What do you think of the parents who went to prison for denying medical treatment to their child?

I'm sure you've seen the story in the media. Some parents went to prison because instead of seeking medical help for their sick child, they prayed for her, and she died.


I can guess what the atheists will think, so you may wish to refrain from clogging up this post!


As for the religious people out there - do you think these people deserve punishment, and if not, why not? After all, if you beleive in the bible the God sanctions the use of medicine - he allows the use of all the plants for the good of man except the tree of knowledge.What do you think of the parents who went to prison for denying medical treatment to their child?
It's child neglect %26amp; abuse, plain and simple. So yes, they should be punished for it.





A persons individual religious beliefs does not make them exempt from the law.What do you think of the parents who went to prison for denying medical treatment to their child?
If the parents have the power to consent to treatment, they have the power to withhold informed consent to treatment. Restated, if you have the authority to consent to something, you must have authority to deny it. Otherwise, such ';consent'; is merely a formality.





Leaving religion aside, there may be other reasons for refusing a particular treatment or type of care.





The outcome could well be death with a given course of treatment just as well as it could be without any treatment. The odds may be different, and there may be better, more effective courses of treatment.
If parents starve their child because ';God tells them to';, do they deserve to be punished?


How about a parent who stones his disobedient child to death and then claims as his defense that he was merely following God's commandment in the Old Testament to do so?





Same answer.





Any parent who harms their child not only deserves prison, but their children should be placed in foster care for their own safety.





My answer would have been exactly the same when I was a Roman Catholic.
I am sure they were well-intentioned, in the long run. But they were highly negligent in the treatment of their child. I'm torn on how much punishment they deserve, because I don't believe there was any malice, but I don't want to see these kinds of very avoidable deaths continue, either.
I think it's like this -- the parents are free to not get medical attention for themselves and to pray for healing if they wish.





However, even though they have freedom of religion, that does not mean that a child's rights can be overlooked, and the child had the legal right to medical help which could have saved her life and her parents had the DUTY to make sure she got it. They failed.
Get over yourself!





This is mans law we are talking about, and it's mans law we need to adhere to. They deserve to go to prison, and more so if they were educated in the conventional manner.





If you believe in god, then you must also accept that he gave doctors the gift to heal, and if not, what the bloody hell is the point.
We sit idly by watching as an insidious stream of profanity, vulgarity, demeaning behavior, a mocking of righteous ideals and principles, invades our homes and lives through most types of media, teaching our children negative values and moral corruption. We then become upset when our children perform differently than we would wish, and social behavior continues to deteriorate.
Personally, this is another example of the State interfering with parental rights. They didn't intentionally set out to kill her. They thought their faith would save her. Was it wrong? Probably so. However you could go to the hospital, get treated for one thing, but it was misdiagnosed, and you died as a result. Would the doctor then be locked away? No, the best he would get is a malpractice lawsuit. The streets are paved with good intentions. The names have been changed to protect the guilty.
i think anyone who is teaching the power of prayer alone should serve right along with these brainwashed people. Someone had to teach them this stuff for them to even have a chance of believing it.
This just proves that praying does nothing. Sorry i am an atheist couldn't resist lol. Looking forward to hearing religious folk.
Im a Christian and if this child died because they refused medical treatment for her. Then i think they should stay in prison.
I think it's too good for them. Let THEM get sick, and then withhold medical treatment. The punishment should fit the crime.
Behold, the power of religion. The true source of all morality on Earth.. Give me a break.





Those parents got what they had coming plain and simple.
Idiots are the enemies of themselves.
I think they are people who give Christians a bad name. They are very ignorant.
Bravo! Christian Science almost killed me.
Serves the dipshits right.
These people were morons. Why wouldn't you do all that you can to save your child?
They got what they deserved.....the sick child got what it didn't deserve
Bad news. We'll pray for them...
My answer has nothing to do with the fact that I'm Christian.





I don't think putting these people in jail is the answer. I've seen several cases where the parents lost their child because of their failure to seek medical attention and whether they are found guilty of a crime goes about 50/50.





I'm not real sure what to do with them, but their punishment is that they will do without that child they loved for the rest of their lives. I think we can all agree that these parents did not intend to kill their child with their inaction, that they loved their child.





And yes, I do believe in going to the doctor, I take mine when they are sick. God gave us doctors, there's nothing wrong with using them.
These people were idiots.... Longer post coming, just you wait.





edit: Okay, I managed to find a version of the story I was looking for.








A big storm approaches. The weatherman urges everyone to get out of town. The priest says, ';I won't worry, God will save me';.


The morning of the storm, the police go through the neighborhood with a sound truck telling everyone to evacuate. The priest says ';I won't worry, God will save me';.


The storm drains back up and there is an inch of water standing in the street. A fire truck comes by to pick up the priest. He tells them ';Don't worry, God will save me.';


The water rises another foot. A National Guard truck comes by to rescue the priest. He tells them ';Don't worry, God will save me.';


The water rises some more. The priest is forced up to his roof. A boat comes by to rescue the priest. He tells them ';Don't worry, God will save me.';


The water rises higher. The priest is forced up to the very top of his roof. A helicopter comes to rescue the priest. He shouts up at them ';Don't worry, God will save me.';


The water rises above his house, and the priest drowns.


When he gets up to heaven he says to God ';I've been your faithful servant ever since I was born! Why didn't you save me?';


God replies ';First I sent you a fire truck, then the national guard, then a boat, and then a helicopter. What more do you want from me!!??';
Every Christian will have a different opinion on this. There ARE Christian doctors out there, and some will say ';Well, clearly this person has been blessed with knowledge and fortitude to save lives every day.';





Some other Christians may view ANYTHING remotely connected to science as sinful or forbidden.





The reality is, some people just don't have enough common sense to realize that science is like the elephant in the room - you can close your eyes and pretend not to see it, but it's there all the same. If your kid is very sick, please, take them to a doctor ASAP. Even if you don't believe in medicine, do it for their health and safety.