A Catholic Perspective on Vaccines

 By Fr. Stephen McKenna,

from SGG Bulletin -July 25, 2021 

 Much buzz has come about regarding Bishop Dolan’s sermon last week, where he talked about how receiving the Covid shots would violate the moral law in a serious way, and thus be mortally sinful. 

Here is a very brief and simple explanation why the principles of Moral Theology would prohibit one from 

receiving the jab.

▪️The so-called “vaccine” is not to be thought of as a thoroughly tested and proven mode of treatment. Instead, one must view it as an experimental trial of unproven technology by inoculation. As such, it must be treated under different parameters for determining allowability. 

To help you best understand, it is necessary to grasp that experimental therapy is generally Not allowed, under most circumstances. 

So what are the circumstances? Here are a few:

 1) The subject of the experimental therapy must be sick. It is forbidden to receive experimental treatment if a person is either deemed incurable, or is healthy, because they would incur all of the risk without the benefit. It is for this reason that even American Law prohibits the development of vaccines when effective therapeutics can be developed or obtained. It is also the reason that the government refused to fund research into Hydroxychloroquine, ivermectin, or others, as a therapeutic would have prevented them from developing a much more lucrative and society-controlling vaccine.

 2) The necessity and good result to be obtained must be proportionate to the risk. If the risk be high, the necessity for it must also be grave, as well as the risk of the disease itself. Since Covid-19 is only, for most, a flu and that the risk of death or prolonged harm is also very low, especially for people in generally good health, it would not be permissible to participate in an

experimental trial for a vaccine which carries the risk of death, strokes, blood clots, infertility, and other damaging consequences. Such a risk may only be undertaken when “less dangerous remedies have failed and the saving of his life hinges on the success of this venture.” (McFadden, Medical Ethics)

 3) The sole motive prompting one to participate in trial experiment must be for the desired good effect: in this case, immunity. Nobody can promise you that.

 Furthermore, many have a contributing or dominating motivation of pressure from family, job, education, government, or “return to normal.”

 4) Free and fully informed consent must necessarily be given for reception. The Geneva Convention outlines this must be free from “any element of force, fraud, deceit, duress, overreaching, or other ulterior form of constraint or coercion.” 

This is far from the case today, given the external pressure. Also, the Geneva Convention states all potential risks to health must be clearly stated. Again, this is not presented unless asked for, and then the list is only partial at best. Nothing about this “vaccine”

is true, from the word “vaccine” on down.