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December 24th, 2020 
Awake Goy 
The World Jewish Congress (WJC) and the World Council of Churches (WCC) released a joint paper urging religious leaders to consider attempting to combat myths that undermine trust in the coronavirus vaccine and to raise moral questions in policy discussions on the distribution of the vaccine. The paper calls on religious leaders to contemplate “confronting publicly the unsubstantiated rumors and conspiracy myths, promoted without evidence, that undermine public trust in health authorities and services and in tested and approved vaccines themselves.”The paper also states that some of these conspiracy theories have “an explicitly antisemitic basis which should in any event be denounced.”The paper also touches on issues such as concerns surrounding the global equity of vaccine distribution and ensuring that those who live in poorer countries are not excluded from vaccination.The paper warns against “vaccine nationalism,” high-income countries benefiting from the vaccine as poorer countries are unable to vaccinate despite stated commitments to international solidarity. The paper urges that because decisions surrounding vaccination distribution are “fundamentally ethical in nature, religious leaders and organizations have a critical role and responsibility to be engaged in relevant policy discussions.”“The most important thing is that faith leaders take up the responsibility of helping their communities and societies reflect on these urgent ethical and practical issues,” said Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca the interim general secretary of the WCC.He went on to say that religious leaders should “contribute to decisions that are morally substantiated and accepted in their own contexts at this critical inflection point in the course of the pandemic. “I am hopeful that religious leaders and faith-based organizations around the world will find these guidelines valuable as they advise governments and policymakers on vaccination distribution priorities,” said Maram Stern, the executive vice president of the WJC. “The document was drafted in a spirit of interfaith dialogue and cooperation, drawing inspiration from our respective Jewish and Christian traditions, which have helped to guide us through this life-changing time,” he went on to say.
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