Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Aug 24, 2021 / 11:16 am
The National Catholic Bioethics Center on Monday praised the bishops of Wisconsin for their statement supporting conscience exemptions to COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
“We applaud the Wisconsin Catholic Conference for its defense of the sanctity of conscience with regard to the COVID-19 vaccines,” the center said in its Aug. 23 tweet.
The National Catholic Bioethics Center, a think tank that provides guidance on human dignity in health care and medical research, has been vocal about its opposition to mandatory immunization for COVID-19. While acknowledging that reception of COVID-19 vaccines is morally permissible, the center has maintained support for the rights of Catholics to refuse the vaccines because of conscience-based concerns.
The five bishops of Wisconsin on Friday issued a statement encouraging vaccination against COVID-19, while maintaining that people ought not be forced to accept a COVID vaccine. The bishops added that, in the cases of Catholics conscientiously objecting to receiving a vaccine, clergy should not be intervening on their behalf.