Faith leaders across Missouri are calling for congregations to get the COVID-19 vaccine. Over 200 pastors and ministers in Missouri signed a statement which states that they hope Christians will get vaccinated as a way of following Jesus’s command to “love your neighbor as yourself.” Read full
More than 200 clergy in Missouri have signed up to encourage their congregations to get vaccinated. So far, 20 are clergy from Columbia. Read full piece
Faith leaders know they’re entering a politically-polarizing topic by encouraging vaccinations but Rev. Emily Bowen-Marler with Springfield’s Brentwood Christian Church said it goes with the territory. Read full piece
A diverse group of faith leaders of different Christian denominations held a virtual meeting to ask for the religious community to receive vaccinations. (Video in report includes interview with Word&Way Editor-in-Chief Brian Kaylor.) Read & watch full piece
Health experts recommend pairing incentives with other outreach programs. In Missouri, officials have acknowledged the need to partner with trusted community leaders such as pastors. More than 200 Missouri ministers and pastors on Wednesday signed a statement urging Christians to be vaccinated. Read full piece
Video report includes interview with Word&Way Editor-in-Chief Brian Kaylor. Watch full video
Meantime, a coalition of more than 200 Missouri ministers and pastors announced a campaign on Wednesday aimed at urging fellow Christians to get their shot. Read full piece
Hundreds of Missouri Christian pastors, at least 22 of them ministering to the faithful in the Springfield area, pleaded with state residents on Wednesday to get vaccinated against COVID-19 as the disease continued to tear through the unvaccinated population. Read full piece
Many churches in southwestern Missouri, are hosting vaccination clinics. Meanwhile, more than 200 church leaders have signed onto a statement urging Christians to get vaccinated, and on Wednesday announced a follow-up public service campaign that will include paid advertisements.
Editors Brian Kaylor and Beau Underwood outline the theological reasons for a COVID-19 vaccination outreach effort centered around clergy. Such an act is not only a matter of public health, it is also a witness to what we believe about the Gospel.