Posts by grey matters

19

Full Text of New Blood Video

by grey matters in

the following is the full text of the new blood video, sent to me via a blast email this morning.

i will post it one page at a time, as i am not sure what the character number limit is for one post.

grey matters

Wayne: "I just couldn't live with myself if I turned

my back on my beliefs, and my God, and . . . I wasn't

going to accept a blood transfusion."

Narrator: Their abstaining from blood transfusions

was often misunderstood by the public.

Prof. Roland Hetzer: "There was certainly a time,

years back, when Jehovah's Witnesses were looked at

by physicians, and especially surgeons, in a negative

way."

Jamie Pollard, R.N.: "I think that before I ever met

a Jehovah's Witness, I had a certain mind-set, that

they were maybe a religious fanatic-type person."

Prof. Charles H. Baron: "Part of it, I'm sure, is

prejudice, about a religious sect, which the

physician, or the judge, or the lawyer, . . . about

which they may know next to nothing."

Gene Smalley—JW spokesman: "Á lot of people nowadays

have heard of dangers, or diseases, that might be

contracted from blood and blood transfusions. But

frankly, for Jehovah's Witnesses, central to their

avoiding blood transfusions, is because the Bible

highlights the preciousness of blood."

Eugene Rosam—JW spokesman: "It's a very clear

statement, by the way. It isn't something that

takes a lot of theological study to determine, or

work out. It says very plainly in the Christian

scriptures:
"Abstain . . . from Blood."—Acts 15:20.

Prof. Charles H. Baron: "From the point of view of

someone who is not a believer, it seems an irrational

act."

Prof. Edward Keyserlingk: "For some people, it seems

to be anti-medicine. It seems to be, somehow, putting

the patient in jeopardy."

Diane Mitchell C.C.M.: "I think that some of us,

myself included, was under the impression that maybe

Jehovah's Witnesses didn't want the best medical

treatment, that they were sort of against medical

care."

Alec: "There's no question, it mattered to me whether

she lived or died. I brought her to the hospital in

the first place, to help her recover."

Cynthia: "I didn't want her to die, and I don't think

anybody wants that to happen."

Dr. Mark E. Boyd: "It's not some sort of suicide

pact that they want to enter into with you. They want

to live, they want to have good health care, and I

think that you can work with them."

Diane Mitchell, C.C.M.: "I realized that they wanted

the best medical health care, but they just wanted it

without blood."

19

Full Text of New Blood Video

by grey matters in

the following is the full text of the new blood video, sent to me via a blast email this morning.

i will post it one page at a time, as i am not sure what the character number limit is for one post.

grey matters

NO BLOOD

Medicine Meets
the Challenge

Narrator: Dorothy McPhee has a life-threatening

medical problem. An artery that could burst at any

time.—"The normal way of doing this operation is,

generally through the abdomen, a long vertical

incision . . . "

Leslie is a young girl with a serious spinal

deformity.—"The patient is a Jehovah's Witness, and

in a procedure of this magnitude, it's unavoidable

that some blood loss will occur.

Both patients need surgery, yet, both patients have

religious beliefs that preclude their accepting a

blood transfusion. Medical science is now providing

doctors with alternative strategies to treat

successfully patients who, for various reasons avoid

blood transfusions. These new strategies may soon

benefit all patients.

NO BLOOD
Medicine Meets the Challenge

At the dawn of the 21st century, society is becoming

increasingly diverse. People everywhere are being

exposed to different languages, customs, cultures,

and religious beliefs. Adapting to these differences

is a challenge to all strata of human society. It is

a singular challenge for the medical community.

Prof. Timothy W. Harding: "We're living in a

pluralistic society, and the doctor has one set of

values. But, he or she will meet patients who have

their own values and their own position about certain

issues."

Eileen Yost, R.N: "There's a lot of different

cultures out there, and they have entities specific

to their own cultures, that we as health-care workers

need to understand."

Prof. Oliver Guillod: "I think the duty of physicians

is not simply to preserve life, but the first and

foremost duty of physicians is to respect the

patient."

Narrator: In the past the medical profession found it

difficult, at times, to respect the health care need

of one religious group, in particular—Jehovah's

Witnesses. This was because of their avoidance of

blood transfusions.

Alexis: "That was the easiest decision, because there

was. . . under no circumstances would I accept blood.

. . "

Jessica: "One thing I heard; he said: 'blood

transfusion,' and immediately I said: 'No! No!' . . .

"

19

Full Text of New Blood Video

by grey matters in

the following is the full text of the new blood video, sent to me via a blast email this morning.

i will post it one page at a time, as i am not sure what the character number limit is for one post.

grey matters

The following is the full text of the new blood video, sent to me via a blast email this morning. I will post it one page at a time, as I am not sure what the character number limit is for one post.

28

I ONLY HAD ONE CHOICE - a "poem" by GG/BG (work in progress...???)

by Good Girl or Bad Girl? in

jw
friends

so i wrote this poem, if that is what you can call it.

not saying it's good or anything, but it's how i feel.

it's about my experience as a jehovah's witness.. .

grey matters

That's good stuff. It captures the oppression well.

19

How ambitious were you as a JW?

by OnTheWayOut in

alltimejeff got me thinking about this.

he was very ambitious as a young jw, .

things changed as he wised up.

grey matters

I was raised in the org. My father was a fairly prominent elder.

I was ambitious, but I really didn't feel like I just wanted the power or the position. I was an MS, Accounts Servant. I gave public talks in mine and surrounding congregations.

What I really wanted to do was international construction. I worked on quick builds supervising a crew, 28 projects in 4 years. During that time, I also worked on setup and tear down for every District Convention in our area, both English/Other Languages, and Spanish. I turned in one application for temporary construction work at Bethel, and heard nothing back. I waited awhile, until I had Aux Pioneered twice in the previous in the previous 6 months and turned in another app. Same thing, no response. I was getting tired of barely getting by while pursuing a goal that no one back at headquarters seemed to care about. I told my dad I was going to let it go. I think he could sense that it was a real turning point for me. A month or two later, a prominent brother from Bethel that my dad knew well (one of the Nethinem now, I think) came to visit and stayed with my parents. My dad told him the situation. He told him he would take care of it. Just submit an application as a father/son team and we would be in. I appreciate what he was trying to do, but that just was not going to work for me. I wanted to have the opportunity to do it because I was doing all I could to serve Jehovah and help people, not because my dad had a political connection that could take care of it. After that, I lost faith that Jehovah was reading my heart and directing the brothers. I just didn't see any evidence of it. Attitude did not make the difference. Service did not make the difference. Sincerity did not make the difference. Politics did. After that I had no ambition to do anything.

6

Where will all this lead?

by JWdaughter in

jw
friends

now that i am questioning the entire issue of god, who knows what i might 'believe in' later.

ufo's?

hey, why not?

grey matters

Has anyone else ever gone from a bland, non political, black/white, oatmeal-like JW to this person who realizes life is like a explosion at Rhodda? Filled with color and unexpected pattern and messiness? Where some things can't be explained and it doesn't even matter if you have all the answers anymore? You are just so glad you are finally allowed to ask the questions!

Yeah, that was really well put. I don't know how to add to it other than to say that I have been amazed at what I have been able to learn and the people I have met and gotten to know once I left the dubs little domain.

To be honest, leaving the dubs threw me into a tailspin, all of a sudden everything I knew and held dear was ripped from me.

I understand that. I went through a tailspin experience as well. Fortunately, I didn't lose my head completely. I was able to stay married, largely due to the patience and understanding of my wife. But it was difficult not to do what I had seen others do, what I call the "pendulum effect", where people go to the other extreme. I got therapy. That helped a great deal. One of the things my therapist said that made a lot of sense was "If you slide off of the road into a ditch, it doesn't matter whether you are in the right ditch or the left ditch, you're still in a ditch. It doesn't do any good to get out of one ditch simply to cross the road into the other. The thing to do is to get on the road and stay on the road". In other words, be balanced. Don't go to either extreme.

I have come to realize, that no matter what happens, it's all about love.

Right on, man. I'm still trying to find my way, but I have a feeling that is where I am heading. The theme of the bible is God is Love, right? And I'm sure it's not just the bible. Love is a spiritual value that transcends religious affiliation, culture, and time.

I've been able to volunteer for Habitat for Humanity. I'm really swamped at work right now, but I'd like to be able to do that on a more regular basis.

37

Letter from my mom. What do you think of my response?

by reneeisorym in

jw
friends

i invited my mom two months ago to my wedding.

she never responded and then today i get this.

what do you think of my reply?

grey matters

Your cousin is on target, I kind of noticed that too. But, ya know, what can you do? You can't control their behaivior. All you can to is try to do the right thing. And by being kind and loving, even in these circumstances, you are doing the right thing. We didn't leave the organization because we were LESS mature. We left because we are MORE mature.

Hang in there.

37

Letter from my mom. What do you think of my response?

by reneeisorym in

jw
friends

i invited my mom two months ago to my wedding.

she never responded and then today i get this.

what do you think of my reply?

grey matters

I like the tone. I think what you are trying to say is that you are a happy, healthy person. And that is a good thing. Your mom thinks that she wanted to share this experience and be supportive, but only on her terms, and her terms are not reasonable. Picking out your dress and telling you who to marry is not being supportive, it is being controlling. This your day, and your life, not hers. She had the same opportunities to choose. She needs to be happy with her choice, and let you have yours.

The second paragraph is perfect. I wouldn't change a thing. In the first, I might not be inclined to use the phrase "for the first time in my life". I would be more inclined to just focus on the present. You are happy now, this is an exciting time for you, that train of thought. Along the same line, rather than sort of saying that you have a replacement family, you might want to just say some things about the good qualities of the new family. Again, the theme I see is that you are happy and healthy, and you would like to share this time with them. If they don't want that, that is their choice, and while you will miss them, you will be ok.

I don't like this thing that Jehovah's Witnesses do where they behaive in an unacceptable manner and then blame it on you. They need to take responsibility for their behaivior. No one is holding a gun to their head telling them they have to be Jehovah's Witnesses and believe everything said from the platform or the publications. God gave them thinking ability for a reason. They need to use it.

fe203girl thinks that maybe you are being too gentle. I understand. I too have hard core Jehovah's Witness parents who act a lot like your mom. It makes me very angry, and it is hard to be mild in response to a message like the one you received. But I read a letter here a few days ago that Odrade shared in another thread, and it made me think. I think a mild, loving tone makes a lot of sense. I know you are still a Christian, so I know you are familiar with the scripture that says a loving response to an enemy is like "heaping fiery coals upon their head". It will cause them to think, and hopefully will soften them in time.

I know it's hard, but we need to try to not give up on our parents. For a long time, I have thought "They are too invested in this religion. They will never leave, and if they did, they would fall apart." But in the last year or so I have read many experiences from those in their 60's and some older who have left, and found real happiness. I hope the same for all who are trapped in that religion. I think we stand a much better chance of helping them if we take the tone that you did here.

Good job. And congratulations on your wedding!

3

Dave Thomas, former DO

by Marvin Shilmer in

jw
friends

re: dave thomas, former do.

on the thread discussing co and dos several times i note references to dave thomas.

the dave i knew was a very fine man, and his wife was a fine person too.

grey matters

I'm hearing the theme from "The Rockford Files" in my head now.

19

"Apostates need to grow up and get over it...they're adults!"

by restrangled in

jw
friends

that was the comment from my mother yesterday.

70 years plus a jw ....her own mother a follower of rutherford.. after mentioning to her the amount of people on this board including the co's do's, life long pioneers, etc, their hurt from families from shunning, the reasons for hanging in quietly....... the above was the only comment she could come up with.. i was outraged.

she told me to start reading the new testament.......i told her it bored me.......and i quietly said mmmmm.

grey matters

When one of my sisters left the org, I was listed as the executor of my parent's estate. My dad told me that he was cutting my sister out of the will. I never told her that. I thought it was a very hurtful thing to do. I told my wife I would split any inheritance I got with my sister.

Of course, I'm gone too now. I seriously doubt that I am still the executor, and am probably not in the will either. But I don't care. I don't need their money. It's pretty pathetic to think that they can or should buy your loyalty to this religion. I remember counsel given from the platform that asked how much money we would accept to leave the "truth". The reasoning was that we should not let secular work interfere with our meeting attendance, by working overtime for instance. But I guess it's okay to pay you to stay in!