Muslims, Islam & vaccination
In the Global North, prevalent misconceptions exist regarding Muslim communities, particularly regarding their inclination to vaccinate themselves and their children against diseases. These misconceptions may lead to harmful policies and disparities in communities.
The misconceptions I have heard the most are:
💉Certain Churches do not allow vaccination. Since Muslims are more orthodox in their practice, this must also apply to them.
💉Muslims believe that any disease comes from Allah and Allah will resolve it without us intervening (I read this in several guidelines, and it’s false!).
💉Vaccinations are haram.
Note that some professionals deal with vaccination policies and strategies bearing these false beliefs in their minds, leading to underserving the diverse community of a nation.
There is no prohibition on vaccination in Islam or Muslim states. One is even obliged to get vaccinated against Meningococcal disease to visit Mekka (KSA) for pilgrimage.
There is no prohibition on vaccination of children because vaccine-preventable diseases are saving children’s lives.
There is no prohibition on COVID-19 vaccines or even against HPV because the benefits are tremendous and save lives.
There is NO evidence to support any of the above misconceptions. When I ask policymakers, scientists and medical doctors where they got this information from, it becomes clear that it’s a generalisation from specific strict Christian communities that forbid vaccination. But also, some beliefs arise from prejudice due to a lack of information and knowledge about Muslims and the history of Islam.
Speaking of history, did you know that the Ottoman Empire (Islamic) was the first to issue vaccine mandates and would prohibit travelling through the Empire if you were not vaccinated against smallpox (Evered & Evered 2020)?
Smallpox vaccine certificate from the Ottoman Empire
Islam teaches one to take precautions to prevent disease. There is a well-known Hadith in which The Prophet (pbuh) said, ‘Tie your camel first, and then put your trust in Allah’. The latter means that you first take all the precautions and then trust Allah to prevent calamity. Furthermore, science, medicine and technology are perceived as Allah’s intellectual gift to humanity and a way for Allah to provide humans with a way to resolve their problems.
Way forward
The Mosque or Islamic teachings regarding science, vaccination and medicine are not comparable to the European (historical) Churches. Projecting or generalising prohibitions from the Global North onto the Muslim World or the Muslim Communities in Europe is not only false but leads to harmful practices. It would be a great way forward for any profession involved in medicine and healthcare to be educated about the history of medicine, including the non-European history of Medicine. This way, our current and future professionals are fully informed and prevent implicit and confirmation bias and policies based on ‘feelings’ rather than facts.
As a closing remark, I would like to add that even though I have shared this message multiple times, even to journalists, receiving these facts about Islam, Muslims, and vaccination sometimes doesn’t come with ease but rather with doubt and misbelief.
Confirmation bias explained