hold to some form of, I dont like it, so it violates my conscience, so I dont have to do it. Thats never been how responsible Christians have interacted with society. Meeting together in person and singing together are commanded in the Bible, say church leaders. Ironic that in a post about truth being available, this line shows up. While not But we must stop government intrusion now, some will say. Paul follows this with fitting words for our time: So let no one boast about human leaders (3:21). 3 Health Freedom Idaho, Sample Letter for Religious Vaccine Exemption, https://healthfreedomidaho.org/sample-letter-for-religious-vaccine-exemption/. This makes policing religious exemptions to vaccination hard - and rightly so. In the meantime, Kirschner is pleading with those who havent gotten vaccinated yet to reconsider, for her son's sake and others like him. Ive reviewed many of these vaccine exemption requests. People came out with huge numbers, great stories of impending disaster, and the like, much of which turned out to be distorted and exaggerated and some of which was known at the time to be exaggerated anddistorted. I Work for a Pastor with Low Emotional Intelligence, Split or Stay? As Christians with religious objections to vaccines, we share the goals of promoting good health for children and families, spiritually, emotionally, and physically. If they are legal, they have been processed at the border, given a court date and potentially released into the US. (Proverbs 27:17). I agree. we have no idea what is in them that makes them work. Religious Exemptions. But, it is true for too many Christians. Some of us definitely are making a calculation as to risk/reward. It is a God-given responsibility and requirement for me to protect the physical integrity of my Body against unclean food and injections.[3]. No other U.S. military branch has yet approved any religious exemptions to the COVID-19 vaccine. During the pandemic, religious entities, often supported by influential right-wing firms like the Alliance Defending Freedom, Thomas More Society and Liberty Counsel, filed a barrage of religious objections to rules aimed at protecting people from COVID, culminating in more than 100 decisions, according to a preliminary tally by the Law, Rights, and Religion Project at Columbia Law School. What is said in 1 Corinthians 3:16 of the saints in general, is here said of their bodies in particular. It is also important to remember that illegitimate appeals to religious liberty are perhaps the greatest threat to legal protections of religious liberty. Former Watergate Prosecutor: Trump Should Have Been Charged Upon Exiting Office, Media Orgs Demand McCarthy Hand Over Jan. 6 Footage He Gave to Tucker Carlson, As US Reengages Maduro, Oil Giants Earn Deals and Venezuelans Protest, GOP Lawmaker Uses Racist Trope, Calls Chinese American Colleague Disloyal, Republicans Unveil Bill to Make AR-15-Style Rifle the National Gun, Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner Subpoenaed to Testify in DOJs Trump Investigation, Despair and Disparity: The Uneven Burdens of COVID-19, Religions Role in the Struggle for Justice. Pauls warning is not about the pollution of their individual physical bodies, nor any threat from outside. Such a claim might be motivated by the belief that their constitutionally protected rights are being infringed upon and that their religious sentiments are sufficient grounds for refusal. This is a violation of the Third Commandment. Will the Equal Rights Amendment Finally Be Added to the US Constitution? This is a well-meaning but sad argument. In August, she submitted an exemption request she wrote herself, bolstered by her own Bible study and language from sources online. It must not be! But my passion for religious liberty is exactly why Im concerned about the wave of requests for so-called religious exemptions from employer vaccine mandatesrequests that pastors around the country are being asked to write or approve. In particular, he commands them not to engage the services of prostitutes, and in general to shun fornication (6:18). Its a shortsighted strategy that will end up fueling government overreach, not curtailing it. 3 in 5 white evangelicals believe that the election was stolen, despite absolutely no proof of it. At present, the unvaccinated are 29 times more likely to be hospitalized. Furthermore, refusing vaccination could lead to others experiencing bodily harm as the unvaccinated are at increased risk of transmitting the virus to others. 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