The Moral Question as to Which Vaccine by our Director, Fr. Christian A. Saenz, SJ

You may have heard in the news over the past few days that the Catholic Church is cautioning the faithful against using the newly developed Covid-19 vaccines. Since the introduction of the various vaccines to the general public, ethicists have scrutinized their development, especially given the speediness in researching and developing these medications. It was disclosed that almost all of the vaccines that are now being distributed to the general public had used cell lines or tissue obtained from aborted fetuses in either or all of the research, development, and testing phases of the Covid-19 vaccine. As a result, some of the faithful—from bishops to the laity—have questioned the morality of using such kinds of vaccines.

The position of the Church may be found clearly stated through the instructions that have been published by the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF), through which the Holy See examines moral questions. The CDF’s instruction Dignitas Personae states that “in organizations where cell lines of illicit origin are being utilized, the responsibility of those who make the decision to use them is not the same as that of those who have no voice in such a decision”. In other words, the moral imperative to avoid participation in the grave sin of abortion in the case of vaccines falls first on the researchers and scientists who developed the vaccine rather than on the general public, who have no role in the vaccine’s research and development. Unless you were actually involved in creating the vaccine, then this concern does not apply to you. Furthermore, vaccination distribution centers do not appear to offer the possibility for the public to choose from a variety of vaccines, so even if there were a vaccine that was absolutely free from the use of abortive material, the public would does not appear to be free to choose it.

Some of the faithful are concerned that if they were to receive a vaccine that was developed with abortive material, then they would be morally culpable for participating in abortion. This can hardly be the case, as it does not make moral sense either. Morality and ethics are based on the presumption of choice. When there is no possibility of choice, especially in respect to something necessary, then moral deliberation is moot. The general public does not bear the moral burden of the production and distribution of vaccines, because it shares no role in it. Any moral burden regarding the vaccine’s development can only fall on its developers. Because one cannot choose which vaccine to receive at this moment, any moral culpability is further mitigated, even if a better alternative exists.