Bad Public Relations for God
So where exactly was God when the Neumann’s gave up prayers for their daughter? Could God be absent? Jesus’ followers did see him leave ascending into the sky and were told that he’d return in the same way. Was this case a slap in the face to a God who is suppose to be omnipotent? If God knew that it would give him bad Public Relations (PR) and help the Atheist point of view, you’d think that he would have done a slight miracle of some kind. Unlike Job in the Bible these people has signs and could have prevented the death of their daughter.
“An expert on religion says the Neumanns may have become too focused on one way of thinking in their religious beliefs, and that may have ultimately contributed to their daughter’s death.”
It is interesting to see rationality meeting up with religion. I do believe a family has the right to seek or avoid medical assistance. However, there does come a valid point in a life or death situation of a child where one should be required to seek medical attention or consultation such as in this case. In some cases such as cancer it might be best to alleviate the child’s pain and make the best of the situation allowing them to enjoy what little they have left. In Wisconsin some are looking for reform and have some concern.
“It [legislation] does not change any existing laws that require medical care for children who are at risk of serious illness.”
Technically all children have a potential risk for serious illness unless you live in a glass bubble. Unfortunately, I would hate to see this case be used for a hidden agenda, taking away the rights of parents to decide on immunization shots for their children. I would not be surprised if they use this case down the line to take out religion as a reason to avoid medical attention such as a flu vaccine. Rather than taking precautionary drugs with possible side effects (such as death), I personally would prefer to avoid any and all treatments until I had proven ill or dying.
This case and what stems from it will definitely be something to watch.
Some related links:
http://www.wsaw.com/home/headlines/63681302.html
http://www.mauritiustimes.com/091009drgopee.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/news/2009/10/091007_prayer_medicine_wup_sl.shtml
