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Church members may have urged epileptic not to use medicineBOOTH WYN Pa. (UPI) -Members of the First Baptist Church of Concord ville. alleged to be run like a cult, urged an epileptic who died following a seizure not to use her medication, according to the woman's stepfather.Kimberly Hughes. 20. a member or the church was found dead Wednesday in the home of the Rev. Eric Ahlquist in nearby Boothwyn. Delaware County.Dr. Dimitri Contostavlos. assistant Philadelphia medical examiner, said the probable causeof death was suffocation during an epileptic seizure.According to allegations, the head of the church, the Rev. Frederick A. Drummond. 32. places strict demands on his congregation.William Roscoe of West Chester, said his stepdaughter joined the congregation last summer and was told that she did not have to take her medicine. -She was an Rh-negative child who suffered from brain damage that resulted in epileptic seizures that were kept under control bymescaline and Dilantin.He said that soon after she joined the church she went into a seizure, and as she was lying on the floor we had to put the phone to her ear and have someone from the church tell her it was all right for her to take the medication for now.The Rev. Ahlquist. a Baptist missionary who is not a member of the church, disputed Roscoe *s assertions.We took her in knowing she had this problem and we insisted she stay on her medicine.” he said. She had her prescription refilled three weeks ago and as far as I know took it faithfully.Protests against the church erupted last month when Drummond fired four ministers who claim they confronted him with proof that he engaged in sexual relations with male and female students” at the church's school, the Pennsylvania Baptist Bible School.The church conducts classes from kindergarten through high school.Former associates and followers of Drummond have said that the church resembles a commune and that he lives luxuriously, while members turn over to him all that they have, including life insurance policies.The former ministers have said that Drummond warned his congregation to be prepared for an armed invasion of the church and to be ready to give up their lives in its defense.
Newspaper Details
Doylestown Intelligencer
Doylestown, Pennsylvania, US
Fri, Feb 09, 1979
Page 8
Full Page
Clipped by
Kaeli B.
NA, 10 Mar 2025
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