The Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans urged Catholics on Friday not to get a vaccine for COVID-19 made by Johnson & Johnson because the vaccine is developed from stem cells obtained from two abortions.
In a statement on the archdiocese’s website, the organization argued that the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was “morally compromised”.
“[T]The archdiocese must instruct Catholics that the latest Janssen / Johnson & Johnson vaccine is morally compromised, as it uses the abortion-derived cell line in the development and production of the vaccine, as well as in testing, “the statement said.
“[W]And we advise that if the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine is available, Catholics should choose to receive any of these vaccines instead of receiving the new Johnson & Johnson vaccine due to their extensive use of abortion-derived cell lines, “continued the archdiocese.
A request for comment from Johnson & Johnson was not returned immediately.
Catholic groups that oppose abortion have long criticized medical companies that use human cell lines from aborted fetuses, while companies like Johnson & Johnson defend the process as leading to medical advances on the front of disease prevention.
“As a research tool, human pluripotent stem cells promise to expand our understanding of normal physiological processes, such as cell growth and differentiation, and to allow new insights into disease, which can lead to new ways to prevent, diagnose and treat a wide variety of disorders “, says a note on the company’s website.
The Johnson & Johnson vaccine became the third authorized candidate for emergency use in the United States earlier this month, joining two others on the market produced by pharmaceutical companies Moderna and Pfizer.