I was browsing through some hometown news (Liverpool, NY) and I came across an article where a mother is suing the school district because it won't let her daughter go to school unless she gets immunizations, and that goes against their belief system. The best part of the article was this: "A physician for the school district told district officials that a child who was not immunized would pose a "serious health threat" not only to that child, but to the immunized students and staff at the school." Which absolutely BEGS me to ask WHAT THE HELL ARE THE IMMUNIZATIONS FOR THEN IF THEY DON'T WORK??? Seems to me that's the question that NOBODY is willing to look at - but then, questioning one's unconscious belief system can be a traumatic thing. And then there's this part: '"It is the district's opinion that your belief is based on science and/or philosophy, and not on religion," Cataldo wrote in a letter to Turner."' So, if you have your OWN belief system and relationship with god that no one else shares, it's not a 'religion'? Interesting. (Personally, I'm relieved. *grin*) And here: 'Cataldo said that, similar to another case against a Watertown-area school district, "the Congregation of Universal Wisdom is formed by a chiropractor, requires no real training for its ministers, its members do not have regular contact with the leaders, and there is no indication that it provides religious services for its members."' (The family uses chiropractic healing and laying on of hands for healing.) And finally: "In August 1999, Liverpool Superintendent John Cataldo told Turner that although she demonstrated she was sincere in her beliefs, they were not part of a legitimate religion." Legitimate? So religion isn't about belief, it's about organizations and meetings? LOL. This seems absolutely absurd to me - I doubt these people have given a serious thought to what "religion" really means to them ever in their whole lives. *grin* What if you have SPIRITUAL beliefs but aren't RELIGIOUS? What if your religion professes that each person is their own leader? (On the other hand, I have a friend in NY who was able to become an official minister - she's a channeler, doesn't have a congregation, and only needed to express that she had 'leadership' within her 'group'.) Overall, this article is probably the best argument for home-schooling I've seen yet. *grin*
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