Hungary will begin vaccinating priests against Covid-19 out of turn at the request of the leaders of the country’s Christian historical churches, the prime minister’s chief of staff said on Friday.
Gergely Gulyás told a press conference that representatives of the Catholic Church, the Lutheran Church and the Reformed Church had turned to the government requesting that priests get inoculated out of turn, citing the key roles they play during the pandemic.
Priests whose responsibilities include religious education already received the jab when it was administered to teachers, Gulyás said.
He said the church leaders had been “modest” when it came to the timing of their request, noting that more than 3 million Hungarians have already been vaccinated.
Bishop Zoltán Balog, head of the General Synod of the Reformed Church in Hungary, said spiritual support was especially important during the pandemic. He encouraged people to reach out to priests for help in facing the effects of the pandemic.
Featured photo illustration by Zoltán Balogh/MTI
