You should do the same. Proud member I still repeat this verse from time to time. On a Friday evening in April, the Supreme Court quietly issued a short decision that opened the floodgates for religious entities to claim an exemption from just about any law. I prayed this verse daily, driving to work, sitting on my couch. Small differences over how to interpret the Bible often resulted in the creation of new sects such as the Latter Day Saints, the Restorationists (Disciples of Christ and Churches of Christ), Adventists and various evangelical offshoots of more longstanding denominations such as Presbyterians, Baptists, Methodists and Quakers. Controversy continued in New England, and also back in London. Photo credit: GettyImages/Richard Johnson. Scriptures can help us to make sense of the confusion we see around us with people in fear of the Coronavirus. Jesus, in this statement, taught his followers that a pure heart does not condemn other peoples choices about whatever is ingested (including medicine) into their bodies. Edmund Massey, A sermon against the dangerous and sinful practice of inoculation (London: Angel in Cornhill, 1722). You can join the F.A.M. However, if ones application of Scripture, wisdom, and conscience leads one to decline a particular medical treatment, this is an application of the doctrine of liberty of conscience. I am not seeking to support or oppose the COVID vaccine. Most have their human resources department decide, while others have put in place panels to review the requests. The COVID-19 vaccine has been scientifically proved to save lives, but for a select group of people in the religious realm, a more important matter is at stake - eternal salvation.. As the delta variant of the coronavirus spreads, many Americans resist COVID-19 vaccines, some citing the uncertainty of long-term side effects, others lacking trust in the medical field. The vaccine is made from aborted fetuses. Isaiah 41:10 says, So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. The idea of a religious exemption as a concept has a long and complicated history in the U.S., but it has rarely, and possibly never, come up against something as massive and urgent as the. Check out her blog atBetty by Elizabeth Dunning and her website,www.elizabethdunning-wix.com. The Bible Gateway site also noticed an increase in verses related to government authority go up at least 50 times the average during the Election. A Christian student at the University of Alabama-Birmingham has challenged the university's mandatory vaccine policy after being blocked from registering for classes this semester despite having been allowed to register past semesters with no vaccinations. If they disobey it, they will be kicked out. They make this argument for a variety of reasons. We can easily select and interpret Bible verses that agree with our individual mindsets regarding vaccines. I have worked on my health with the great help of a medical community. Without a church hierarchy to reign them in, these evangelical pied pipers had little accountability. In all its splendor, Solomons temple in Jerusalem housed the Spirit of God. The Bible does not instruct us as to whether or not one should receive a vaccine, but it is clear when it comes to the doctrine of the liberty of conscience. In Washington the process to receive a religious exemption from the COVID-19 vaccine is determined by the individual human resources department of the agency, school district or health care . Covid Mask & Testing Exemptions. The views of the Bible proclaimed from the pulpits of formally educated clergy in established denominations gave way to a more free-wheeling and populist understanding of the scriptures that was often dissociated from such authoritative communities. But they can still infect other people nearby, including people in high-risk categories. These letters, obtained by THE CITY, are among the thousands of the notes that clergy members have given to city workers and nonprofit staffers contracted with the city to get out of the employee vaccine mandate put in place by the de Blasio administration. He has a B.A. on 02/18/2021, 4 Ways the Parable of the Sower Encourages Spiritual Growth. The Apologetic Value of the Christian Story, will refuse AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson, while choosing Pfizer or Moderna, or rejecting them altogether. Probatum est. With science and scripture, a Baltimore pastor is fighting Covid-19 vaccine skepticism. In the NYPD, 6,170 officers filed exemption applications, 1,850 in the FDNY, 550 at the Human Resources Administration and Department of Social Services, and 380 at the Department of Environmental Protection, according to city records. He is a better man after his trial of earthly suffering. Though ones interpretation of Scripture and medical data might shape ones decision on whether or not to receive inoculation, the decision must still be made in light of ones conscience. Likewise, Psalm 91 poetically points to the reality that we should trust in the fact that God does protect peopleeven in the midst of COVID-19. Hundreds of people demonstrated against vaccine mandates during a protest outside City Hall, Nov. 3, 2021. The Lord has blessed Ben and his wife Ricki with three children whom they are homeschooling. (Mark 7:14-15). Paul preached to the rowdy citizens of Corinth in 1 Corinthians 6:12, I have the right to do anything, you saybut not everything is beneficial. However, it is not easy to understand Gods Word. - Sort By Book Order. He rejected the legalism of pastors who sought to prohibit inoculation, and called for freedom of conscience in choosing or refusing inoculation.4 The Counter Decree: Esthers Connection to the Gospel Series. Bible verses about the "mark of the beast," which Maldonado pointed to in his Sunday sermon, warn Christians about a future where the Antichrist takes over the world economy and prevents people who don't have that mark from buying or selling food. Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and he hears my voice. The de Blasio administration has touted the mandate, noting it has pushed nearly 11,000 employees to get vaccinated since the Nov. 1 deadline. Besides, at the best, inoculation would only secure me from one of the innumerable natural evils the flesh is heir to; I should still be as liable as I am at present to a putrid fever, a bilious colic, an inflammation in the bowels, or in the brain, and a thousand formidable diseases which are hovering round me, and only wait his permission to cut me off in a few days or hours: and therefore I am determined, by his grace, to resign myself to his disposal. In the 16th century, Martin Luther and other Protestant reformers translated the Bible from an already existing Greek text into the languages of common people. As you make the decision to receive or decline medical treatment, it is responsible for one to review whatever medical information is available, and to make an informed decision. It took accepting grace from God for me to limit these activities. Fear is the one emotion God doesn't want to overtake us; because when we . Jesus also preached on a broader view of a Kosher dietrelated to our current dilemma over prescription and non-prescription use of drugsas stated in the passages from Marks gospel and I Corinthians. There were also queries tied to justice, racism and oppression in the week following George Floyds death. Can you receive the vaccine in faith? As a historian of the Bible in American life, I can attest that such shallow reading in service of political and cultural agendas has long been a fixture of evangelical Christianity. Protestants believed that the former approach was more compatible with the spirit of American liberty. But if were being honest, the novel coronavirus has impacted us all in vastly different ways. This story that St. Luke tells in his gospel (17:11-19) is not the only Bible verse I have seen and heard evangelical Christians use to justify anti-vaccine convictions. We might have lopped the illness off at its knees if every part of society locked down for two weeks at the beginning of 2020. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. What Is the Mark of the Beast in the Bible? My faith became stronger due to praying and searching for an answer to this popular question. Nor am I afraid of my face; it is now as the Lord, has made it, and it will be so after the small-pox. A federal judge in Indiana's northern district said that by offering religious exemptions for COVID-19 vaccines, Indiana University was to be applauded for going beyond what the Constitution . When they explain their religious objections to health officials, employers and school administrations, evangelicals select verses, usually out of context, and reference them on exemptions forms. Yes! This goes against our religious belief and religious teaching, the letter states without elaborating. The company also noted that searches spiked parallel to major events. Youve probably heard people say were all in the same boat to describe how COVID-19 has transformed our lives. I have faith in the body that God gave me to fight Covid. Please enter your name, email and zip code below to sign up! Does it Matter That I Didn't Keep My Goals for Lent? My third reason for refusing vaccines is due to the fact that vaccines / inoculation are the renown Mark of the Beast. The Bible also has something to say about a government mandating vaccines for everyone. While declaring the splendors of creation, God asked rhetorically, Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?(Job 38:4). The letters flowed in as everyone from the pope to the prominent rabbis and imams has encouraged their followers to get the jabs. This book hit the press (copyright 2020) too early to address COVID vaccines; so if you are wondering whether or not this includes anything related to COVID, COVID-19, Coronavirus vaccines Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson the answer is no. Some people lost jobs, while careers in healthcare ramped up dramatically. Religious authority must never be ceded to the state or to employers to determine whether or not ones convictions are legitimate. A former high school English teacher and editor, she works on writing projects from her home in West Michigan, where she enjoys woods, water, pets, and family. COVID Vaccine Religious Exemption Letters Show Battle of Faith vs. Science Notes from clergy, obtained by THE CITY, range from citing "morality" to erroneous declarations that the vaccine causes COVID. The chances of defeating the mandate are between slim and none and slim is out of town, said Manhattan-based lawyer Jerold Levine, who focuses on civil service and gun rights cases. 7 And the swine, because he parteth the hoof, and is clovenfooted, but - cheweth not the cud, he is unclean unto you. Seeking a religious exemption should very clearly rest on apparent and applicable religious beliefs. The City of Chicago, for example, requires this affirmation in the form it uses to request a religious exemption from a COVID-19 vaccination for employment with the city: "I have met with and provided religious or spiritual counsel to the . The New Covenant promise found in the Old Testament, made through Jesus, isnt about a nation. (Could this be a metaphor for doctor-prescribed drugs today?). Prior to this, most men and women in Europe were exposed to the Bible through the Vulgate, a Latin version of the Old and New Testaments that only educated men mostly Catholic priests could read. After receiving a frightening medical diagnosis several years ago, I searched my soul and the Bible to find an answer to my overriding question: Why did this happen to me? Ill inoculate you with this; and a pox to you.3 In court filings, the nurses argued that they refused to buy one-way tickets to hell on the hysteria express.. As people read the Bible many for the first time they inevitably began to interpret it as well. One of the few ways to avoid the tyrannical Covid measures being imposed on the public is through the use of religious exemptions. There is no law . If conscience does not permit you to receive the vaccine, seek to learn your options about a religious exemption. Here are the top six searched Bible verses during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to research by Vanderbilt University, the Dutch Reformed, the Christian Scientists and a few lesser-known faith-healing groups are the only churches operating in the United States that have . I have the right to do anythingbut I will not be mastered by anything. Prayer makes the distinction between right and wrong for you and your health situation much clearer. February 3, 2021 Can an employee object to. Im very troubled by religious exemptions, Rabbi Joseph Potasnik, executive vice president of the New York Board of Rabbis. I care for the work of Gods hands(Isaiah 64:8) as a steward to my small part of creation. This fear has driven some Christians to request religious exemptions The verse says, If my people, which are called by My name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turned from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. This passage is often quoted without looking at the context. These preachers built followers around innovative readings of the Scriptures. 2 Chronicles 7:13-14 - If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the . The verse says, Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. This is a passage that many people who are battling fear, anxiety and depression turn to. So, I kept cross-country skiing, kayaking, and hiking with difficulty. When the epidemic began, the population of Boston was about 11,000, and many fled with their families to escape the disease. Scriptures can help us to make sense of the confusion we see around us with people in fear of the Coronavirus. They grew anxious that these Catholic newcomers were a threat to their Protestant nation and often based these fears on perceptions of how Catholic bishops and priests kept the Bible from their parishioners. It does not address them as those came out late 2020 and really started being pushed in 2021. All employers should eliminate any religious exemptions for coronavirus vaccines for Christians, period. I pray more regularly and study more scripture after my health scare. Every joy and success, every painful loss or failure, is part of His greater plan. Two major problems with granting religious exemptions to vaccine mandates are that they are very hard to police, and that they are routinely gamed. Meanwhile, the Omicron variant looms. However, God promises to be present during the darkest periods of our lives. Everything is lawful, but not everything builds others up. According to Dr. Roger Barrier on Crosswalk.com, "Jesus often described the End Times as being birth pangs. Just as labor pains grow stronger and closer together, God will allow escalation in trials of all kinds to bring men to Christ. Yet another letter writer wraps medical misinformation in a cloak of religious belief.. Nay, I shall praise him for you both. Till from on high The church has determined 'Covid' to be a fake plague no more dangerous than the flu and that the measures being used for the first time in history to 'combat it' are Satanically-inspired and contravene New Testament scripture - by design. While many things continue to remain outside of our control, many find comfort in scripture to cope with difficult circumstances and face the unknown. Ill go and come, Isaiah 41:10 YouVersion reported that Isaiah 41:10 was ranked the most read, searched and bookmarked verse on the. . As Jesus said in Luke 12:31, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness; and all these things will be added unto you. from Multnomah Bible College (Portland, OR), an M.A. Jeffrey Denny. "If he or she thus comes to the sure conviction in conscience that they should not receive it, we believe this is a sincere religious belief, as they are bound before God to follow their. According to YouVersion, 2 Chronicles 7:14 moved up to the number three spot. How can we use this teaching to determine what does the Bible say about vaccines? On July 8, 1772, Edmund Massey preached a sermon at St. Andrews Holborn of London entitledA sermon against the dangerous and sinful practice of inoculation.6This text was republished and circulated in Boston, with Massey denouncing inoculation as a dangerous and sinful attempt to escape Gods judgment or to avoid the testing of ones faith. Philippe Lissac/Godong/Universal Images Group via Getty Images, built followers around innovative readings of the Scriptures, destroyed two of the citys Catholic churches, Committee Member - MNF Research Advisory Committee, PhD Scholarship - Uncle Isaac Brown Indigenous Scholarship, Associate Lecturer, Creative Writing and Literature. , Solomons temple in Jerusalem housed the Spirit of God and scripture, sermon! 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