Due to a high rate of case numbers in the metro counties, the Council have reassess our mask policy. We want everyone to be safe and healthy, so we ask that everyone please wear a mask when entering the building and during worship - no matter what your vaccination status. The Delta variant is changing the realities of the pandemic once again, making us need to be extra cautious. Updates about future protocols will follow. Thank you! 

Vaccinations remain the single best way out of this pandemic, and so with that in mind here are some responses to some frequently asked questions/myths around vaccination that have been provided by our Minnesota Bishops.

MYTH: If we place our trust in God, we should be able to gather for worship however we want, and God will protect us.  TRUTH: This thinking is tempting because it liberates us from using our brains. But that’s not faith; that’s magical thinking. God IS protecting us through modern medicine, the minds of researchers and scientists, and the skilled hands of doctors and nurses. 

MYTH: People of faith don’t need the vaccine because they have God to protect them.  FACT: People of faith die every day from COVID-19. God is protecting us through the vocations of scientists and researchers who developed an amazingly effective vaccine in record time!   

MYTH: The risk of adverse reactions to the vaccine is worse than the risk of getting sick from COVID-19. FACT: The vaccines are very safe. Serious adverse reactions occur at a rate of about seven out of 1,000,000,000 or 0.0007% according to the Mayo Clinic, and deaths are extremely rare. By contrast nearly 10% of the US population have contracted COVID-19, and nearly 600,000 have died so far. This means that your risk of serious COVID-19 illness is 100,000 times greater than your risk of serious side effects from the vaccine!   

MYTH: One’s views on the vaccine are really just an extension of one’s politics. FACT: The former president put in place the very successful government program that led to the rapid development to two of the three major vaccines. He and his wife have both been vaccinated. The current president put in place the program that is distributing the vaccines widely. He and his wife have also both been vaccinated. I am not an expert in politics, but that seems very “bi-partisan” to me!   

MYTH: For Christians, getting vaccinated is a purely personal choice.  FACT: Love for the neighbor rather than our own personal freedom is the first consideration in what guides a Christian– this is what sets us apart from the rest of the world! A choice not to get the vaccine potentially impacts every single person with whom we come into contact.   

MYTH: Vaccinations are none of the church’s business.  FACT: Health experts, policy makers and the former and current presidents all agree – achieving herd immunity through vaccinations is the single best path out of this pandemic. Getting the pandemic behind us is of great interest to the church, and to everyone! So please make an appointment to get vaccinated today!