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There are currently three vaccines that have been presented to us as having demonstrated their effectiveness and that are likely to be made available in the coming months, those from Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca.

                The situation of the first two is essentially the same. Neither Pfizer 8 The cell line involved in the three new COVID-19 vaccines, a cell line known as HEK293, has its origin in kidney cells taken from the body of a child aborted in the Netherlands in 1972. 11 December 2020 nor Moderna used morally compromised cell lines in the design, development, or production of the vaccine.

A confirmatory test, however, employing the commonly used, but morally compromised HEK293 cell line was performed on both vaccines. Thus, while neither vaccine is completely free from any connection to morally compromised cell lines, in this case the connection is very remote from the initial evil of the abortion.

                In view of the gravity of the current pandemic and the lack of availability of alternative vaccines, the reasons to accept the new COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna are sufficiently serious to justify their use, despite their remote connection to morally compromised cell lines.  In addition, receiving the COVID-19 vaccine ought to be understood as an act of charity toward the other members of our community. In this way, being vaccinated safely against COVID-19 should be considered an act of love of our neighbor and part of our moral responsibility for the common good.     The AstraZeneca vaccine is more morally compromised…..and should be avoided if there are alternatives available.