As countries around the world begin administering the brand new COVID vaccination, leading Chabad rabbonim have begun weighing the halachic implications of the new vaccine.
By Anash.org reporter
As countries around the world begin administering the brand new COVID vaccination, leading Chabad rabbonim have begun weighing the halachic implications of the new vaccine.
On Thursday, Beis Din Rabbonei Chabad of Eretz Yisroel issued a letter outlining their opinion regarding vaccines against the novel coronavirus.
The Rabbonim wrote: “The Rebbe’s views regarding vaccinations are widely known, that vaccines that have been used for several months and are proven to be beneficial and not harmful for most people, are proper to use as a means of preventing diseases.”
“However, as we are now in the midst of a pandemic, which has already claimed many lives, and there are many that if infected with the virus could become life-threatening,”
“Therefore, in practice, each person should consult a doctor who is also a friend whether, depending on his medical condition, he must be vaccinated now,” the Rabbonim concluded. [all emphasis in the original.]
On Tuesday, Harav Yitzchak Yehuda Yaroslavsky, rov of Kiryat Malachi and signatory of the above letter was among a number of high-profile individuals who volunteered to take the vaccine publicly.
“I specifically came to take the vaccine early to encourage other people to take it as well,” Rabbi Yaroslavsky after getting the shot.
Israel is currently leading the world in vaccinating its population with over 150,000 people already receiving their first dose. In only three days, it was ranked first in the world in the number of COVID-19 vaccination doses administered per 100 people, according to official data collected by Our World in Data published on Wednesday.
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