Letter from society on donating blood

by TheStar 16 Replies latest watchtower medical

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  Lee Elder

  My favorite line is this letter is paragraph two, line one:

  "The scriptures clearly show that it would be wrong for a dedicated Christian to donate whole blood for use by someone else either in a transfusion of whole blood or in a transfusion of any of its four primary components."

  I wish someone, anyone in the Watchtower Society, would tell us where in fact the "scriptures clearly show" that a transfusion of red cells, white cells, platelets or plasma is forbidden?

  Moreover, where a transfusion of hemoglobin, albumin, clotting factors or serum is permitted.

  After all, in their words, "the scriptures clearly show..."

  OK - let's see it.
• 

  Joyzabel

  rotflmao @ Lee Elder's statement. Good point! <<<wtbts
• 

  BluesBrother

  A couple of thoughts:

  "The use of blood fractions is neither sanctioned or discouraged" - of course they are sanctioned!..when talking with my family I tried to get them to give a conscience viewpoint on that . All they say is they would follow what is on the Blood Card, because they dont understand it anyway.

  "Blood from many donors would be needed" They acknowlege the great debt J W 's owe to the many donors who are doing something that they will never do , so J Ws can benefit from their fractions

  How are you going to "Make sure that the remaining bulk of the blood is discarded". In the UK it is all through the National Blood Transfusion Service and donated at community places. Are you going to ask to be able to take home the rest of your blood so you can pour it out in the garden??.

  I think not.
• 

  Pistoff

  I am a new poster; I am (so far) still a witness who attends, has two DF'd adult sons, one underage son who is not and WILL not be baptized till he is of LEGAL age, since baptism (in our God forsaken little group)is little more than a social contract wherein we agree to be bound by the directives of a "spirit-directed organization".
  The cute language used in this letter is nothing new; they insinuate they just learned that gallons of blood are used to make a tiny fraction. Wow, did that tidbit from the 1940s just make it's way into Bethel?
  I just looked into the ways of this group i have spent 30+ years in; the sex abuse scandal started it, then I found the UN hypocrisy, now the unbelievable blood debacle. Until two weeks ago I thought no one was DF'd for taking blood; I have read of cases where they refused it, were forced to take it and were put out because they did not resist hard enough!!
  Help! I am drowning here......
• 

  faithfulJW

  The Mosaic Law is still used because while the new testament and the coming of Jesus revised it somewhat, it did not go all out and cancel it. After all was it not the old testament Jesus referred to in his teachings. He did not discard it so why should we. And one must keep in mind that one of the aims of JWs is to try to follow in Jesus' lead as much as possible. It can't be done but even a failed attempt is better than none.

  And if one looks closely, besides some things like the law on Gentiles and the eating of unclean things, what the new testament actually did is make it easier to follow the old testament. And was that not Jesus' reason for coming to earth? To ransom and if you prefer, redeem us? To make it possible and easier for us to aspire to that place in the Kingdom of God.
• 

  Dacke

  ...i've got tears in my eyes.

  It's a GREAT letter. Very cautious and caring! I love it. You're blind not to see that!
• 

  Gerard

  "The Scriptures clearly show that it would be wrong for a dedicated Christian to donate whole blood for use by someone else either in a transfusion of whole blood or or in a transfusion of any of its four primary components (Acts 15:20)."

  I call their bluff!

  Acts 15:20 But that we

  write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols , and [from] fornication , and [from] things strangled , and [from] blood .

  Clearly

  show nothing of the sort!

  Back then they had no idea blood transfusions were possible. They were unaware of its basic components and that they could be used lovingly to save lives.

  How about Leviticus 4:7 "And the priest shall put of the blood upon the horns of the altar of sweet incense before Jehovah , which is in the tent of meeting; and all the blood of the bullock shall he pour out at the base of the altar of burnt -offering, which is at the door of the tent of meeting."

  Aint that offering kind of dark and pagan? If not, why is it that the WT does not make blood offerings to Jehovah?

  The WT has distorted the Scriptures in a way that that such practice and subsequent deaths glorifies their man-made organization.

  Gerry