Because BIG GOVERNMENT won't let them!

Some good news! The Idaho legislature is actually considering changing its stupid law exempting "faith healing" from child neglect and abuse statutes, and while the Lege isn't currently in session, a panel of lawmakers is holding hearings on how the law might be altered in next year's session. Oh, but then there's the bad news: Members of the weirdo Christian sect the "Followers of Christ" told the panel last week they will ignore any changes to the law and continue to use only faith healing on their sick kids, even if the kids die and the parents face manslaughter charges, because Jesus is really a dick when it comes to simple antibiotics. This is technically true, of course -- no penicillin in the Bible, now is there?

Dan Sevy, a member of the Followers of Christ, told the panel he believed in freedom: the freedom to keep your kids healthy, and the freedom to let 'em die if that's what God wants. And apparently God wants it a whole bunch; a panel appointed by Idaho Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter found that God has taken 10 children of Followers in the last three years. Still, it's all about Religious Liberty, said Sevy:

“I want to point out that we believe in freedom of health care. Not free health care, but freedom of choice in health care.”

Sevy [...] cited concerns about deaths from medical error. “The medical profession, I understand, they want to help,” he said. “Their intentions are good. But our intentions are good. Life extends beyond this earth.”

“Suffering is real,” he said. “It’s real all over the world and it’s real right here and it’s real personally. And there’s no greater suffering than one that is personal to oneself, whether it be himself or his children, and I as a parent find the suffering of my children far greater than my own. … None of us wants to see anybody suffer. If you do, there’s something wrong with you.”

This didn't sit so well with state Sen. Jeff Siddoway, a Republican, who said that he thinks faith is of course wonderful, and he too is a person of faith, but also thinks that modern medicine is one of those nice things God gave us the ability to figure out, like airplanes and guns and cable porn (we are just speculating on those other examples, but he did say medicine is a gift from God). Sevy clearly found Siddoway's lack of faith disturbing:

“We believe that pharmaceuticals and medicine is a product from Satan. Proof can be found in one of the lost books of Enoch.” He said he equates medicine to “witchcraft and sorcery,” and said, “Those who imbibe in those things will not attain a home in heaven. That is our belief. We use it to condemn no one but ourselves. Like I said, we respect your choice and your belief, and hope the very best for you . … We do disagree with medicine and believe that it puts our very eternal lives in jeopardy.”

Oh, those lost books of Enoch! If they're lost, how do the Followers know what's in 'em, huh?

Sevy also explained that the mere Earthly timeframe and agenda of the state legislature didn't mean doodoo to him, because his eyes are watching God, who likes to let kids die from treatable minor ailments that turn into deadly infections with time:

“Our goal is eternity, it isn’t here,” Sevy said. “Our goal is not suffering. … If the statute is changed, I’ll not change anything I do.”

Sen. Dan Johnson -- also a Republican -- tried to see if Sevy was willing to budge any, which doesn't seem all that likely given that only three of Sevy's five children survived into adulthood, the Lord be praised:

“Somehow we need to work together on this [...] How will you balance your interest against the state’s interest?”

Sevy responded: “We both want to protect the child, so we have no conflict on that point. It appears that conflict (centers) on the definition of neglect. … If you were to institute state-licensed medical care as the only form of treatment, all else is by definition neglect, then that is unacceptable.”

Sevy explained again that it's really all just a matter of perspective, since Followers of Christ believe life "extends beyond this earth, and when it’s all over we believe that all this will have been a blink of an eye and what was all the fuss.” So honestly, a couple of dead kids here or there, that's merely foolishness for atheists and state legislatures who think children's lives on this unimportant earthly plane needs to be protected.

A former member of the Followers, Linda Martin, has been pushing the legislature to remove the exemption since 2013, and testified, “A child should not have to drown in their own fluids while people are praying over them.” Clearly not taking the long perspective there.

The Idaho Statesman posted some video excerpts of the study group's hearings; we were especially impressed by Mr. Sevy's Sovereign-Citizen-ish argument at the end, where he says he's got dual citizenship in the State of Idaho and the Kingdom of God, and the latter is clearly the only law he considers valid:

And perhaps once Idaho catches up with Oregon and gets rid of its stupid exemption for faith healing, Followers of Christ who kill their kids by withholding simple medical treatment can comfort themselves -- while serving out their prison terms for manslaughter -- that however many years they're in the big house will be naught but the blink of an eye in the Lord's time. They'll even be reunited in Heaven with their other kids who are placed in foster homes, given real medical treatment, and have the chance to grow up. God will probably forgive the babies for that.

[Idaho Statesman and Spokane Spokesman Review via RawStory]