For me, one of the hardest questions in law is the United States v. Ballard situation: when make claims that would be fraudulent, but which they base on their religious views. In Ballard, for instance, a couple was prosecuted for fraud in connection with their claim to be faith healers. The Court said that such a prosecution would require an implicit holding that their religion was not true, and the Constitution forbids such things. (All in all, I think I agree with the dissenting opinion in that case, that at least to some degree, government has to hold some fact claims untrue, even if doing so conflicts with people’s religion. But the First Amendment problem also seems insurmountable.) So what do you do when a couple has a baby who gets sick, and the couple prays, but doesn’t call a doctor?
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