In 2009, 17 year old Zachery Swezey, a popular student and athlete at Pateros High School, began suffering from severe stomach pains, vomiting and diarrhea. Over the course of three days he could not get to the bathroom on his own and could not control his bowel. Zachery’s parents called in church elders to pray for him. His fever was so high that he went without clothing and soaked the sheets with sweat. At the end he was delirious. His hands turned blue. His breathing slowed, and he died.
The cause of death? A ruptured appendix.
Zachery’s parents are members of the Church of the Firstborn. Believing in faith healing, when Zachery became ill, they did not call a doctor or take him to the hospital, but instead called faith healers. Faith healing is the belief that through prayer, physical ailments will be healed.
There are hundreds of cases in Oregon and Idaho of children of members of the Church of the First Born dying of preventable causes. From Garrett Eells, a 6-day-old baby who died of pneumonia, to 15 year-old Arrian Granden who died of food poisoning.
Freedom of religion is an important principal on which this country was founded. And adults are free to follow whatever medical or spiritual practices they choose. But when it comes to our children, there must be different rules. Children do not fully understand either the gravity of healthcare problems or the consequences of their decisions. And often times they have no say in the decisions made for them.
Currently, under Washington state law parents may not treat their children solely with faith healing or prayer while ignoring traditional medicine, unless they belong to the church of Christian Science.
Christian Science is the most well-known of faith healing religions. The church says, “It’s up to each person who practices Christian Science to choose the form of health care he or she wants. Many Christian Scientists decide to pray first about every challenge—including health issues.”
Here in Washington, we have not as many tragedies as Oregon and Idaho. But Sen. Mark Mullet, D-Issaquah, would like to prevent cases like the Zachery’s from happening again. Mullet has sponsored a bill, SB 6295, which will remove the exemption for Christian Science. Ten other states have already enacted similar laws. SB 6295 passed the Senate Human Services and Corrections Committee and will now move to the Senate floor for a vote.
All children deserve the chance to be healthy.