How are Religious Freedoms & Health Rights related?

I hope you had a great holiday and enjoyed time with family and friends. Hopefully you are extending your holiday time through New Years Eve, and if not, can stay in the festive spirit.

Speaking of “Spirit”, I’d again like to have you discuss and share this important newsletter with your family members and friends over the holidays. No matter your religion, I’d like to bring some things to your attention that could change our Religious and Health rights in the future. The issue of people freely giving up their rights because they don’t know what rights they hold, is about to change your reality and the culture of this nation - particularly for our children!

Without knowledge and conviction, our government has the power to overreach. This year of 2020 has been an interesting example. Over the past year, Americans have seen many of their rights, including their Religious rights, minimized and taken away. Do you remember not being able to attend church this year? Well, there have been other things happening “under the radar” that has not been publicized in the media, that you are probably not aware of. I will address these further later in this newsletter; but first let’s review some points about Religious freedom and Government.

As a government erodes Religious freedom, they increasingly become our higher authority, dictating our most personal and private behavior. Freedom of religion is a desperately needed counterbalance to overreaching government and expanding corporate power. If we don’t affirm religious freedom and assert our right to choose our higher authority and deepest held beliefs, our most powerful institutions will continue to insert themselves where they do not belong. They will invalidate our doctors and challenge your healthcare rights. They will tell us what to believe. And, if we don’t agree, they will do an end-run around us and try to push their beliefs on our children.

What exactly are your Religious rights and how are they protected under the Constitution? 

Religious Freedom Facts:

  • Very simply, religious freedom is the right of Americans to decide what or whom their—choose the word that’s most fitting—moral, ethical, or higher authority is. It enables citizens to act freely in accordance with their convictions.

  • Citizens’ religious rights are protected under the US constitution and their state constitution.

  • There are only two requirements for a religious belief to be protected by law: the belief must be religious in nature and it must be sincerely held.

  • For something to be religious in nature, it must be a matter in question that can’t be answered exclusively with intellect or in a textbook. The matter requires inspiration from a higher power. For example, deciding to become vegan because eating meat violates a deeply held belief that animals shouldn’t be killed for consumption or pleasure is considered religious in nature. However, adopting a vegan lifestyle because you think it will lead to better health is not.

  • It is an individual’s religious beliefs that are safeguarded under law, not the beliefs of an organization. An organized religion like Christianity, Judaism, or Islam doesn’t have the authority to invalidate an adherent’s religious beliefs—even if those beliefs diverge from orthodoxy.

  • One does not have to belong to or be affiliated with an organized religion in order to have his or her religious rights protected under law.

  • The media often looks to religious leaders to take a stand on certain matters (e.g., whether the religion endorses or prohibits vaccines). However, as stated previously, religious leaders cannot legitimize or delegitimize the beliefs of adherents. That is outside of the scope of their authority.

  • Sincerely held religious beliefs are private, genuine, and constitutionally protected. Lawmakers are not adept at evaluating the content of religious beliefs and thus must be deferential to religious claims.

  • Civil rights are designed to protect people’s freedoms from being infringed upon by government. They cover citizens’ participation in society and guarantee equal opportunities and equal protection for all. They include the assurance of life and safety; privacy; and freedom of religion, thought, speech, and press. Unlike human or natural rights, civil rights are granted and guaranteed

    by the state. When these rights are transgressed, a civil rights movement may emerge.

I don’t mean to scare you, but in 2019, legislators in Maine and New York abolished the state’s religious exemption to mandatory vaccinations. Lawmakers in six other states — Florida, Iowa, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Vermont—are attempting to do the same, while several others are trying to restrict religious and medical exemptions by making them more cumbersome for families to obtain.

At the same time, parental rights are slowly eroding. Nine states currently permit minors to be vaccinated without parental consent, and numerous states are trying to enact laws that allow “mature minors” to make their own healthcare decisions without notifying their parents.

Right now in NJ, there are only (3) ways to request a Healthcare exemption; for a philosophical reason, religious belief or a medical doctor recommendation.

In NJ, the Senate has a Healthcare Bill on the floor that they deceitfully postponed voting on in January 2020, because they were (1) vote short to pass it. They have stated that they will call it back to the floor when they can make sure that the ONE vote they need to pass the bill has been guaranteed due to an opposing Senator being sick or indisposed. This bill will in effect take away any Religious exemption for your Healthcare decisions in NJ. I’m not saying it’s right or wrong to get vaccinated; but the decision should be up to each person as to whether it is right for them or their child.

There are children that have had severe reactions to vaccines, causing terrible seizures, paralysis and autism. No one is quite sure why some children have such violent reactions; but once you witness this horrific situation, you can understand why a parent would request an exemption. The problem is, that a doctor can not write a medical exemption until a child has experienced a seizure after (3) consecutive vaccinations. That’s right, a child must experience seizures after (3) consecutive vaccinations, before a doctor can legally prescribe a Medical exemption! This means that if little Joey gets his (3) month vaccines and has a seizure, then his (6) month vaccinations with resulting seizures again, that the child’s doctor and parents must give little Joey his (9) month vaccines and pray that the child doesn’t have another seizure, fall down and become paralyzed. What do you think the chances are that little Joey is not going to have a third set of seizures after his (9) month vaccines? I’d say with the child’s history, very little chance! It’s obvious that little Joey’s body has major issues with vaccinations, with BIG repercussions!

I have witnessed passionate doctors grant Medical exemptions to children with severe reactions such a little Joey, and many have had their licenses revoked. These doctors were just trying to protect their patients! I’m here to tell you, that I will NOT put my license on the line; and that the time is coming that each and every one of you will need to stand up for your Religious and Healthcare rights as an American citizen.

Did you know that the New England Journal of Medicine just released a statement stating that even after receiving the Covid vaccine, they recommend that the public continue mandatory stay at home orders, wearing masks (indoors and outdoors), and continue social distancing? That’s right, the nightmare still won’t be over, even IF you decide to get one of the new Covid vaccines! You will still be unable to have family get-togethers, see your friends, and return to a normal life; even after the majority of everyone has been vaccinated.

Americans have lost sight of the fact that citizens are not supposed to be beholden to government; the government’s role is to serve and represent the people. Yet tens of thousands of Americans from coast to coast are currently fighting to safeguard their basic human rights and constitutional rights. If they don’t assert these rights, our most powerful institutions will continue to insert themselves where they do not belong. They will continue to strip citizens of our ability to Worship as we choose, make our own Healthcare decisions, and raise our children as we see fit.

In essence, by giving the state too much power— and allowing it to continually erode our rights— we are permitting the government to play God, doctor, and parent.

I hope you will share this information with your loved ones so that you can have a group conversation about your feelings concerning your Religious, Medical and Parental rights as an American.

Please have a blessed week, and know that I care deeply about you and your family!!!!!

Dr Derek Ferguson