Pope Francis and other high ranking Catholic leaders are calling on believers to be vaccinated against COVID-19. The group urges followers to do the moral thing and protect their fellow human beings, calling the protection from coronavirus a show of “God’s grace” and “an act of love.”
American bishops have been some of the most vehemently anti-vaccine, frequently spreading misinformation and decrying basic protections.
Related: Abused former altar boy won’t testify in front of notoriously anti-gay Cardinal
Six cardinals and archbishops from the Americas appear in the Spanish language video with his Excellency. Pope Francis was born in Argentina.
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“Thanks to God’s grace and the work of many,” the pontiff says at the opening of the PSA, “we now have vaccines to protect us from COVID-19. They bring hope to end the pandemic, but only if they are available to all and if we collaborate with one another.”
“From North to South America, we support vaccination for all,” Mexican Cardinal Carlos Aguiar Retes continues.
“Getting vaccinated is an act of love for all, especially the most vulnerable,” Brazillian Cardinal Cláudio Hummes O.F.M. adds.
American Cardinal Raymond Burke, one of the Catholic church’s most viciously anti-LGBTQ leaders and a critic of COVID-19 vaccines and masking mandates, has contracted the lethal illness.
The 73-year-old has been hospitalized and placed on a ventilator; he is now asking others to pray for his recovery since he did nothing to protect himself.
Burke opposed vaccine mandates as “totalitarian”, has falsely claimed that the vaccine inserts microchips into people and has falsely claimed that the vaccine was developed “through the use of the cell lines of aborted fetuses.”
Many evangelical and Catholic anti-vaxxers have used the last claim as an excuse to not get vaccinated citing “religious objections” to abortion. The claim has repeatedly been debunked.
“Getting the vaccine that are authorized by the respective authorities is an act of love,” Pope Francis concludes. “And helping the majority of people to do so is an act of love. Love for oneself, love for our families and friends, and love for all peoples.”
“Getting vaccinated is a simple yet profound way to care for one another, especially the most vulnerable.”
