Religious leaders lobby Gladys Berejiklian to allow unvaccinated churchgoers back into worship as an 'essential service' when lockdown ends

  • NSW religious leaders are calling for all worshippers to be allowed in churches
  • Lobbying together to allow unvaccinated churchgoers into places of worship
  • Once NSW reaches the 70 per cent vaccination target churches can resume
  • But churchgoers must provide proof of vaccination before they can enter

Religious leaders are lobbying the NSW Government to allow unvaccinated churchgoers into places of worship.

Churches are able to reopen to people who have received two Covid jabs once the 70 per cent vaccination milestone is reached.

Places of worship must adhere to social distancing requirements, a strict one person per four square metre rule, and worshippers cannot sing.

Members must show proof of vaccination to enter the service, but religious leaders are 'concerned' about what will happen to unvaccinated churchgoers. 

Sydney religious leaders are lobbying Gladys Berejiklian to allow unvaccinated worshippers into churches (pictured, All Souls Anglican Church in Leichhardt, Sydney)

Sydney religious leaders are lobbying Gladys Berejiklian to allow unvaccinated worshippers into churches (pictured, All Souls Anglican Church in Leichhardt, Sydney)

Catholic Archbishop of Sydney Anthony Fisher, Anglican Archbishop of Sydney Kanishka Raffel, and other leaders want people who haven't been vaccinated to be able to access church services.

Mr Raffel said that religion is 'something that is really essential for people' calling for worship to be treated as similar to shopping or going to the doctor.

'When it comes to faith communities, it tends to be very important, so we do think there's a case to say it's a bit more like shopping or going to the doctor than going to the footy or going to the movies,' he told Sunrise on Monday morning.

'It's our nature as churches to have our doors open to welcome all people. We have a commitment to that, so we're talking to the government at the moment about how that's going to work out.'

Archbishop Fisher said he argued to the government that church was not just recreation but an essential service.

'We explained that all our faiths are inclined to allow all comers to worship, that many pastors and faithful would be uneasy with restricting worship to the fully vaccinated, and that doing so could prove very divisive,' he told the Sun-Herald

St George North Anglican Church minister Phil Colgan told The Pastor's Heart podcast last week that he would resists bans on unvaccinated parishioners.

Anglican Archbishop of Sydney Kanishka Raffel has called for religious services to be classed as 'essential' like shopping and doctors appointments (pictured, St James Church, Sydney)

Anglican Archbishop of Sydney Kanishka Raffel has called for religious services to be classed as 'essential' like shopping and doctors appointments (pictured, St James Church, Sydney)

'Even if it is consistent and churches are treated the same as cinemas … I still question whether the government has the right to impose on churches something we don't accept,' he said.

'I think it's really important to note that all of our acceptance of government limitations to date I consider to have been voluntary, that the government doesn't have the right to forbid people meeting as Christians, and we have chosen to accept and comply - rightly in my view.

'But there might come a time, like with a vaccine passport for me, where I would say "the government requires that but we are now going to stand up and say no", even though it is consistent with what they're requiring for cinemas and so forth.

'I can't ever see a time when I would deny someone access to fellowship on the grounds of their vaccination status.'

Health Minister Brad Hazzard has said that the vaccine mandate may be removed once NSW reaches 80 per cent of the population being fully vaccinated.

'As vaccination goes up to well and truly beyond 70 per cent of the population, the situation will be reviewed by the public health team,' he said. 

The religious leaders are worried about what will happen to unvaccinated churchgoers, once service can resume (pictured, a dose of AstraZeneca being administered)

The religious leaders are worried about what will happen to unvaccinated churchgoers, once service can resume (pictured, a dose of AstraZeneca being administered)

Sydneysiders are now allowed to gather outdoors in groups of five if they are fully vaccinated.

The new rules on outdoor gatherings came into effect for millions on Monday, marking the beginning of the end of a hard lockdown that has lasted almost 12 weeks in the city.

People living outside of the 12 hotspot local councils are now able to meet outdoors with up to five adults plus any children under 12 for as long as they want.

Residents living in the hotspot councils - who are subject to a 9pm-5am curfew - will be able to gather outdoors with their household for two hours a day as long as everyone is aged over 18. 

'To be perfectly frank, these steps are baby steps, recognising the serious situation we are in, it's important that we are allowing those interactions, that human interaction in an outdoor space,' Ms Chant said.