Lee Elder

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Posts by Lee Elder

• 
  8

  Blood Transfusion Alternative Video Receives Award

  by jschwehm in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  the jw media site just posted the following press release.. the video that the link talks about is it a video produced by the society?.

  .

  http://www.jw-media.org/releases/default.htm?content=010613.htm

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• 

  Lee Elder

  We're going to post a review of the video but need someone to write it.
  As one would expect, it is a very one sided presentation that fails to address
  any of the situations where the non blood alternative strategies don't work
  well or at all i.e. trauma, chronic conditions like anemia and other blood disorders,
  cancer, leukemia, multiple myeloma, etc.
• 
  1

  NY Times Article

  by Lee Elder in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  rita swan from childinc sent me this article from the ny times today.

  though it concerns another.

  nutty group, christian scientist's, it reminds me a lot of the wts and the blood policy.

  1. 
• 

  Lee Elder

  Rita Swan from ChildInc sent me this article from the NY Times today. Though it concerns another
  nutty group, Christian Scientist's, it reminds me a lot of the WTS and the blood policy. I remember one
  case in particular from a few years ago where there was a very similar situation locally. Mother was
  a believing JW, father was an unbeliever - the child died.

  All of us are affected and our soul is damaged when one of these kids is injured, disabled or dies
  unnecessarily due to the WTS's absurd policies on blood.

  Lee

  The New York Times, June 12, 2001
  The Residue of Faith and Fury
  CASES
  by SAVANNAH WARING WALKER

  My sister had yellowish skin and a yellow cast to the whites of her eyes. She was feverish and listless and wouldn't eat. She ended up in a hospital, where the diagnosis was hepatitis.

  But the hospital turned out to be a long way away. Before she could get there she had a hazing to endure - a trauma of the kind inflicted by parents who disagree on how sickness is healed.

  Dad was a lapsed Presbyterian who believed in medicine, Mother a Christian Scien-tist who believed in prayer. In the hearts-and-minds department he couldn't compete; she took us to Christian Science church and taught us lengthy prayers. She held us pretty much in thrall with her dogma, as dumbed down by our childish minds: Pray fervently, and God and I will always love you; pray the right way, and you'll never get sick.

  Dad didn't even have a church to take us to - or rather, the one he had was medicine, and its dreaded houses of worship were the very ones that Mother told us we'd never see the inside of, if we prayed the right way.

  Clearly my sister, however fervent, had imperfectly followed Part 2 of the dogma.
  Failures like this happened - though owing to luck and good genes (or prayer, depending on your view), we kids rarely got as sick as my sister now was. Still, Mother would say, great or small, illness was not real. It was merely a challenge meant to help us readjust
  our prayers.

  The complicating factor now was that the challenge had arisen in enemy territory: Grandmother's house, an ocean away from where we then lived.

  Dad was confrontation-shy, but his mother, a decidedly unlapsed Presbyterian, was just as forceful as his wife. Reunions offered the women ample opportunity for furious religious arguments, and this time the fury would get physical. A sick 8-year-old could
  prove one side right; we were on Grandmother's turf, and without flinching she pressed her advantage.

  One afternoon after my sister had been unwell for days - after the town G.P. had been summoned, over Mother's objections, and had shaken his head, urging a hospital stay - we sat unmoving in Grandmother's family room, my parents and I, surrounded by familiar things: tapestry cushions; a Seth Thomas mantel clock ticking gently; the black phone that Grandmother lived on, with its brass dialer levered in one number hole. On the wall opposite the mantel hung a collection of Madonna-and-child portraits. In the bathroom
  behind the wall my sister, closeted with Grandmother, was screaming.

  Half-starved and burning with fever, she was being pinned down in some way in the bathtub while Grandmother administered an enema.
  
  Not that I, governed by Christian Science throughout my 13 years, even knew what that was. But Grandmother had said, "The child's constipated, that's why she's got yellow eyes." I knew what constipated meant. The remedy, provoking those endless cries, still
  resisted my imagination.

  I stared at the wall that hid it all from view, focusing on the portraits - the cherubic faces of Jesus. Grandmother said he had died for our sins, and Mother said he had died to prove that physical life is a Lie of Mortal Mind, and somehow, because of that, my sister was in there being hurt. The serenity of each image, as I desperately concentrated on it, helped keep me silently in my seat. I didn't know what else to do. Apparently neither did
  Mother and Dad, who continued to sit there just like me.

  Perhaps unsurprisingly, the enema didn't help. My sister was ill enough long enough that the hospital became inevitable. She stayed several days; recovery took weeks.

  But I have always wondered what my parents were thinking as we sat there that afternoon - what my grandmother was thinking as she conducted her assault.

  My theory, for the record: Mother was thinking to prove something to Dad about the twin evils of medicine and his mother; Grandmother was thinking that if the child could not go to the hospital, she would bring the hospital home; and Dad, trying to shut it all out, was thinking something like "Beam me up, Scotty."

  Of course, the real challenge was making sense of what I was thinking.

  For years - even after I had turned coat on Mother and Christian Science - getting sick or hurt would bring on a tidal wave of fear and guilt. I would submerge in it, paralyzed, as it pummeled me with the debris it carried: I was a failure in prayer, a failure to Mother; my illnesses had driven a wedge between my parents. Most devastating of all was a toxic fear of the H-word, the doctor: the trusted, powerful person who in treating me would damage me, in helping me would make me beg for help. And I would hear my sister's cries all over again.

  http://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/12/health/12CASE.html?ex=993371154&ei=1&en=ec87794e2959b29a
  Copyright 2001 The New York Times Company
• 
  1

  A sad story

  by Lee Elder in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  lord hold me up, my mother is dying.

  i cried and told bob, "my mom is going to die".

  some offered prayer, others hope, and they helped us to help mom die.

  1. 
• 

  Lee Elder

  I received the following story from the daughter of a JW woman who decided to accept
  a blood transfusions. Clearly, she is interested in evangelizing but her story illustrates
  several significant problems in the WTS.

  Lee

  ------

  LORD HOLD ME UP, My Mother is Dying

  On December 25, 2000, my mom died. It was so unexpected. She went into the hospital for a problem; she was having with her leg, after being diagnosed with gangrene and three operations, she died. I wondered why it had to be my mom, the first person in my life to die. I'm 47, I've been thinking a lot about death since I left the Jehovah's Witnesses. I have been attending a non-denominational church for the past few years, but haven't had some of my questions answered scriptually, though there is much talk of heaven and grace, I still haven't found myself longing to go there.

  To give you a little of background about me, I was a JW for almost 20 years of my life. I spent my youth promoting what I now believe is a cult. Oh the Guilt and the regret! I spent 16 years married to an abusive JW. That was my demise: his hatefulness and jealousy towards me. He set me up, ruined my reputation with his lies and expected me to stay. I didn't.

  On my way out of the JW, I found no love from those who had been my friends for those years. There was no support, just gossip, judging and cruelty. I ended up with a broken spirit. Proverbs 18:14 well describe my feelings "… but as for a crushed spirit, who can bear?" Those who I thought were my spiritual leaders and friends attacked my integrity. I've always believed in God, but my search for a TRUE, LOVING, KIND God began again. That lead me to explain how God was with my mom, my family and me on her way to death.

  Upon her entrance to the hospital, my mother met a Christian doctor. At their first meeting he prayed with her. This gave her so much comfort and confidence that she was in good hands. After Dr. Nyreen diagnosed her leg was gangrenous, it was obvious, both her doctor and the home she was living in had neglected her. Thus began the 25-day journey to death then to real life.

  I met Dr. Nyreen the next day; my husband, Bob and I met him at the hospital. We let him know mom and I had been JW for many years, and were now out. We had a nice spiritual conversation always including mom and how she had journeyed out of the JW'S. We explained the pain and confusion a person has as they leave the organization of JW. He was so sympathetic and before we departed company we said a prayer together.

  Mom's health had been deteriorating for quite some time. Dr. Nyreen wanted to operate and cut out the gangrene, but other Doctors were assigned to her overall health to get her body ready. It took over a week. In the meantime, my Christian brother, Keith and I approached the hospital personnel and made sure they were aware we had power of attorney. We strictly requested that the JW'S did not come in and try to overturn her wishes.

  Two years before, when she was in the hospital, they had her sign some papers giving them the Power of Attorney. To say the least we could not understand how they felt they would have her best interest in mind since none of them knew her. We immediately had their authority overturned. Giving Keith the medical POA and I was given durable POA at moms request. At this time, mom was convinced that blood transfusions were wrong. According to the JW'S, it is
  unscriptural and a person can be disfellowshipped or shunned or kicked out of the organization for taking one.

  Now that mom had not associated with the JW'S, and in her heart did not consider herself one of Jehovah's Witnesses, she would soon have to make a stand. The JW policy has changed over the years, still considering blood transfusions wrong, yet now allowing some blood products, which was unheard of before. Mom was confused. I think an honest JW would have to admit to the confusion. But since the organization does not admit to any conflicts, most JW'S still hold to the no blood transfusion law and carry a card on themselves stating
  NO BLOOD for any reason. So in case of an emergency and they are found unconscious, this card serves as a legal document not to administer any blood.

  Keith and I talked to mom on this issue of blood and what she felt? She was still a little confused but decided if it came down to saving her life that she would accept one. The doctors upon hearing this immediately ordered 2 pints of blood, her blood count was really low and they ordered tests to see where she was loosing blood. I don't really know how this affected her but I do know that after she took the blood her JW friends never came back.

  You see being a JW means all your relationship are based on what you do, not who you are. You never experience love from others nor do you have a personal relationship with God. All your activity, your view and your friendships are based on the works you do. You never lay your head on the pillow at night with a good feeling about your life because tomorrow you have to wake up and work again, because you can loose your relationship with Jehovah with one action or breaking one of the JW'S rules. Mom's decision to take blood was her way of showing others she had taken a true Christian stand, and she was no longer a JW. To even tell you the story of how we came out is a heartbreaking story in itself. I don't have any time for that now.

  It would be nice if the story stopped here but you see I have another brother that is a JW. When he saw mom with blood going into her; he got mad stomped out of the hospital. He came back a few hours and fed mom her meal. They talked and seemed to come to some understanding. He never said too much about blood until she began to die weeks later.

  Mom had her operation and everything seemed to go well Dr. Nyreen had to leave the wound open on her leg and keep her in ICU until they could do a skin graft on Friday. Blood was flowing down into her leg and foot and that was a positive sign.

  In the mean time, churches from all around were praying for mom's recovery. I also got to know Dr. Nyreen better. You see he isn't from Washington state, he moved up here a few years ago after becoming a Christian in San Antonio, Texas. He was now attending a small evangelical church off Portland Avenue. As I learned more about him I realized that God had put him in our lives. You know it is a small world. My brother, Keith and his family lived in San Antonio some years ago, and yes, they attended the same church Dr. Nyreen, did, and
  though the timing was off, they shared in knowing some of the same people.

  Up to this point I haven't mentioned my oldest son, Rob. He became a strong support in the family, visiting mom daily. He had been a JW and still attends the Kingdom Hall on Sundays, with his wife, in hopes of getting her out. A few years earlier he made the mistake of telling his wife he didn't believe the teachings of the JW's any longer. The thought of loosing your family and friends after a
  lifetime, holds many JW'S in fear and frightened, to speak any doubts. If any one were to find out about such doubts, you would be disfellowshipped from the congregation and association with your family. Rob knew could loose it all as I did. Rob accepted Christ as his savior and has been learning to walk with the Lord. He did venture into a church, twice, he went to a church on Portland
  Avenue. Yes, the same church Dr. Nyreen goes to. I think the Lord has some plans for them. Only time will tell.

  These two co incidents made me start wondering about how God works in
  our lives, daily. Many a time, we stay too busy to notice. With my mom in the hospital I had a lot of time to think.

  On Sunday morning at 9:15, I received a phone call from the physician that was taking care of mom while she was in ICU. Mom had taken a turn for the worse. She ran a high fever over night and things didn't look very well. I cried and told Bob, "My mom is going to die". I never lost hope or stopped praying, but the tone in the doctor's voice and subsequent conversations afterwards, helped me to realize that I had to depend on God more than ever before in my life. I called all in the family and we met at the hospital. Thus began a spiritual warfare. Why do I say that? Because a house divided cannot stand.

  Having a brother, sister-in-law, and a daughter-in-law as Jehovah's Witnesses, made it difficult to openly speak without offending them. Life had not been easy for Rob either and I didn't want to cause him any more pain.

  Soon the ministers from the churches, in which we attend, started visiting and praying with us. They even offered prayer in front of the JW'S. Though I realize they did not associate any of those prayers with true worship, they were present to see the faith we now had. Some how I pray that in the future when they stop blaming me for moms' conversion, they may see the Lord as he really is. He was
  there for all of us; only those who wanted to benefited from his comfort received it.

  We all decided I would stay in the hospital with mom, not only to be there and give her comfort, but I wouldn't have endured not knowing what was going on. I spent nights, crying, praying, and waiting. Mom's fever would not go down and there was an infection, I saw mom's leg, it was turning black and the skin graft didn't take. Dr. Nyreen said we needed to amputate her leg, I agreed. They decided mom was so sick they would keep her on the heart lung machine all night. Late Monday night, another Doctor stopped by to talk to me and asked me some very interesting questions about mom. He said, "Where is your mother's doctor?" "Why is she in this hospital?" and "Why was your mother not seeing a specialist?" He did alarm me that something had gone wrong and someone was responsible. To this day I don't think her doctor knows she died. He will soon know. This doctor also told me he didn't think mom was going to make it. If she did pull through the quality of her life would be terrible.

  When mom was admitted to the hospital she told Dr. Nyreen she didn't want to live without her leg. That is why he tried so hard to save it. Every day was heart wrenching, we looked for the positive, but many a time we were disappointed at days end.

  Again, the family gathered, for the last time to make decisions, no one wanted to make. The hospital staff watched all of us with each crisis; their support and positive attitudes sustained us, as many we found out were Christians. Some offered prayer, others hope, and they helped us to help mom die. They moved mom from ICU, because they couldn't do any more there. Mom had another blood transfusion to give her oxygen and to give her body a boost. She still had a fever. We became hopeful, but that was short lived.

  My JW brother, after seeing mom taking blood denounced it and argued with Keith that he was going to notify the authorities (any of her medical providers) that they were giving mom unnecessary treatment. At first, I didn't understand what he was talking about until I talked with Keith later. He was mad about the transfusion and from that time forward, the battle intensified. I don't really know what state of mind my mother was in since she had not been totally conscious and never did after her leg was amputated. But my brother, his wife and some of their friends came around and talked about being in the "the new order", how one day they would be with her on paradise earth. Knowing she had taken blood would be contrary to their conversations with her. They believe in soul sleep and to break one of the JW laws before death means total destruction, no hope for a
  resurrection. To them, mom is in the grave and lost forever. To us Christians, we know she is present with the Lord. It's the only thing that gives us hope in death. Mom had accepted Christ as her savior.

  God showed me so much, during that time. He showed me the difference between a Christian and a JW. Christians do many things out of love, not expecting any thing in return, emulating Jesus' example. At the end of your life, God's grace saves us. A JW can lead a Christian life and if they have not "endured to the end", they have no salvation. Salvation is never something you can get until you die. "Probably, you may be concealed in the day of Jehovah's anger:" That probably depends on you even then there is no real assurance you are saved. Never any guarantees, thoughts of constantly working for salvation dominate the JW'S mind. I shutter thinking of the oppression.

  I had a friend for twenty years; we were close. After I was disfellowshipped, she never talked to me again. When my mother was dying, She walked right pass me in the hospital and never said a word. She held fast to her judgments. I learned a lot about Love that day or the lack of Love. Where had the love gone? Or was there ever any? It hurts my heart to know, I had once called myself a Jehovah's Witness.

  After they moved mom, I couldn't sleep at the hospital. I would stay until late at night when I knew she was rested and the morphine level was controlling the pain. It broke my heart to see her in pain, her body jerking, and the moaning. I talked to mom about heaven, I told her she could go ahead of us and we'd be close behind, because in God's timing this is only minutes. I sang to her the "Our Father Prayer" I learned in High School. I read her the Bible and I cried. They disconnected the food from her on Friday, her stomach quit working weeks before and her intestines were not working either.

  I brought some music to keep on all night when I wasn't there. They told us hearing is the last sense to go. She always loved music. By Sunday, mom was still hanging there, her breathing was so gargled, and she was having heart failure with pneumonia. Bob was with me that day. The day before God Sent our pastor to visit us and I asked him to talk to Bob, because he was becoming so irritable with me. I don't know what he said to him but Bob became very peaceful and he helped me with mom's final day. She smiled, and tried to communicate, her best friend called to say good-bye. I held the phone up to mom's ear. She recognized Betty's voice. At one point, mom was coughing up some stuff and the look, I will never forget, It was like her asking me what is going on. I cried to her that she was dying and that there was nothing else I could do, I was so sorry.

  We all said our good-byes in our own way, every one except Keith. When we allowed the doctors to disconnect the things not needed for mom, he thought he had said good-bye that was on a Friday. Mom didn't die that easily.

  On Christmas morning, Keith was returning from the airport early in the morning and heard a song about angels, and he knew he had to say his last good bye to mom. He prayed with her, sang her Christmas carols and read the Bible to her. I believe mom was waiting for him, because she died that night. I don't think he knows that of all the pictures mom carried in her wallet, there was only one picture of any of us children. That picture is of her holding Keith when he was born. I know God directed Keith to go to the hospital that day. He gave mom her final good-bye.

  Before Bob and I, went to see mom Christmas morning, for the last time; we went to Keith's house for breakfast. During breakfast, Jody, my sister-in-law gave me a message from God (though she didn't realize it at the time). She had seen me go through so much anguish, seeking truth in God's word and getting the JW brainwashing out of my mind. Jody said there was a bible study group in Puyallup (BSF) that had an intense study and she thought I would benefit from it. At the time I didn't realize the importance of her words.

  When I arrived at the hospital, they had elevated mom and she was struggling with her breathing. She never regained consciousness. I sat there exhausted and watched her. Out of the window, I noticed my JW brother was on his way in. As I expected him to round the corner, a man, a doctor introduced himself to me as Dr. Deyo, he was standing in for Dr. Nyreen. Just then my brother came in. I directed Dr. Deyo into the hall and asked him how much longer was mom going to live? I just wanted her out of the pain. He said no one knows why God allows this to go on. I was so relieved to know he was a Christian. I told him that my brother was a JW and I didn't want to talk in front of him. I also explained I used to be a JW. He told me there was a spiritual battle going on over mom. He wasn't the first to share this thought. In the course of our conversation, he said "you know there is this bible study group in Puyallup (BSF) that would give you what you need." My mouth dropped to the floor, I told him up until today, I had never heard of this, but he was the second person to mention it to me, that very day. He was being used by God to get this message to me. I would come to later realize.

  I don't know all the whys, but I do know God has something in mind for my family and me. I am so thankful that both my mom and I left the JW'S when we did. Her time was short and God knew it. I thank him for that.

  Mom died an hour after I left her sleeping. I miss her.

  God continued to work in our family after mom died. My witness, son Micaiah, is coming around, though he has never shunned me. We were able to spend hours talking, something we hadn't done in years. I was finally able to tell him about salvation through the Lords grace. I don't know if he understands. I just wanted to plant a seed. I'll trust that others will water it, and God will make it grow.
  Rob's was able to see the differences between the Christians, as well, and he is now determined to start witnessing to those JW he knows. He is coming out of hiding; he wants to go to that church on Portland Avenue.

  The battle continued after mom died. We arranged to have a memorial for mom at my church. None of the JW'S came thought they were invited. On the other hand, the JW'S elders would not let them have a memorial for mom at the Kingdom Hall. Shaming her even in death, they have no respect, since a memorial is for the family, not the person. I've even seen them give memorials for people who committed suicide. I can't understand, how my JW family cannot see the lack of love was out of disrespect for them not mom.

  I got mad when I found out none of them would attend her memorial at the church. I angrily told God that if the JW'S were worshipping the true God, I didn't want any thing to do with him. I cried and prayed; the answer to my prayer was "Pray for them". That's what I'm asking you to do, If in anyway this story has touched your heart. Pray for the Jehovah's Witnesses as individuals, that God would lead them out of this oppressive, cruel place and bring them to find the love and comfort of God's grace. If you have not accepted Christ as your savior and you desire to know God's love and comfort of God's grace. It is a very simple matter of prayer. Ask God' to forgive you of your sins and to come into your life as you recognize him as your Lord and Savior. From the time you pray onward, he will guide and direct your life. You'll experience the safety; comfort and love only a heavenly father can give. Through prayer you have personal access to the most powerful source of strength.

  I realize I've been a very rebellious person all my life and at my age, it's been the most difficult thing I've ever gone through, I lost what I thought was truth, almost lost my children and now, I lost my mother in death. The Lord is Good. Through those losses, I can say, I still have my children and a closer bond with my family. I have my faith, a wonderful husband, and a God that loves me unconditionally. What a rich blessing it is to know the Lord and see him work in our lives. Accepting him as our Lord and savior invites us to have a life worth living. "A day in your courtyard is worth a thousand spent elsewhere."

  Epilogue: Since the writing of this, I have started studying with BSF study group in Puyallup and I am growing and accepting the Lord for who he is. I am ridding my mind of the teachings I was indoctrinated with for 20 years. God has led me into a program called Evangelism Explosion where I can use those 20 years of experience approaching people now with the real truth. I really have to believe that the Lord uses our experiences both negative and positive so he can work in our lives. The most important thing we can do is to allow the Holy Spirit lead us and always listen to his voice.

  A few weeks, after I started attending BSF, the Lord led me the answer to why my mother died, at least in part for Rob and myself. We were studying about Judas, Peter and Jesus' prayer to his father before he died. In the lecture, it was brought out that the devil entered Judas, Peter denial of Christ and his lack of faith, and God turning his back on Jesus as he took on the world's sins just before his death. All appeared so negative. Yet, we are encouraged that Peter was restored to faith, forgiven and God accepted Jesus' sacrifice for our sins, restoring mankind who has faith in Jesus to a righteous stand before God. The lecturer brought out that WE will never be indwelt (overtaken) by the Devil and God will never turn his back on us because of the forgiveness of sins Jesus took to the cross. But God will allow difficulty or hard times come upon our lives for the sake of others. At that moment, conviction from the Holy Spirit calmed my heart for I finally understood why my mom died. The Lord used my mom's death to lead Rob and I to the place we could experience his love and grace to the fullest. I also came to understand my mom was with the Lord and for her sake she was in a better place, freed from a sick body and with our father whose love for her released her from the difficulties of this world. She won her spiritual battle. Thanks to the Lord and the prayers of my brother Keith, his family, and others, I am finally walking on the path of God intended for me to walk.

  Rob, because of what he has experienced recently, has taken a stand for the Lord. He no longer wants to be known as a JW, which lead his wife to threaten their marriage bond with divorce. After prayer from many and a meeting with my pastor, Rob decided to continue on his stand for God. He felt God was leading him to go to church and get Christian fellowship. His wife has calmed down after someone told her to look for the good in her marriage, and decided to stay for now, but that may be only temporary as each day Rob must depend on the Lord to protect his marriage and the threats the JW's would impose on their marriage.

  Rob has been attending Church; yes you guessed it, the one on Portland Ave. Dr. Nyreen, now known, as Mark to us, on hearing of Rob's troubles contacted him, and offered him a discipleship and Bible Study. Rob is real excited. Rob had been praying for a friend, he found one in Mark. Mark also told us that we too were an answer to his prayer. He has been praying for someone he could disciple. It seems to us that God puts us where and with whom he wants. Our faith has been strengthened. Knowing God answers our prayers and sometimes the answer is no, he has shown us, that he is not far from anyone of us. If we would just reach out to him in our times of trouble, he will hold us up and see us through the difficult times in our lives.

  If I ever doubted God or my worthiness to be loved by him, it has disappeared. I now look forward to a future. A future knowing there really is a God that cares for us.

  Karen Lucretia Henry
  [email protected]
• 
  16

  Proposed Goals for AJWRB

  by Lee Elder in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  perhaps this forum can serve as a place for some serious discussion regarding the direction that ajwrb will take in the coming months.

  this document lays out proposed strategy and goals for ajwrb.

  we would like you to evaluate the contents and offer your views.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Lee Elder

  Skally

  You wrote:

  "My neighbor "Dr. Gordon" is a pediatric surgeon. We have discussed this issue of blood and parents he deals
  with who are jws a few times. I will get his take on this and reply as soon as possible."

  We would very much like to communicate with your neighbor, Dr. Gordon.

  Best regards,

  Lee
• 
  16

  Proposed Goals for AJWRB

  by Lee Elder in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  perhaps this forum can serve as a place for some serious discussion regarding the direction that ajwrb will take in the coming months.

  this document lays out proposed strategy and goals for ajwrb.

  we would like you to evaluate the contents and offer your views.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Lee Elder

  I think you realize that AJWRB has never been about "bringing down" the WTS. We're exploring some
  linkage because these issues have a common thread - child neglect, child endangerment. You are quite
  correct in your assessment. The linkage could be dangerous so we have to carefully evaluate the risks
  and benefits.

  The linkage could be as simple as reciprocal links or adding an article regarding the dangers children in the
  the Watchtower Society are unnecessarily exposed to.

  Thank you for your comments.

  Lee
• 
  16

  Proposed Goals for AJWRB

  by Lee Elder in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  perhaps this forum can serve as a place for some serious discussion regarding the direction that ajwrb will take in the coming months.

  this document lays out proposed strategy and goals for ajwrb.

  we would like you to evaluate the contents and offer your views.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Lee Elder

  A show like "Judging Amy" might be able to do a good job with the subject.
  I wouldn't know where to start with this kind of an endeavor.

  Lee
• 
  16

  Proposed Goals for AJWRB

  by Lee Elder in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  perhaps this forum can serve as a place for some serious discussion regarding the direction that ajwrb will take in the coming months.

  this document lays out proposed strategy and goals for ajwrb.

  we would like you to evaluate the contents and offer your views.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Lee Elder

  Perhaps this forum can serve as a place for some serious discussion regarding the direction that AJWRB will take in the coming months.

  This document lays out proposed strategy and goals for AJWRB. We would like you to evaluate the contents and offer your views. Please give thought as to how you may be able to assist us in reaching these goals.

  In order to formulate strategy and goals, we need accurate information and in lieu of that, we have to make certain assumptions. Access to accurate information regarding the exact thinking of various members of the Watchtower leadership would be very useful, but we simply don't possess it.

  It seems that while there are some members in favor of further dismantling of the blood doctrine, they remain in the minority. Greater pressure is required to move more decision-makers into the reform/dismantling camp. Internal pressure, while helpful, is insufficient to spur the reforms we seek.

  Our common goal remains the complete abolishment of the misguided policy on blood. There are certain objectives to be reached, strategy we must use, tactics to employ. Change is likely to come "piecemeal", as it has in the past.

  We have already won a number of battles and our strategy should be to continue to rack up small victories. We have the high ground morally and ethically and we want to advance our agenda and build alliances with those who can assist us in "ratcheting" down the pressure on the men who run the Watchtower Society

  We believe we must resist the temptation to suggest policy or strategy for the Watchtower Society. That is simply not our place. Our role is to educate Jehovah's Witnesses and anyone who will listen with regard to the destructive and irrational nature of Watchtower policy on blood.

  We have the attention of certain segments of the medical community and our ability to influence this community is well established and could increase. Additional pressure needs to be brought to bear on the WTS by the medical community.

  Attempts to open a direct line of communication with senior Watchtower officials have been unsuccessful. We believe this is due to the enormous risk associated with any connection to perceived "apostasy". There are no plans to expend any additional energy in this area. We will, however, continue to have some limited "back channel" conversations.

  There are several legal issues that could be explored if funds were available or if we had access to competent counsel. These include violation of medical confidentiality, wrongful death, agency and torts. We don't see anyway to progress in this area at present and even if funds were available, we would need plaintiffs to come forward. If evidence of a staged strategic disentanglement policy to jettison the blood policy materialized, and we could demonstrate that Watchtower decision-makers no longer believed in their own policy, and have made a decision to slowly "gut" the policy in order to minimize the fall out, we would have to find some way to act on that. This would require an insider to come forward and provide documented evidence.

  Based upon our knowledge of the current situation, we are suggesting the following strategic plan for AJWRB.

  Goals

  1. Host at least one medical convention in 2001 and each subsequent year.
  2. Publish a major article in the American Ass. of Anesthesiologist's journal during 2001.
  3. Submit an article for publication in a pediatric journal during 2001.
  4. Shift the focus of the AJWRB website to children's issues. Explore linking the blood issue and molestation issues under the larger umbrella of child neglect in the WTS.
  5. Attempt to move the Watchtower Victims memorial to AJWRB. David Reed/Comments from the Friends is apparently shutting down.
  6. Call for the Watchtower to duplicate their Bulgarian policy of not issuing advance directives to Jehovah's Witness minors worldwide. Issue a press release.
  7. Add a pediatrician to AJWRB's group of physician advocates.
  8. Regularly exhibit at the Pediatric events.
  9. Set up a toll free phone number for AJWRB.
  10. When HemoPure is approved in the United States, mount a massive education campaign from hospital administrators to chaplains, surgeons to ER physicians, critical care nurses and the like, alerting them to the new treatment. We should go ahead and write at least some articles at this time so that they are ready to be quickly published.
  11. Write an article for Hospital Administrators and Chaplains detailing the role of Hospital Visitation Committees and H.L.C. members as informants that breech medical confidentiality of Jehovah's Witness patients.
  12. Provide a critical analysis of the WTS letter to all elder bodies and the outline provided for the service meeting part associated with the Health care power of attorney.
  13. Provide a critical analysis of the new blood video.
  14. Develop an article in conjunction with Steven Hassan to demonstrate how the WTS has planted phobias in the minds of JWs to prevent them from accepting needed blood therapy. Provide suggestions for physicians and family members.
  15. Political action: Letter writing campaign's to U. S. House Committee on International Relations, European Commission/Court on Human Rights, and other promising European Governments. Some governments are already inclined to view the WTS as a dangerous sect and refuse to recognize it officially as well as tax it. We want to stress that the WTS is persecuting its own members by refusing to grant them basic rights like the right to privacy, medical confidentiality and autonomy when making life and death medical decisions. We want to communicate that members of the WTS loose the right to enjoy normal relations with their JW family members simply for expressing disapproval of the WTS policies on the use of blood transfusions or for refusing to let their child die by authorizing a blood transfusion.
  16. Provide a new article that specifically answers the objection of some JW's that nothing has changed.
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  1

  Blood - Link to European Court

  by Lee Elder in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  the following is a link to the court's ruling on the wts' application:.

  http://hudoc.echr.coe.int/hudoc1doc/hedec/sift/3641.txt.

  all of the files on this subject at ajwrb have been extensively edited and updated.. lee

  1. 
• 

  Lee Elder

  The following is a link to the Court's ruling on the WTS' application:

  http://hudoc.echr.coe.int/Hudoc1doc/hedec/sift/3641.txt

  All of the files on this subject at AJWRB have been extensively edited and updated.

  Lee
• 
  13

  Damage control

  by Norm in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  since brooklyn finally allowed the 1914 generation to die in 1995, the distributing apparatus of the multinational printing organization has been starting to slow down.. service is down, the numbers of pioneers are decreasing, the number of baptized show an alarming drop and people are leaving in their thousands.. after many decades of incessant harping on how jehovah, jesus and the bible had guaranteed that the end would be over before the 1914 generation was dead, the witnesses had the only thing that kept many of them going, ripped out from under their noses.

  suddenly jehovah hadnt promised any such thing in the awake!

  suddenly jesus had never been talking about the length of a generation, as usual the watchtower had never said any such thing, someone had speculated about the generation.

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  Lee Elder

  I was the Watchtower Study conductor back in 1995 when that revelation was
  published. I was in a state of disbelief. My immediate reaction was, "if we could
  be wrong about somthing like this that we were so sure of, what else could we
  be wrong about." For me, it was a signal that I had to carefully evaluate what
  I believed and why. While I eventually concluded that most of the Watchtower doctrines
  were beneign, there were some notable exceptions - foremost of which was the blood
  doctrine.

  I can still vividly recall the cover of one Watchtower with a group of elderly
  JWs (probably meant to depict anointed ones) and the caption, "The Generation
  That Will Not Pass Away."

  It's embarassing to have been a part of.

  Lee
• 
  5

  JW mother loses custody of son for refusing blood

  by jschwehm in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  the lincoln journal star has a story in it this morning about a jw mother in omaha who lost custody of her son for refusing to allow a blood transfusion.

  evidently her son has sickle cell anemia and his red blood cell count became extremely low.

  the young boy was complaining that he could not breathe.. the newspaper does not have this story on the internet but the paper says it is an ap story.. i thought you guys would want to know.. jeff s.

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  Lee Elder

  Well done. Let's hope the letter is published.

  Lee