An anguished family whose two-year-old daughter died Saturday morning has called upon members of their church to help them attempt to bring her back to life. Little Olive Alayne Heiligenthal stopped breathing early Saturday morning. Her parents Andrew and Kalley Heiligenthal called 9-11 and medics tried reviving the little girl at her home and then at a hospital in Redding, California, where she was pronounced dead, The Record Searchlight reports.
So members of Bethel Church have been praying, playing music, and singing in the hopes of doing the impossible. Their efforts have taken Instagram by storm, with one post garnering more than a quarter of a million views in just six hours Tuesday.
In a statement Tuesday, Bethel Church noted Olive’s parents asked “friends, family, and others from the church gather to pray for a miracle of resurrection (the basis for which is modeled by Jesus in the New Testament of the Bible).”
“Bethel Church believes in the stories of healing and physical resurrection found in the Bible (Matthew 10:8), and that the miracles they portray are possible today,” the statement said.
The church has been in the spotlight recently after Kris Vallotton, a controversial pastor associated with the church, said those who oppose Trump’s impeachment will feel God’s wrath because He wants Trump to serve a second term. The idea of bringing someone back to life is not widely accepted by most Christians, notes Patrick Blewitt, dean of A.W. Tozer Theological Seminary at Simpson University in Redding. However, Bethel Church may be more likely to espouse this, he added.
“This fits more into Bethel Church and into what they’re teaching,” he said.
Prayer gatherings for a resurrection aren’t a common occurrence at the church, said church spokesman Adam Tesauro.
“There are references to resurrection in the Bible, and we believe that with God, nothing is impossible, even things like resurrection,” he said. “Although at Bethel, this is the first public gathering of prayer for resurrection that I have seen in the over ten years I’ve attended the church.”
Kalley Heiligenthal, a singer and songwriter for the church posted her beliefs on a GoFundMe page that has been set up for the family.
“We believe in a Jesus who died and conclusively defeated every grave, holding the keys to resurrection power. We need it for our little Olive Alayne, who stopped breathing yesterday and has been pronounced dead by doctors,” she wrote. “We are asking for bold, unified prayers from the global church to stand with us in belief that He will raise this little girl back to life. Her time here is not done, and it is our time to believe boldly, and with confidence wield what King Jesus paid for. It’s time for her to come to life.”
The family hopes to raise $100,000 through GoFundMe.
