-Jerome Kunkel is an 18-year-old senior and basketball captain at a Catholic school in Walton

-He objects to vaccines because he believes they 'contain aborted fetal cells' 

-Experts say this theory is a major driver fueling the measles outbreak in Washington state's Russian-speaking community 

-Some vaccines are derived from a small sample of cells taken from two fetuses of elective abortions in the early 1960s

-Pope Benedict XVI ruled that all vaccines are morally acceptable regardless of where they came from because they protect children from suffering

-But many Catholics are still hesitant to vaccinate 

-Kunkel's stance means he is banned from completing classes and extracurricular activities at Our Lady of the Sacred Heart/Assumption Academy

-The county is experiencing an outbreak affecting 32 people 

A Kentucky teenager who refuses to get the chickenpox vaccine on religious grounds is suing his school for barring him from basketball practice.

Jerome Kunkel, an 18-year-old senior and basketball captain at a Catholic school in Walton, objects to vaccines because he believes they 'contain aborted fetal cells'.

But his stance means he is automatically banned from completing his final term of classes and extracurricular activities at Our Lady of the Sacred Heart/Assumption Academy amid an outbreak affecting 32 people.

The Northern Kentucky Health Department announced last week that all students who are not vaccinated are not allowed to attend school 'ntil 21 days after the onset of rash for the last ill student or staff member.'

Jerome Kunkel is an 18-year-old senior and basketball captain at a Catholic school in Walton. He objects to vaccines because he believes they 'contain aborted fetal cells'. His stance means he is banned from completing his final term of classes and extracurricular activities at Our Lady of the Sacred Heart/Assumption Academy (file image)