Vaccine hesitancy is epidemic in white evangelical circles, according to a recent survey only 54 percent of white evangelicals “definitely or probably” plan to get vaccinated.

This in due in large part because the unofficial pope of white evangelicals, Donald Trump, eschews mitigation efforts against COVID including social distancing, wearing masks and getting vaccinated. If Trump enthusiastically urged his followers to get vaccinated, they would line up to be vaccinated and they would consider the bandage covering the injection site an emblem of their faith in Jesus and his orange messiah, Donald Trump.

White evangelicals don’t get the vaccine because Trump doesn’t emphasize the importance of the vaccine, and Trump doesn’t emphasize the importance of the vaccine because he doesn’t want to lose the support of evangelicals, many of whom were anti-vaxxers long before the coronavirus pandemic. What a vicious circle of ignorance and moral cowardice.

There’s a long history of anti-science within American evangelicalism, their mantra is “Jesus is my vaccine”, not I trust in science to defeat the pandemic. It’s a badge of honor and a demonstration of their faith for evangelicals to refuse to be vaccinated.

According to a Pew research study only 48 percent of white evangelicals said they would consider the community health effects a lot when deciding to be vaccinated. In other words, evangelicals only care about their own tribe, and they are unconcerned and unfazed if their anti-vaccine stance results in a coronavirus breakout in their city.

Unfortunately, Trump didn’t get vaccinated in the glare of the cameras, and there’s no verse in the Bible that states, “You must be vaccinated”, therefore I have little faith white evangelicals will have an epiphany and get vaccinated for their own good and for the good of society.