COVID-19: Missouri Churches Urge Congregants to Get Vaccinated

July 24, 2021480 views0

COVID-19: Missouri Churches Urge Congregants to Get Vaccinated

2021-07-24T20:35:00+01:00

By Bede

A lead pastor of one of Missouri’s largest churches, Jeremy Johnson has urged the congregants to get the COVID-19 vaccination.the clergy wants them to know it’s not only OK to do so but also is what the Bible urges.Pastors, priests, and church leaders across Missouri are reaching out to urge vaccinations in a state under siege from the delta variant.According to health experts, the spread is due largely to low vaccination rates.Missouri lags about 10 percentage points behind the national average for people who have initiated shots. As a result of this, many churches in southwestern Missouri, like Johnson’s North Point Church, are hosting vaccination clinics.As part of the drive, over 200 church leaders have signed a statement urging Christians to get vaccinated. They had last Wednesday announced a follow-up public service campaign that will include paid advertisements.“Vaccine hesitancy in our pews puts our congregations and communities at greater risk. Given their safety and availability, receiving a vaccine is an easy way of living out Jesus’s command to ‘love your neighbor as yourself,’ ” the statement reads, citing a verse in Mark, chapter 12.READ ALSO: Mike Lee explains why religious freedom thrives in the US