JW Mom (Joyce Stewart) resists life-saving transfusion for little daughter

by Gopher 37 Replies latest watchtower medical

• 

  Gopher

  Here is the link to a sad story happening in Omaha, Nebraska, USA:

  http://www.theindependent.com/stories/090903/new_surgery09.shtml
  
  Hospital sues to force tot's surgery
  
  
  Publication Date: 09/09/03
  
  OMAHA (AP) -- Children's Hospital has sued a mother who has refused to allow doctors to perform heart surgery on her infant daughter. Joyce Stewart says her religion forbids blood transfusions necessary to perform the surgery, according to the lawsuit.

  Children's Hospital filed the lawsuit last week against Stewart, saying her 4-month-old daughter needs the surgery within 45 days to treat a congenital heart defect.

  
  Douglas County District Judge James Gleason planned to hear arguments Thursday on whether he should order the transfusions against the mother's wishes.

  
  The girl, who was only identified as Baby Girl Doe in the lawsuit, was born prematurely May 17 with the heart defect.

  
  Stewart requested that her daughter receive treatment from Dr. Kim Duncan and staff at Children's Hospital to correct the defect, according to the lawsuit.

  
  When doctors indicated that surgery was needed, Stewart refused for religious reasons to allow the girl to undergo a blood transfusion, the lawsuit says.

  
  Blood transfusions are "critical and necessary to preserve the life of the child during the surgical procedure" and after, Duncan said. The risks of surgery would be minimized by performing the operation within the next 45 days, according to the doctor.

  
  In the past 20 years, Douglas County judges have ruled on hospitals' behalf five times, ordering doctors to administer blood transfusions when a child's welfare is at stake.

  In several of those cases, the parents have objected because the use of blood is shunned by their religion.

  
  The parents often have been Jehovah's Witnesses, whose beliefs include abstaining from blood, including transfusions, based on a literal translation of the Bible.

  
  Calls to a home listing for Joyce Stewart in Omaha went unanswered Monday. Children's Hospital attorney James Quinlan declined to comment.

  
  On the Net:
  Children's Hospital: http://www.chsomaha.org/site/
• 

  tinkerbell82

  stupid, stupid, stupid woman!
• 

  nilfun

  Poor little baby.
• 

  calamityjane

  That's awful.

  My question is why would a loving God allow you to come so far as to give birth to a child (a gift from God supposedly) and then have to refuse medical treatment and watch it die. Thank's God for the gift but I'm not going to take care of it attitude. Sheesh

  Dubs are so blind and stupid.
• 

  sf

  The parents often have been Jehovah's Witnesses

  Interesting wording here. Seems to suggest some disfellowshipping has taken place at some time; maybe more than once, as the word 'often' WOULD indicate.

  , whose beliefs include abstaining from blood, including transfusions, based on a literal translation of the Bible.

  Sheer bs!! And the WTBTS knows this now!!! Why don't they just give up this jive talkin' and tell the truth about this 'LITTER-ALL' trans-configuration?

  I am getting sick of this cult more and more everyday. It's lies, fabrications, bullshit policies based on bullshit bible translations.

  S T O P- T H E- I N S A N I T Y- ALREADY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  In relation to this case, the case in Utah re: the boy 'needing' chemo has many similarities. And I keep reading how "concerned" the courts are about 'these' children who's parents religious beliefs dictate what health care that child receives...at the hands and minds of their parents...AND in the "name of God and their religion".

  So I ask this: If these courts are so concerned with this and they are seeing more and more cases of 'no blood policy' within jw familes...mostly children who have no choice, then why aren't the courts ABOLISHING LEGALLY, this insane "literal bible translation"? Why not go after the core of why they are even having to hear and decide these cases?

  KILL THE POLICY BY LAW!!!

  Those kids are very much a part of this world whether Watchtower wants them to 'be' or not.

  KILL THE POLICY BY LAW!!!

  sKally
• 

  outnfree

  From the link to the newspaper article there is a link to the hospital's home page.

  I just sent the hospital an e-mail advising them to go to www.ajwrb.org for pertinent information and suggested that if they shared this information with Baby Girl Doe's mother, quietly, kindly and PRIVATELY, that she might be persuaded to agree to the surgery.

  One can hope.

  outnfree
• 

  sf

  Good outnfree!

  I am still searching for the judges email addy, yet only have been able to locate his phone number.

  These are a number of them in the county, so I'm just going to send the mail to all I can. And I will leave a detailed phone 'message' with Judge Gleason's office.

  I plan on mailing news media and Childrens Hospital too.

  My goal? To get the world, that jws are supposedly no part of, to see (TRUE WITNESSING) the insanity and pain that this 'literal bible translation' dictates, by their insane parents, to INNOCENT CHILDREN of this particular 'sect'.

  sKally
• 

  simplesally

  Thank God there are people with brains at the hospital and the courts who are going to sue to save the baby. I wish then, that they place the baby with people who will care for the child in a medical way............... these people that are willing to sacrifice their child for a religion......ugh.
• 

  xjw_b12

  outnfree: Awesome idea. Let's hope she can be persuaded before it is too late.

  Is there any difference between the people of Israel sacrificing their children to Baal, and JW's sacrificing their children to the WTS ?

  Jeremiah 19 5 They have built the high places of Baal to burn their sons in the fire as offerings to Baal-something I did not command or mention, nor did it enter my mind.

  Do you think the command to "abstain from blood" was a command from God to sacrifice children to him? I doubt it "entered his mind"!
• 

  shotgun

  outnfree.... can you e-mail them this quote and get them to share it with the Mother...If god can forgive a member of the annointed for taking blood then he'll forgive her too.

  Most of the GB have probably had blood transfusions:

  *** w58 8/1 p. 478 Questions from Readers ***

  Questions from Readers

  • One of Jehovah’s witnesses who claims to be of the anointed remnant recently went to the hospital and took a blood transfusion, voluntarily. Should she be allowed to partake of the emblems of bread and wine at Memorial time?—R. J., United States.

  We, of course, regret with you that this sister who professes to be one of the anointed remnant took a blood transfusion voluntarily during her stay in the hospital. We believe that she did the wrong thing contrary to the will of God. However, congregations have never been instructed to disfellowship those who voluntarily take blood transfusions or approve them. We let the judgment of such violators of God’s law concerning the sacredness of blood remain with Jehovah, the Supreme Judge. The only thing that can be done in the cases of individuals like this is to view them as immature and therefore not capable of taking on certain responsibilities, hence refusing to make certain assignments of service to such ones.

  Since an individual is not disfellowshiped because of having voluntarily taken a blood transfusion or having approved of a dear one’s accepting a blood transfusion, you have no right to bar this sister from the celebration of the Lord’s Evening Meal. As an anointed member of Christ’s body she is under orders and command by Christ Jesus to partake. Whether she is unfaithful as to what she professes to be by virtue of taking the emblems of the Lord’s Evening Meal is something for Jehovah God to determine himself. His judgment begins at the house of God. It is not for you or anyone serving the Memorial emblems to act as the judge, but to allow the emblems to go to anyone in the audience as these are passed along in the normal manner of letting each one have the opportunity to partake.

  I'll e-mail it to them as well.