Sunday, March 30, 2008

A Moral Dilemma

Tonight, Ty and I were watching Glenn Beck on CNN and he ran a story that just puts my mind on a twisty roller coaster. It seems an 11 year old child in Wisconsin died recently due to untreated diabetes. Her parents' religious beliefs caused them to not seek medical attention, but to turn to God in prayer. "If it be God's will..." Now the family has had the other children removed by the State and is facing charges of neglect and abuse.
Here is my quandary. What is the "right" decision in this situation? The mother in me is screaming, "Charge them!!! Send them to jail forever! What kind of parent could sit and watch their child suffer in so much pain and do nothing to help her? It's barbaric." Then there is another voice in my head that says, "What right does the State have to dictate what I am allowed to believe? America is awesome because it affords us the right to believe any way we wish and also to act on those beliefs. Her parents didn't do 'nothing,' they petitioned the Lord to intervene and heal their baby and if that wasn't His will, they were willing to 'give' her back to Him. Where do we draw the line when it comes to the government's involvement in our lives, and how can we draw a hard line when there are so many shades of grey?"
There are so many aspects to this situation. Literally, my brain has been arguing with itself since I heard the story. Parents have the right to raise their child in the way they see fit. To not seek medical attention for their little girl is abusive and cruel. Prayer is the most powerful tool we have here on this Earth and who is to say it is or isn't what He would have us do? God put people on this Earth who are committed to healing us and to whom God has given the minds to come up with treatments and cures for the illnesses of our existence. As a smart, articulate, loving mother, I have the right to decide what medical treatment is "right" for my family. I shouldn't have to immunize or medicate my child just because a medical professional says I should. What if a child refuses treatments that may or may not save/prolong their life? The debate goes on and on in my head even to remembering a woman I knew when I was pregnant with Tristan. She believed that we, as women, were given a divine purpose in the birthing of our children and that God did not want us to interfere with the child-birth process by taking any sort of pain relieving medication during labor and delivery. To do so would be an affront to the experience. My response was, God gave the inventor of the anesthesia the ability to create the miracle of epidurals for a reason and plus, you don't get bonus points for doing it natural! (Of course, then the epidural didn't work the way it was supposed to and it was a moot point - why did I have to marry a guy with such a HUGE head anyway!!!)
I just don't know how I feel about this whole thing. Not that it's any of my business to begin with! Personally, I would take my baby to the best doctor I could find. I do choose to immunize my children. I do medicate my ADHD son and take medications for my own ADD. But, what gives me the right to say that YOU have to do the same?

1 comment:

Rebecca said...

I totally agree with you. I don't know the answers and I have the same feelings. Well put and good for you for putting it out there.

And I'm sorry about all the hassle with your lipoma and insurance stuff. Rough and scary. I hope everything goes well.