The religious exception to employer vaccine requirements is the newest gimmick for the anti-vaccination crowd to evade responsibility. Those who want to claim the exception are being aided by a few unethical preachers, some of whom think that the made-up cause of freedom is a religious argument and have tried to retroactively incorporate the argument into their articles of faith. The tactic drips of cynicism and stretches all reasonable notions of sincerely held religious belief. Particularly noxious are offers by some preachers to sign a religious-exception letter for anyone who donates to their church.

The St. Louis County Council's approval of a vaccination requirement for all county employees prompted resident Zina Hackworth to advise anyone who would listen, "If you don't have religion, get it now." In other words, concoct a statement of religious faith to avoid getting vaccinated for the coronavirus but remain employable.

Matthew Sheffer, pastor of the Church of the Word in Fenton, has a history of using his church status to promote conservative causes. His Facebook page gives prominence to Fox News commentary denigrating infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci. Last year, his church accepted a $5,000 donation from a conservative political action committee and, a day later, filed a lawsuit challenging pandemic restrictions on indoor gatherings. Hackworth advised employees at a recent County Council meeting to contact Sheffer if they need a religious-exception letter.

The exception is supposed to be based on "sincerely held" religious beliefs, but there's nothing sincere about running to a pastor, without even sharing that faith, to avoid a vaccination that could protect people from a deadly disease.

Some employers, such as United Airlines, are countering by saying they'll accept religious exemption letters but they warn employees that they will be placed on unpaid leave as long as they lack vaccination.

Curtis Chang, a Duke University consulting divinity professor and former pastor, wrote in The New York Times that "there is no actual religious basis for exemptions from vaccine mandates in any established stream of Christianity. Within both Catholicism and all the major Protestant denominations, no creed or Scripture in any way prohibits Christians from getting the vaccine."

Nevertheless, as the Post-Dispatch's Katie Kull and Annika Merrilees reported, a pastor in Oklahoma has posted an online religious exemption form that has been downloaded 14,000 times. The pastor, who also is a U.S. Senate candidate, says he'll sign the form if the person joins his church and donates. In other words, he would prostitute his religion for the sake of promoting pandemic irresponsibility.

It's amazing, and amazingly galling, that so many would try to hide behind a claim of faith just to avoid getting a shot that could save lives. No religion that embraces the spread of death deserves to be recognized just so people can protect their paychecks.

REPRINTED FROM THE ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH

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