religious exemption vaccination letter sample

#Religious exemption vaccination letter sample free#

Several churches disobeyed the guidelines and some challenged them in court. Newsom came under fire as his administration enacted restrictions on in-person worship services during the COVID-19 pandemic. He told The Sacramento Bee that Newsom's policies during the pandemic have had 'traumatic consequences for families, schools, communities, and the church.' Gavin Newsom during the recall election on Sept.

#Religious exemption vaccination letter sample free#

The archdiocese concluded that while a person “is free to exercise discretion on getting the vaccine based on his or her own beliefs,” their clergy “should not be active participants to such actions.”įairrington made headlines earlier this month when he urged congregants to vote to recall Gov. “By doing so is acting in contradiction to the directives of the Pope and is participating in an act that could have serious consequences to others.” “Pope Francis has made it very clear that it is morally acceptable to take any of the vaccines and said we have the moral responsibility to get vaccinated,” wrote Cahill. Cahill informed all clergy and staff that there is “no basis for a priest to issue a religious exemption to the vaccine.”

In a memorandum dated July 30, Chancellor John P. While Destiny Church has offered to provide religious exemption letters, other Christian bodies like the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York have refused to allow their clergy to give such exemptions. A mandate is when you withhold an important benefit because a person declines to receive vaccination.”Īs the COVID vaccine becomes more widely available, many schools and businesses have required workers and others to get vaccinated or, if exempted for medical or religious reasons, to submit to wearing face masks in public and getting tested regularly. “You have to do one of two things to protect other people from the risk that you pose to them,” Mello told The Los Angeles Times, getting vaccinated or getting tested regularly. Michelle Mello, a professor of law and medicine at Stanford University, told the Times that she believes the exemption letters are “irrelevant” since most workplaces and the courts already recognize “bona fide” and “sincere” religious exemptions. “The religious exemptions we are issuing speak to that, honor that, and affirm that.”Įarlier this month, Fairrington and his wife, Kathy, led their congregation in a prayer for those who work in healthcare, education or other fields threatened with losing their job because they refuse to get the COVID-19 vaccine on moral grounds. “The vaccine poses a morally compromising situation for many people of faith,” stated Fairrington. We have freedom of religion, and if a person has a moral objection to taking the vaccine, we want to come alongside of them,' he said in a video interview.ĭestiny Christian Church, which averages 10,000 people online and in-person for its worship services, recently sent a statement to the Los Angeles Times explaining the importance of the exemption letters.įairrington said the church has gotten “thousands of phone calls from doctors, nurses, educators, and first responders, in tears, fearing that their livelihoods hang in the balance because of their religious convictions.” Some say they traveled over two hours to get a letter.įairrington told the outlet that he doesn't believe vaccine requirements are 'right.'

KCRA News reports that after Sunday services last week, there were long lines of people waiting to pick up exemption letters from Destiny Christian Church in Rocklin, led by Pastor Greg Fairrington.

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Monday, AugPastor Greg Fairrington of Destiny Christian Church in California, 2019 | Facebook/Destiny Christian ChurchĪ church in California that has a history of defying pandemic lockdown orders is offering religious exemption letters for people opposed to being vaccinated against COVID-19.