But at the end of the day its still a personal decision. I have known witnesses that took transfusions when push came to shove and there were zero repercussions within the congregation. How many people die from other equally trivial decisions? Can you imagine that some people still refuse to wear seat belts despite all the evidence proving that the risk of fatality and serious injury is dramatically reduced by wearing one? How many children die from head injuries incurred while riding bikes? And yet when I was a kid I never saw one single kid wearing a helmet.
Hi James, with reference to your post above, I cannot believe that you are so naive having once associated with jehovah's Witnesses. The fact is that taking blood for witnesses is not a "personal" decision. Where did you get that from? It is hammered into the minds and hearts of Jehovah's Witnesses that God will be pleased with them for refusing a transfusion, that death now from rejecting blood will mean live later on in a paradise earth. If there were no repercussions, do you think that so many people would willingly die, gladly give up their lives because they are taught that they will later live in a paradise earth.
When people fail to put on their seat belts they don't believe that they are pleasing God by not doing so. They don't think that if they die they will one day live in a paradise earth. My brother is a District Overseer and the statistics are in, although not widely published. The rate of pedophiles in the organization is FOUR (4) times the rate it is in other small religions, comparatively speaking. One reason is that the organization failed to report these people because they did not want to "disparage Jehovah's name".
I don't know what congregation you went to, but if you are saying that there are no repercussions from taking blood transfusions, you are just plain wrong. It really makes me upset that you would say such a thing. No repercussions, are you kidding! You take a blood transfusion and you are disfellowshipped. Since 2000, you have effectively disfellowshipped yourself if you take a transfusion. Before that time, you were hauled into a judicial committee to be disfellowshipped.
There are many good people who are Jehovah's Witnesses, but you can never know for sure because the witnesses are programmed, taught and legislated to act like good people. You can never be sure what part comes from programming and what part is natural. There are studies and books that tell them how to act, how to greet their brothers, how to greet strangers in the Kingdom Hall, how to help one another, etc, etc.
I think you really need to do further research into the witnesses, because for all your condemnation of this board, I can say that you really don't know what you are talking about and I mean that in the nicest way.
