New Light On Blood???

by jschwehm 17 Replies latest watchtower medical

  • sf
    sf

    Oh boy. You know, I haven't read crap like this in years. I mean, the title alone cracks me up, yet it is not funny:

    http://www.watchtower.org/library/g/2003/12/8/article_01.htm

    I Accepted
    God's "Watchtower God=Governing Body"View of Blood

    A PHYSICIAN TELLS
    HIS STORY

    Accepting God's View of Blood

    I soon learned that the Bible tells Christians to 'abstain from blood.' ( Acts 15:28, 29 ; Genesis 9:4 ) Since I already had doubts about the effectiveness of blood transfusions, I had no difficulty accepting God's view of blood. % I thought, 'If there is a Creator and that is what he says, then it must be right.'

    I also learned that the cause of sickness and death is Adamic sin. ( Romans 5:12 ) At the time, I was carrying out a study on arteriosclerosis. As we get older, our arteries harden and narrow, causing such illnesses as heart disease, cerebrovascular disorders, and kidney disease. It made sense that the cause is our inherited imperfection. After that, my zeal for medicine began to wane. Only Jehovah God can do away with sickness and death!

    In March 1976, seven months after beginning my Bible study, I quit my studies at the university hospital. I feared that I would never be able to work as a physician again, but I found work at another hospital. I got baptized in May 1976. I decided that the best way for me to use my life would be to serve as a full-time evangelizer, or pioneer, which I began to do in July 1977.

    Defending God's View of Blood

    In November 1979, Masuko and I moved to a congregation in Chiba Prefecture where there was a great need for preachers. I found a hospital where I could work part-time. On my first day of work, a group of surgeons surrounded me. They persistently asked me, "As one of Jehovah's Witnesses, what will you do if a patient who needs a blood transfusion is brought in?"

    I respectfully explained that I would follow what God says about blood. I explained that there were alternatives to blood transfusion and that I would do the best I could to help my patients. After about an hour's discussion, the chief of surgery answered, "I understand. But if a patient with massive blood loss is brought in, we will handle the situation." The chief of surgery was known as a difficult person, but after that discussion we developed a good relationship, and he always respected my beliefs.

    Respect for Blood Put to the Test

    While we were serving in Chiba, a new headquarters for Jehovah's Witnesses in Japan was under construction in Ebina. My wife and I drove there once a week to care for the health of the Witness volunteers building this facility, called Bethel. After a few months, we received an invitation to serve at Ebina Bethel full-time. Thus, in March 1981 we began living in the temporary buildings used to house over 500 volunteer workers. In the morning, I helped clean the construction site bath and toilets, and in the afternoon I did medical checkups.

    ______________________________

    {{ shakes head in utter amazement }}

    sKally

  • M.J.
    M.J.
    You can now use it, but DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL. That seems to be the unwritten rule, the one that's unknown by the rank and file.

    I'll bet. I can imagine they are probably quite scared nowdays at the prospect of someone disassociated for preserving their own life campaigning against them.

  • M.J.
    M.J.

    come to think of it, are there any people out there who were disassociated/disfellowshipped for taking blood and have gone public?

  • jgnat
    jgnat

    Lawrence Hughes was disfellowshipped and immediately estranged from his wife and children when he, on good conscience, changed his stance on blood.

    http://www.watchtowerinformationservice.org/bethany.htm

    That was in 2002.

  • joanne_
    joanne_

    I asked two sisters at the door about this very same thing. They said it is a conscience matter and jehovah is the judge...etc. So I said, well if I came back to the organization, I could not lie to my brothers and sisters and say that I would not accept blood, when I know in my heart I would take it if I needed it. They said well, just dont go around telling everyone your views...in other words, keep it to yourself. I asked them point blank, is the person disfellowshipped?...No they said. Then I asked, Is the person considered 'disasociated from the organization if they take blood?....The look on their faces was amazing, they were shocked, apparently they have never heard of such a thing....So bottom line, if you want to stay in, you have to lie to everyone, including people in the field service, that you will not take blood, and if you do take it, you have to say you were weak and jehovah will forgive you!...I told them no, I am not a liar, I do not lie to people and for that reason I cannot come back to the organization.

  • ezra
    ezra

    there is no way that jehovahs witnesses would ever condone the use of blood.the person that you are referring to probably wasnt listening,the brother probably meant the blood fractions in certain forms or the reuse of your own blood by having recovery done in surgery.now of all the things someone would say about us how could you ever even make an apostate even believe you they even know better than that.thats like saying the same things about holidays.now a post like that isnt for informational purposes its just a lie.

  • mrsjones5
    mrsjones5

    whatever ezra

  • Gill
    Gill

    Ezra - You're such a Moose sometimes! If you're using bits of blood, then you're using blood. So JWS DO allow the use of blood, just in bits, not the whole lot at the same time. Also, if you're using intracorporeal blood salvage, you're using blood to save your life. Just because it's not hit the floor and a bag yet and is sitting in the body cavity, doesn't make it any different. The blood is NO LONGER IN CIRCULATION. JWs use blood. Since JWs also EAT blood, just like anyone else who eats meat, this helps us to understand that the 'not using blood' of the bible commands is a symbolic activity.

    We've all been JWs and we know the ropes. After being a JW for nearly forty years, I knew the rules - NO BLOOD - it's a disfellowshiping and now disassociating offence. (Just make sure you don't tell anyone who you're trying to convert).

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