Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP will be the special guest on the popular weekly podcast, This Catholic Life to go live on 9 September, where he will explore the moral challenges around COVID-19 vaccines and the current public health restrictions barring the celebration of public Masses in greater Sydney.
The podcast, hosted by University of Notre Dame Australia academic, Peter Holmes, has attracted over 78,000 downloads since it was launched in 2019, building up a loyal audience of listeners who enjoy engaging with current issues, the challenges and hardships of life in a relaxed and informal way.
Archbishop Fisher, who holds a doctorate in bioethics from the University of Oxford, is regarded as one of the world’s leading bioethicists and as a Member of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, is a leader in the global discussion around the Catholic Church’s position on COVID-19 vaccines.
The Sydney Archbishop will explain the importance of vaccination against a deadly disease such as COVID-19 and how vaccines are morally permissible for Catholics.
“I think the more infectious a disease is or the more harmful it is, the greater is the responsibility to protect ourselves and to protect each other from it”, Archbishop Fisher explains to This Catholic Life.
“So I would be saying to people that not only is the use of vaccines morally permissible, but I’d say that it’s morally warranted. You’d need a really serious reason not to do it because this is something that protects the recipient’s life and health, helps to prevent transmission to others and so it serves the common good, as well as our own good”.
“A particular person may have a really serious reason not to get vaccinated and I’m willing to hear those concerns- but we shouldn’t just treat this as a flip of the coin issue. It’s actually more serious than that”.
Archbishop Fisher said the current restrictions on public Masses have been very challenging for practicing Catholics, but he has called for prayer and patience.
“Governments should be open to lifting restrictions as soon as it’s safe to do so. There are lots of good reasons to enable worship as often as we can. But sometimes it’s just too dangerous and sometimes we’ve had to curtail it. We do it though with a very heavy heart”, he said.
You can listen to the full podcast from Thursday 9 September on This Catholic Life website here: https://www.catholicweekly.com.au/category/podcasts/
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