The Bible, Vaccines and Me

True Christians (those who actually are devoted to obeying God in everything they do, not just those who claim the title by some standard of default) try to base important decisions on the Bible.  The Bible is quite plain on many matters, making the bulk of our decision-making fairly easy.  Should a Christian marry a non-Christian?  No. Should we get drunk?  No.  Should we love others?  Yes.  Should we treat our parents with respect?  Yes.  There is no equivocation on these types of issues.

However, it is often difficult to find direct answers to modern day problems.  Fashion is one such area of uncertainty.  Christians have accepted many different styles over the centuries because there are only biblical principles to interpret, not specific rules.  Alcohol assumption is another area of vagueness.  Not only has the passage of time changed the way Christians interpret scripture on this matter, so has geography.  Christians in some countries have always had a more relaxed view on alcohol than those in other parts of the world.

The problem I am trying to address is that of knowing what to do when the Bible is essentially silent on certain matters that affect our lives today because these issues didn’t exist in Bible times.  Though I wasn’t alive at the time, I would hope at least some believers asked the question, “Is it okay to listen to the radio?” when it was first invented.  They wouldn’t have found the answer in scripture, though.  We should always question new things, new ideas, new philosophies, new life styles, or any new way of thinking or doing anything.  What does God want me to do?  But we always have to be ready to put some effort into figuring it out when he has not specifically spelled it out in scripture.
One hot-button issue at this moment is vaccination, and the ensuing issue of whether the government should be able to force parents to vaccinate their children.  I’ve stayed above the fray until now because I didn’t believe I had enough information to have an opinion worth sharing.  I still don’t know where exactly I stand on the second part of this issue, but I am pretty confident about the first.

I am appalled, though not surprised, at the lack of research and the abundance of emotion displayed by so many on our preferred method of communication today, the Internet.  Many people have no idea what a vaccine is, what it is made of, how it is produced, or what it does when it is injected into a human being.  While this is disheartening, it is downright depressing to see the misuse, misunderstanding and misappropriation of Bible verses to support their unfounded beliefs. 

Here’s the real skinny on vaccinations.

There is no scientific evidence, let alone proof, that any vaccine causes autism.  Thimerosal, a preservative used in many vaccines since about 1930, has not been proven to cause autism.  Out of an abundance of caution, Thimerosal was eliminated from all but one childhood vaccine (a flu vaccine) in 2001.  The MMR vaccine has never contained Thimerosal.

There is one scientific study showing a strong link between autism and vaccines that skeptics like to reference.  This study was conducted Dr. Mark Geier and his son.  But the Institute of Medicine reviewed every study on the association of MMR vaccines with autism and found that the Geier study was “uninterpretable.”  That is not a term any true scientist wants attached to his work.  From what the IOM could understand, they found 15 important errors or items that were omitted.  If you know only the fundamentals of scientific inquiry, you know how damaging this was to the credibility of the Geiers’ report.  At this time, they have had ten years to correct and clarify.  They haven’t.  Dozens of other scientific studies show no significant difference in the rates of autism among children who received the MMR vaccine and those who did not.

I reviewed several websites explaining why the MMR vaccine is dangerous and should not be given to children.  Some of these were religious in nature.  I was astounded by the sheer number of Bible verses quoted out of context to support the no-vaccination point of view.  I don’t want to take the time to dissect all of these sites, but I do want to make one point about Bible interpretation.  You can prove just about anything you wish to justify by ripping single verses out of their greater contexts.  You can, but you shouldn’t.  God does not look favorably on that practice.  My challenge to those who do that: Show me one legitimate passage that addresses the issue of vaccinations.  Not the issue of parental authority in the decision to give a vaccination or not (that is a separate issue), not a passage about how sacred our bodies are, but a passage about vaccinations specifically.

There are ingredients in many vaccines that are lethal in certain amounts.  Many vaccines contain forms of aluminum, formaldehyde, MSG, neomycin, and polyethylene glycol.  Most of these same ingredients find their way into our bodies naturally, simply by being alive on this earth.  What people fail or refuse to understand is that no ingredient is a poison.  It is only an ingredient’s dosage that makes it a poison.  Some years back a woman entered a contest in Sacramento, and died from drinking too much water!  Anything in the wrong amount can be lethal.  The levels of the ingredients in the MMR vaccines have been scientifically tested and found to be safe.

Some people seem to react to various vaccines, including the MMR.  True.  But we must resist the urge to judge the validity of the danger by anecdotal information.  We must ask, “What does the scientific research show?”  Many “reactions” are events that would likely have occurred even if the vaccine was not given.  But nobody with access to the information available should claim there is absolutely no child who has or would have some reaction to any vaccine.  But the incident rate is extremely low.  If one child in a million reacts to the MMR vaccine by showing some adverse sign or symptom like swollen glands or temporary intestinal problems, should the other 999,999 children not be immunized?  Every day in this country about 700 children are harmed in vehicle accidents.  About 2,000 of those children die from those injuries each year.  Yet, I don’t see any evidence that those in the anti-vaccination crowd are refusing to allow their children to ride in automobiles.  We weigh the risks in our lives every day, and make decisions based on the likelihood of success and safety, and hopefully, whether or not our intended actions will be pleasing to God.  The evidence strongly supports getting children vaccinated.

There are children who cannot be vaccinated due to other infirmities.  There are babies who are too young to receive the vaccinations.  It seems irresponsible for those parents who “feel like” vaccinations are dangerous to endanger the lives of these other children. 

This blog long ago passed its normal acceptable number of words, so I won’t go into the issue of parental rights versus social responsibility, except for that statement I just made.  Perhaps some other time.

Since the scriptures are essentially silent on the topic of vaccinations, we are left to use the reasoning abilities with which God has endowed us.  Let’s try using that ability as he intended, rather than allowing our emotions to dictate our actions or inactions.

http://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/Concerns/Autism/Index.html

http://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/Concerns/thimerosal/thimerosal_faqs.html

http://creation.com/are-vaccines-biblical-safe-or-effective

http://pediatrics.about.com/od/immunizations/tp/Anti-Vaccine-Myths-and-Misinformation.04.htm

http://www.articlesbase.com/law-articles/children-car-accidents-the-alarming-statistics-695796.html

http://www.nevermindthem.com/opinion/biblical-reasons-not-to-vaccinate.asp

http://jesus-is-savior.com/Health_Concerns/Vaccines/biblical_support-not_vaccinating.htm

http://childhoodshots.com/biblical-reasons-vaccinate/

http://www.openbible.info/topics/vaccinations