Child Sacrifice in Oregon

by Trevor Blake on 2007-06-04 09:29:43

Pyelonephritis is an infection of the kidney. Antibiotics are a known and readily-available cure. But that knowledge didn’t help Valery Shaw, who died in 1979 at the age of five months from a kidney infection. The pus and germs in Valery’s kidneys caused her pain, vomiting, painful urination and mental confusion that ended only with her death. Valery’s parents withheld medical care in favor of spells petitioning the magical intervention of an invisible monster that lives in the sky. Valery’s parents were never charged with a
crime.Diabetes Melitus is a condition in which the pancreas does not produce enough insulin. The disease was known ancient Greece and India, and by the 1920s insulin therapy was known to be a life-saving option for those who have diabetes. Perhaps seven percent of people in the United States are known to have diabetes, and because a working therapy is known most of them will
experience few harmful effects from the disease. But that knowledge didn’t help Bo Phillips, who died in 1998 at the age of eleven from diabetes. Bo went through near constant states of nausea and dementia until he died. Bo’s parents withheld medical care in favor of spells petitioning the magical intervention of
an invisible monster that lives in the sky. Bo’s parents were never charged
with a crime.

A hernia is a protrusion of an organ or tissue through the surrounding muscle. Hernias are known to be curable with simple surgeries and rest, and have few if any long-term negative effects. But that knowledge didn’t help Holland
Cunningham, who died in 1999 at the age of six from a strangulated hernia. Holland’s blood was cut off in his muscles, causing his body to rot while he was still alive. Holland’s parents withheld medical care in favor of spells
petitioning the magical intervention of an invisible monster that lives in the sky. Holland’s parents were never charged with a crime.

The parents of all of these children attended the Followers of Christ Church in Oregon City, Oregon. Nearly eighty children whose parents attend this church are known to have died from preventable causes since 1955, and none of their
parents have been charged with any crime. Children who attended the Followers of Christ Church between 1989 and 1999 died at a rate twenty-six times more often than other children in Oregon. If their parents had let them die because of their politics, or aesthetics, or favorite musician, or nearly any other reason, they would have been charged with neglect if not outright murder. But because these parents denied medical care to their own children for religious reasons, no charges were brought against them.

Oregon law, at the time, stated that charges of criminal mistreatment did not apply to persons who provide children with “spiritual treatment through prayer from a duly accredited practitioner of spiritual treatment [...] in lieu of medical treatment.” While the Constitution of the United States clearly states
that the government is not in the business of ‘accrediting’ who is fit to represent any particular superstition, this Oregon law stood unchallenged for decades while child after child died needlessly.

In the late 1990s, after a series of articles in the Portland, Oregon newspaper ‘The Oregonian,’ Oregon State Representatives introduced HB 2494. This bill would have removed legal immunity from prosecution on charges of homicide,
manslaughter, child abuse, neglect and the like when children were treated only by way of magic spells and not medical treatment. See-through sky creature superstitionists spoke against this proposed law, and a compromise was reached.
Oregon House Bill 2494 does remove immunity by way of superstition from many criminal charges. But not for felony murder or first degree manslaughter. That is, the worst forms of murder are still excusable if the claimant can demonstrate they acted under the orders of an invisible monster that lives in the sky.

So here’s the deal. To be guilty of felony murder requires that you kill someone intentionally, planning ahead and not acting in a state of emotional distress. To be guilty of first degree manslaughter requires that you do
intend to kill but it’s okay to be upset at the time. If you miss your chance to be get away with felony murder or first degree manslaughter, you still get preferential treatment if you are found guilty of second degree manslaughter.
Most people found guilty of second degree manslaughter in Oregon face a mandatory seventy-five year prison sentence. But if you can convince a jury of your peers that a super space ghost made you do it, your sentence is at the
discretion of the judge. Want to kill children and get away with it? Go to Church every Sunday and build up your spook-creds.

If the above makes you as angry as it does me, maybe you’d like to visit the Followers of Christ Church in Oregon City, Oregon and tell them about it by appointment in a reasoned, compassionate fashion. If you do not make an
appointment with them and convey your concerns in a reasoned, compassionate fashion, choosing instead to carry out acts of rage and violence, make sure to leave me out of it. If you say I told you to do something bad there, we’ll
both get in trouble. But you will get away with it if you blame God.

submit to blinklist submit to del.icio.us submit to digg diigo it submit to disinfo submit to fark submit to furl submit to google bookmarks submit to ma.gnolia Add to Mixx! submit to newsvine submit to propeller submit to reddit submit to simpy submit to spurl submit to stumble upon submit to tailrank submit to yahoo bookmarks

Comments

you sick closed eyed sad excuse of a human. If you don’t understand something than just realise that you’re stupid and move on. God is not a monster in the sky he is what created your pathetic self. and spells must be your pathetic way of describing prayer. Holand never showed any signs of sickness untill he woke his mom up in the middle of the night. 2 minutes later he died on the way back to his bedroom. NO SUFFERING!!!
Bo showed all the classic signs of the flu untill 1 hour before he died. VERY LITTLE suffering. and if you are going to talk about the 80 children in the cemetary give the real #‘s of how many the medical examiner thinks he could “save”. only 21 cases. If the doctors in hospitals are allowed to leave a life “in God’s hands” w/o prosecution or persicution than why can’t we???

by screwyou on 2008-03-22 07:41:10

If you feel that strongly that you are being “persicuted” (correct spelling is persEcuted), then why don’t you stand proud of your beliefs. Aren’t we all taught to stand up for what we believe as children? If so, why all of the secrecy? Help people to understand where you are coming from. You have obviously witnessed children dying and that is horrible under any circumstance. It gets old to hear that when people get questioned about something (that maybe they even question in secrecy), they are quick to say they are being persecuted or discriminated against. Get over it. I know many good families that are members, as well as some former members. Everyone is human. Did you ever think that maybe people care about your children and you too? I became friends with a girl in school not knowing she was a follower (or what a follower was for that matter). She was very nice and we stayed friends until some other follower girls found out. They did nothing but harrass me for no reason for the rest of my years in school with not even admitting anything. But they did make her be present many times and it was obvious she didn’t want to be there. So, enough of the dramatic comments that paint terrible pictures on both sides. Being a Christian is about being compassionate to each other so why don’t you both be a good example, not a hateful one. It is time to hear both sides in a truthful, factual way. Not everyone is going to agree with everyone else, but it is a start. I’m willing to listen objectively. I won’t promise to agree with everything, but I do believe that followers love their kids just as much as non-follower parents love theirs. But sometime, somewhere, both sides are going to have to have more common ground than the schools attended & the local Taco Bell on Sundays. Otherwise, kids on both sides of the issues will only continue to learn hatred & ridicule. Does that solve anything? It certainly isn’t very Christian.

by InTheOC on 2008-03-25 22:44:46

“But I do believe that followers love their kids just as much as non-follower parents love theirs.”

I don’t care how much these parents love their children. They are grossly incompetent parents if they think they should pray for their children instead of seeking medical attention. A parent who let their kids die rather than seek medical attention for any reason other than faith would go to prison and lose any other children they had. If their only punishment is ridicule and scorn, they have gotten off easy.

For a comparison, see what happened to these parents whose child died of malnutrition after their parents decided to feed him a vegan diet:

http://www.news4jax.com/news/13286030/detail.html

Had they justified their diet with religion, what would have happened?

by klintron on 2008-03-28 21:57:51

Here is a recent update on the matter:

http://www.religionnewsblog.com/20949/ava-worthington-2

Also, Screwyou, do you believe 21 preventable deaths is acceptable? If so, for what reasons? Would non-religious reasons be acceptable as well?

by klintron on 2008-03-28 22:26:17

From my personal perspective, it is negligent to withhold medical attention if it can help to treat or ease suffering of anyone. However, if I were raised in an environment where the only belief to heal the sick was through prayer, I would probably be having just the opposite perspective, right?

My point is this; we all believe in something. But the only way to help other to understand why/how you think/believe the way you do is through rational communication. Obviously with blogs you get impassioned perspectives, which is the case here. From the perspective of someone who fully believes in getting medical attention when needed, I can’t understand how someone could watch their child die if it can easily be prevented. I believe in God as well & feel that when it is your time, you will die. But, what if as a result of this most recent tragedy, some followers are questioning their beliefs in receiving medical attention? Maybe Mr Blake is a former follower, or maybe Screwyou is trying to find a way to truly justify another child dying & is afraid it could be them or their child next. Or maybe they are both angry only because they just don’t understand the other’s perpective & are upset that a child died.

Many generations of followers have believed that getting medical care is a huge sin. But they also live with the fear of being ostracized by everyone they know if they go against the fold. That fear is very real & those of us who know followers/former followers, know the absolute hell they have been put through by family & friends by going against the fold or even questioning it. Instead of spreading hatred, this community should do whatever possible to try to break through that communication gap because it could save a life, or several lives someday. It won’t change what has already happened, but it might change the future. Many kids depend on that opportunity because they don’t have a choice. They are being watched at every turn by other followers to make sure they maintain their loyalty.

To Screwyou, please help us to understand why followers can’t speak out about their beliefs. Since it is obvious we don’t understand, help to change that. It isn’t about persecuting people because there would have to be an understanding first to have a plan of attack. But because you may have been told time & time again that non-followers are the enemy & you can’t talk to them, you believe we are all bad.

I could easily feel hatred for you just because of the stuff I put up with by a small group of girls, but that isn’t what every non-follower is about. I do hold those girls responsible & know they are still in the community, but why should I hold you responsible for them acting like jerks? It would only make the same kind of behavior continue, which is the concern where children’s lives are at stake. Help us understand your truths & don’t be so quick to fire back with venom calling people stupid because they don’t get it. We can’t get it if no one explains it to us.

by InTheOC on 2008-04-01 22:45:23

Another update: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23882698/

by klintron on 2008-04-02 07:23:54

OC – a web site for occultists is probably not a good vehicle for trying to convert Followers of Christ Church members to a more rational point of view.

It is a better vehicle for challenging occults own views, making ones case to a more sympathetic audience, and/or rallying the “base” of people who already agree you.

by klintron on 2008-04-02 07:29:25

I don’t want to convert anyone. I am only saying that not everyone that is a non-follower is bad & some are willing to try & help IF needed. Non-followers only hear about child deaths in relation to this congregation & since I know several kids in the schools, it becomes more personal.

I was raised to stand up for what you believe, but they continue to hide. That makes me doubt their own belief in their doctrines. So instead of just calling people stupid because they disagree, why not find a place to share follower views & beliefs. Isn’t that the purpose of a forum? I guess I just picked the wrong one, that’s all. But people do care about the whole picture, especially the children. People can think what they want, but it is sad to see that kids don’t get the respect that follower adults command in the community. Instead another generation will grow up thinking that the rest of the world is set on “persecuting” their beliefs so they will remain fearful of the outside world & kids will continue to die from treatable illnesses.

I’ll find somewhere else to ask questions though. I don’t even truly now if this is a safe site. I just took a risk & gave an opinion & asked questions.

I think that in general I do agree with the original poster, only questioning the added dramatic presentation, & the subsequent response from someone who didn’t make sense calling people stupid for being concerned about kids dying.

by InTheOC on 2008-04-02 17:04:33

Login or register to post a comment.