About Us

Who We Are

Faiths4Vaccines is an inclusive, multifaith movement comprised of local and national religious leaders, as well as medical professionals, who are working together to identify and resolve current gaps in vaccine mobilization, outreach, and uptake. Therefore, the initiative seeks to increase opportunities for faith-based institutions, particularly houses of worship, to engage and support the United States government in its efforts to increase vaccination rates through the advancement of equitable vaccine distribution and combat vaccine hesitancy.

Our Shared Goals

Demonstrate religious communities’ trust in the vaccine

Support houses of worship and faith communities to innovatively distribute vaccines

Advocate and advance equitable vaccine distribution

Create space for multifaith collaboration

Pave the way for global, equitable vaccine distribution

The Beginning

In light of the COVID-19 pandemic and the race to vaccinate the entire United States population, the Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers developed the idea to support effective, equitable vaccine distribution through multi-faith collaboration. This idea led to the formation of a diverse Core Group to ensure a cohesive, inclusive and timely implementation of the initiative. Faiths4Vaccines is guided by the Core Group including, the Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers, Sojourners, National Council of Churches, Union for Reform Judaism, National African American Clergy Network and the Islamic Medical Association of North America.

A Unique Multifaith Movement

Through calling on existing interfaith networks, Faiths4Vaccines is mobilizing a multifaith movement to advance effective, equitable vaccine distribution. A multifaith approach is critical to ensure all of our neighbors have access to this life saving vaccine. We bring together prominent faith leaders, medical professionals, and government officials at bi-weekly roundtable discussions to identify opportunities for faith leaders and institutions to advance our shared goals.

Core Group

Jim Wallis

Founder, Sojourners

Jim Wallis is a globally respected writer, teacher, preacher, and justice advocate who believes the gospel of Jesus must be transformed from its cultural and political captivities. He is a New York Times bestselling author, widely recognized public theologian, renowned speaker, and regular international commentator on ethics and public life. He is the founder of Sojourners, and is the author of 12 books, including American’s Original Sin, God’s Politics, The Great Awakening, and The Call to Conversion. He served on President Obama’s White House Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships and has taught faith and public life courses at Harvard and Georgetown University. “Coach Jim” also served for 22 seasons as a Little League coach for his two baseball playing sons.

Dr. Mohamed Elsanousi is the Executive Director of the Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers, a global network that bridges grassroots peacemakers and global players to work towards sustainable peace. Dr. Elsanousi was the director of Community Outreach and Interfaith Relations for the Islamic Society of North America. He also served on the Core Group Taskforce for the Department of State’s working group on Religion and Foreign Policy. Dr. Elsanousi holds a bachelor’s degree in Shariah and Law from the International Islamic University in Islamabad, Pakistan, a Master of Laws from Indiana University, a graduate diploma in philanthropic studies from the Indiana University Center on Philanthropy, and a Ph.D. in Law and Society from the Indiana University School of Law.

Dr. Mohamed Elsanousi

Executive Director, Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers

Jim Winkler

President and General Secretary, National Council of Churches

Winkler is well-known among United Methodists for his nearly 30 years of service at the General Board of Church and Society of The United Methodist Church. At the Board of Church and Society, he held the position of seminar designer, director of annual conference relations, and assistant general secretary of resourcing congregational life before his election as general secretary in 2000. As top executive of the board, Winkler focused on the implementation of the United Methodist Social Principles through education, witness, and advocacy. In 2013, Winkler was elected as president and general secretary of the NCC.

Dr. Barbara Williams-Skinner, CEO and co-founder of Skinner Leadership Institute, is a trusted advisor, public policy strategist, faith and community leader, author, lecturer, educator, executive coach, and mentor. She has made an indelible imprint in American public policy, government, diversity, and community relations. She and her late husband, Tom Skinner, founded the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Prayer Breakfast that annually attracts over 3000 leaders across the nation. She regularly works with interfaith leaders on issues like health care and criminal justice reform.

Dr. Barbara Williams-Skinner

Co-Convener, National African Americans Clergy Network

Rabbi David Saperstein

Director-Emeritus, Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism

For 40 years, Rabbi Saperstein directed the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, representing the Reform Jewish Movement, the largest segment of American Jewry, to the U.S. Congress and Administration and currently serves as its Director Emeritus.

During the second term of the Obama administration, Rabbi Saperstein served as the U.S. Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom, carrying out his responsibilities as the country’s chief diplomat on religious freedom issues. Also an attorney, he taught seminars on Church–State law and on Jewish Law for 35 years at Georgetown University Law Center. In 2019-2020, Rabbi Saperstein served as the President of the World Union for Progressive Judaism, the international arm of the Reform Jewish Movement.

He currently serves as an adjunct professor at the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service and Center for Jewish Civilization and as a Distinguished Fellow at the PM Glynn Center at the Australian Catholic University.

Dr Uzma Syed is a board-certified Infectious Disease specialist, Chair of the COVID-19 Task Force, and is the Director of the Antimicrobial Stewardship Center of Excellence at Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center. Dr Syed is well-published in pneumonia-related research and has been leading several COVID-19 clinical trials. Dr Syed is a fellow of the Infectious Diseases Society of America as well as member of their Inclusion, Diversity, Access & Equity Task Force. Dr Syed holds regular town halls educating the public in order to build vaccine confidence across diverse communities. Dr Syed was featured on Tedx for her talk on COVID-19 The Ripple Effect from neighborhoods to beyond. In addition Dr Syed is co- editor of the book Coronavirus-from origin to outbreak, forthcoming in 2021 by Elsevier. She is also the founder & CEO of a 501c3 organization Align Us Inc, which provides career mentorship or high school students.

Dr. Uzma Syed

Infectious Disease Specialist, Muslim American Health Professionals

Katherine Marshall

Walsh School of Foreign Service, Executive Director of the World Faiths Development Dialogue

Katherine Marshall is a Senior Fellow at the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs, where she leads the center’s work on religion and global development, and a Professor of the practice of development, conflict, and religion in the Walsh School of Foreign Service. She helped to create and now serves as the Executive Director of the World Faiths Development Dialogue. She is also Vice President of the G20 Interfaith Association. Marshall, who worked at the World Bank from 1971 to 2006, has nearly five decades of experience on a wide range of development issues in Africa, Latin America, East Asia, and the Middle East, particularly those facing the world’s poorest countries. She led the World Bank’s faith and ethics initiative between 2000 and 2006.