Germany: Bishops support national campaign “Here We Vaccinate”. Mgr. Bätzing, “we are responsible for one another"

The president of the German Bishops' Conference (DBK), Mgr. Georg Bätzing, supports the national action week in support of the COVID-19 vaccination campaign “#HierWirdGeimpft - #Here We Vaccinate” from 13 to 19 September. “Get the jab! We are all responsible for one another. I join because my neighbours are important to me, everywhere”, wrote the Bishop of Limburg on the Facebook page of his diocese last weekend. Many other bishops also support the initiative. The Diocese recalled that at the Feast of the Cross in Limburg, from Thursday to Sunday, for example, people “may roll up their sleeves” in front of the Episcopal Ordinariate. Even the Bishop of Speyer, Mgr. Karl-Heinz Wiesemann, backs the National Action Week. “Get vaccinated and encourage others to do the same”, Wiesemann said at the start of the action week. Quoting Pope Francis, he said that the COVID-19 vaccination is “a sign of responsibility for our children and for all those who cannot be vaccinated. An increase in the vaccination rate would allow a quicker return to normal life without social distancing and masks”. The Bishop of Erfurt, Mgr. Ulrich Neymeyr, said the virus “can only be defeated with vaccines”. The vaccine, he added, must be made available to everyone around the world: “After all, the virus, too, is active all over the world”. The Bishop explained that he himself got the jab as soon as it was his turn. He encourages “sceptics to read the leaflets of the drugs they are taking. All medicines have risks and may have side effects. But in most cases, the benefits far outweigh them. In the case of COVID-19, there are benefits not just for the vaccinated, but also for all other people”.

Massimo Lavena