It was "socially unacceptable" to have an organ transplant.
Anyone who did would be viewed at best as spiritually weak, and worse, would be DF for going against "the bibles direction" (=GB current teachings)
Calling All Who Were JWs Between 1967 and 1980
by -Crossroads- 29 Replies latest jw friends
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OrphanCrow
I was around in the 60s. Like everyone else, I remember transplants as being a big no-no. I am unclear as to the actual punishment that would have been administered by the WTS, but it was made very clear that accepting a transplant would result in the biggest punishment of all - NO Paradise for offenders. If you accepted a transplant, you wouldn't get to pet the lions.
I remember the Awake article that claimed that a transplant recipient would take on the personality of the donor - if a person got the heart of a murderer, for example, they would become a murderer as well. Where this misguided notion came from is anyone's guess...but it was the subject of research done by someone who is a prominent Jehovah's Witness - Lorenz Reibling - when he was studying in Germany back in the 60s.
https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/exjwsupport/conversations/topics/2717
In 1966, Lorenz completed an apprenticeship as Industriekaufmann at
Obpacher AG, a Weyerhauser-affiliated, Munich-based printing and
publishing plant. Lorenz subsequently graduated from Munchen-Kolleg and
attended Technische Universitat and Ludwigs-Maximilians Universitat,
earning degrees in Cybernetics and Psychology. His early research on
personality changes in heart transplant patients was conducted at
University Hospital Munich Grosshadern. After immigration to America he
received a MS from Boston College in Organizational Management with focus
on maximizing intellectual capital. He has attended and completed
specialized courses at MIT and Harvard on real estate related subjects.
Mr. Reibling's early career included employment with multinational
corporations such as Hoechst (Cassella Riedl), American Hospital Supply
Corporation, and CPI Cardiac Pacemakers, Inc. specializing in
sophisticated cardiac stimulation appliances. -
DesirousOfChange
"To show disrespect for the sanctity of human life would make one liable to have his own life taken."
That would mean that one who accepted an organ transplant could be DFd. I never heard of it happening -- that is, of any JW accepting an organ transplant. Transplants were a brand new medical procedure and thus not a common treatment, and the comparison to cannibalism would have made it something obscene to a JW. (And yes, they clearly stated that recipients would take on the personality of the donor, after all, the Bible/WT refers to the heart as the "seat of emotion". I don't recall if the Bible or the WT actually uses that phrase, but to a JW it makes no difference.)
Another example of such a flip-flop would be interracial marriage. Absolutely an abhorrent concept in the '50s and 60's, from my recollection. And as recently as 10 yeas ago, I recall a very old JW woman stating that the Bible meaning they should marry within their own "kind". (Obviously someone still living in the 20th century?)
Both are good examples of WT being late to adopt public opinion on new ideas within the general community. Obviously, there was no Holy Spirit directing the way, they just finally got to a point that they looked foolish clinging to their unscriptural, and unpopular doctrine.
Could they ever make the flip-flop on homosexuality. Since there are actual scriptures to apply (with less twisting required), it doesn't seem likely, but popular opinion can and does have a great influence on their (New) Light Bulb. I really believe they would seriously consider what changes could be allowed if discrimination against sexual orientation became a crime and they were at risk of fines or loss of tax exempt status.
Doc
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NVR2L8
I was raised as a JW and in my 60 plus years I personally know of only one JW who had an organ transplant. So during the early days of this medical procedure it would have been very rare for a JW to be confronted to this situation. By the time organ transplants became accessible to most the WT made it a conscience matter. Still the WT's early view of organ transplant as cannibalism was absolutely ridiculous and sadly they still hold this position when it comes to blood transfusions and I have witnessed many turning down medical treatment that could have saved their life for alternative treatments that often failed to cure them. Since transplants were associated to blood transfusions an unrepentant sinner would be excommunicated, which would have been every case since an organ transplant would have been planned well ahead unlike a blood transfusion received in an emergency situation.
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stan livedeath
so--whats the rule now ? i remember my jw dad saying--years ago--it was considered cannibalism.
on my dads side--lots of the family have died through heart problems ( non of them dubs )--although dad lived to 94--he passed this january.
one of my cousins had a heart and lung transplant a few years ago--hes doing well now ( never a dub ). it was a Papworth Hospital UK job.
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DesirousOfChange
so--whats the rule now ? i remember my jw dad saying--years ago--it was considered cannibalism
Now, WTS/GB (via the direction of God's Holy Spirit) says that organ transplants are a "matter of individual conscience". I know of two JWs who have received kidney transplants. Aren't they so lucky that the HS saw New Light about cannibalism! (Should we be concerned about a JW that wants to have us over for lunch?)
Doc
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Finkelstein
If I remember correctly it was in the" Kingdom Ministry" that stated organ transplants were likened to cannibalism and seeing the donated organ was still functioning it would have the donors blood within it .Yes this was true and presented that way and it is also true that the WTS, once said that receiving blood from another person that the receiver would consume the ill personality characteristics of the blood donor.
Crazed stupidity by the delusional psychopaths running the WTS.
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Bugbear
I do remember a speech in 1974 when a brother tried to explain hearth transplantation and their consequences. In the Bible it is explained that your heart is your inner soul together with the blood.
And when it was obvious that a man could live with another man’s organ and blood, a lot of confusion was rocking the Soc. The speech was utterly so confusing that I saw a lot of attendance’s “smiled”. Nothing was really explained.
At that time many members of the cong. also said that vaccinations where absolutely forbidden. Now that is something I haven´t been able to trace in written. But it really shows that many religious societies, with their antique visions of “life”, do not understand science and reality reasons.
Bugbear
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BluesBrother
Until The Society said that it was a personal decision, and not cannibalism, nobody would have accepted a transplant. It seemed to make sense since blood was forbidden. We believed that a blood transfusion would be required to do a transplant, anyway. I always assumed that in those days it would have been grounds for d/f ing .
Today, the older ones that i know well say that they would never accept a transplant ,or offer to donate body parts. It has a "Yuk!" feeling for them
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blondie
Watchtower 1980 March 15 p.31 Questions from Readers
Questions from Readers
• Should congregation action be taken if a baptized Christian accepts a human organ transplant, such as of a cornea or a kidney?
Regarding the transplantation of human tissue or bone from one human to another, this is a matter for conscientious decision by each one of Jehovah's Witnesses.
[…]
Clearly, personal views and conscientious feelings vary on this issue of transplantation. It is well known that the use of human materials for human consumption varies all the way from minor items, such as hormones and corneas, to major organs, such as kidneys and hearts. While the Bible specifically forbids consuming blood, there is no Biblical command pointedly forbidding the taking in of other human tissue. For this reason, each individual faced with making a decision on this matter should carefully and prayerfully weigh matters and then decide conscientiously what he or she could or could not do before God. It is a matter for personal decision. (Gal. 6:5) The congregation judicial committee would not take disciplinary action if someone accepted an organ transplant.
(The sentence bolded above indicates that before 1980 that the congregation judicial committee would take disciplinary action if someone accepted an organ transplant. So from 1967 to 1980 it was a judicial matter. I know of 2 jws that were df'd)