Mother Who Baptized Children Without Consent Needs to Go to Jail

Once again, religion is at the center of controversy. Man’s worst invention yet again rears its ugly face, head and entire body… TGO

Refer to story below. Source: Yahoo

By L. Vincent Poupard | Yahoo! Contributor Network

COMMENTARY | A mother in Tennessee faces contempt-of-court charges and potential jail time for baptizing her two children without notifying or gaining the consent of her ex-husband, according to the Associated Press. In doing so, she violated a court order stating all religious decisions about the children’s upbringing are to be made between the mother and father. The mother should go to jail as an example for other people.

Lauren Jarrell, the mother, is Presbyterian while Emmett Blake Jarrell, the father, is a member of the United Methodist Church. Court documents show the father as believing the children should be baptized when they are old enough to decide on their own. Many religious leaders are likely to side with the mother and saying she should not go to jail over the baptisms of the children who are 5 and 7. Some legal experts believe the court cannot get involved in this type of religious issue, but I see religion as being a tertiary and a minuscule aspect of this case when weighed against the defiance of a court order.

The primary issue is how Lauren Jarrell defied a court order. The Tennessee Court of Appeals has sided with the father and believes she should face criminal charges for defying the order. We could say the secondary issue is how she defied a legal agreement with her ex-husband about the upbringing of the children. The tertiary issue is the religious aspects of the case.

The true bearing of this case is how Lauren Jarrell willingly defied a court order and did not give the ex-husband notification of her actions and did not gain his approval. The impact of this case comes down to the children gaining a mixed understanding of religion and the law.

If their mother does not pay for her crime against the court, the children might believe religious belief can be used as an excuse for breaking the law. The children might believe religion supersedes the courts. This is not true in the U.S. where people are prosecuted for committing crimes even if those crimes are driven by religious beliefs. If the mother does not go to jail we will be looking at a dangerous legal precedence to allow people do get off for crimes they can prove are religiously based.