Can places of worship be places of exclusion?

The New South Wales government’s reopening plan allows only fully vaccinated people to attend places of worship after the state achieves a 70 per cent fully vaccinated level. Apart from the problem of policing this, some religious leaders face a tension between supporting both public health policy and religious values like inclusion.

Is religion voluntary and recreational? Can attending a place of worship be equated to attending any other public gathering? Source: Source: Jay Hsu - Chen Chieh/Creative Commons

Rev Christian Tirtha is the minister from the Indonesian Christian Church in Melbourne.   He explains to Sri Dean the practical issues, the uncertainties and the dilemmas that religions will face as COVID-19 restrictions are eased.

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Shoulder to shoulder. If being vaccinated to attend a place of worship is not made mandatory, should other COVID-19 protocols be enforced? Source: Source: by Greg Walters/Creative Commons.