When will Jehovah Witness realise it's wrong to let people die when they need a blood transfusion?

Answer 1

Jehovah's Witnesses do not campaign against the use of blood transfusions by others. In harmony with the bible, of course, Witnesses prefer nonblood medical management for themselves and their families.

Ironically, the fact remains undisputed that many MULTIPLES more have died as a direct or indirect result of a blood transfusion than have died from a conscientious decision to pursue other medical treatments.

Fair-minded healthcare experts admit that the medical technologies exist to treat literally every illness and injury without resorting to the old-fashioned infusion of whole blood, plasma, platelets, or red/white blood cells. Perhaps pro-blood activists (and/or anti-Witness critics) ignore the fact that Jehovah's Witnesses accept all minor blood fractions, so if there is some targeted need then a Witness will accept a targeted treatment (the only objections are to those four components which approximate actual blood).





It is not Jehovah's Witnesses who decide that blood is sacred, or who decide that other body parts are not specifically declared "sacred". It is Almighty God who declares it so, as the Divine Author of the Holy Bible!

As God's spokesman and as Head of the Christian congregation, Jesus Christ made certain that the early congregation reiterated, recorded, and communicated renewed Christian restrictions against the misuse of blood.

Jehovah's Witnesses are not anti-medicine or anti-technology, and they do not have superstitious ideas about some immortal "soul" literally encapsulated in blood. Instead, as Christians, the Witnesses seek to obey the very plain language of the bible regarding blood.

As Christians, they are bound by the bible's words in "the Apostolic Decree". Ironically, this decree was the first official decision communicated to the various congregations by the twelve faithful apostles (and a handful of other "older men" which the apostles had chosen to add to the first century Christian governing body in Jerusalem). God and Christ apparently felt (and feel) that respect for blood is quite important.

Here is what the "Apostolic Decree" said, which few self-described Christians obey or even respect:

(Acts 15:20) Write them [the various Christian congregations] to abstain from things polluted by idols and from fornication and from what is strangled and from blood.

(Acts 15:28-29) For the holy spirit and we ourselves have favored adding no further burden to you, except these necessary things, 29 to keep abstaining from things sacrificed to idols and from blood and from things strangled and from fornication. If you carefully keep yourselves from these things, you will prosper.


Quite explicitly, the Apostolic Decree plainly forbids the misuse of blood by Christians (despite the fact that nearly every other provision of former Jewish Mosaic Law was recognized as unnecessary). It seems odd therefore, that literally one Christian religion continues to teach that humans must not use blood for any purpose other than honoring Almighty God.

A better question would ask: How can other self-described Christian religions justify the fact that they don't even care if their adherents drink blood and eat blood products?


Jehovah's Witnesses recognize the repeated bible teaching that blood is specially "owned" by God, and must not be used for any human purpose. Witnesses do not have any superstitious aversion to testing or respectfully handling blood, and Witnesses believe these Scriptures apply to blood and the four primary components which approximate "blood". An individual Jehovah's Witness is likely to accept a targeted treatment for a targeted need, including a treatment which includes a minor fraction derived from plasma, platelets, and/or red/white blood cells.

Learn more:
http://watchtower.org/e/hb/
http://watchtower.org/library/vcnb/article_01.htm

Answer 2

Eviltruitt: Yes, i do agree that blood transfusions are safer today than in the past but they still pose dangers including immune reactions and contracting hepatitis or sexually transmitted diseases. Physicians do realize these risks, therefore, more than 70% of physicians are very aggressive about avoiding the use of blood, instead rather use alternatives as the preferred treatment (not blood).

Sasi: i don't quite understand what you are trying to point out but the leaders of JWs (as you call them) are correct. Abstaining from blood includes "no blood transfusion" (which is a direct intake of blood). Sorry, but the truth of the matter is, doctors who give out blood transfusion without taking a look at the alternatives are not very good doctors. There is a big demand for bloodless medicine and surgery and guess what? only a small percentage of that are Jehovah's Witnesses. The bigger percentage are people like us.....

Answer 3

Did you know that non-blood options are readily available and in fact safer? Doctors are actually recommending non-blood treatment because patients heal quicker (blood transfusions weaken the immune system for a week or two slowing the healing process). Jehovah's Witnesses want the best medical treatment for themselves and their families while at the same time recognizing that God sees blood as something holy (it resembles the life of the person, according to scriptures such as Genesis 4:10 and Leviticus 17:11).

God says to "abstain from blood", and also not to eat it or take it into your body (Acts 15:28, 29; Leviticus 17:14). Do you know better than God so that Jehovah's Witnesses should listen to you instead? Or do you just not care what the Bible says about blood? Or, does it not apply to you becuase you are someone special?

Do you think that it is right to disobey God to save your own life?(Matthew 10:39) If you think that it is ok to disobey God for your own benefit, then you are sorely mistaken.

Here are a dozen scriptures that show a person should not "eat" or take in blood:
Genesis 9:4
Leviticus 7:26,27
Leviticus 17:10-14
Acts 15:19, 20
Acts 15:28, 29
Deuteronomy 12:16
Deuteronomy 15:23
1 Samuel 14:32-34
Acts 21:25
Leviticus 3:17
1 Chronicles 11:19
2 Samuel 23:17

Should Jehovah's Witnesses disregard these scriptures simply because of your personal opinion?

Answer 4

What about the 90% of people refusing blood who are not JW. So many the it is now considered standard treatment in 150 hospitals. Could it be they are better informed than you? Consider that until recently, British youth that needed a transfusion were given only American Blood, but they have switched to Australia, as US blood is no longer considered as safe as it once was. There was a conference on it in Kansas City in March of 2005.

Last Fall, the owner of several local taverns received a transfusion due to an injury. One side affect of transfusions is a reduced immune response. Turns out he had an undiagnosed case of liver cancer. They found it after giving him the blood. His immune system had apparently been keeping it under control, until than. Six weeks later, he was dead.

Answer 5

Have you looked into MODERN medicine lately? There are so many alternatives to blood transfusions. Have you heard of hemodilution? lactated Ringer's Solution? EPO? Biological hemostats? Blood salvage? Laparoscopic surgeries? Cauterizing tools? Fibrin glue?... to name just a few. There are so many advancements out there. If you think that Blood is the only answer, you are sadly mistaken. As far as "dying" from not receiving a blood transfusion, trauma and disease is what causes death.

Even if I was not one of Jehovah's Witnesses, I wouldn't get a blood transfusion. Have you ever heard of HIV? how about Hepatitis A,B, C,D and E?http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/hepatitis/
What about TRALI? That one is relatively new, but very deadly.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TRALI

Please, for the health of yourself as well as your loved ones, educate yourself!
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3689/is_200406/ai_n9434243
And rather than slam Jehovah's Witnesses for avoiding blood transfusions, you should thank them for helping the medical profession to advance. Without human "Guinea pigs" none of this scientific advancement would be possible.

Answer 6

JWs believe in the Bible and that it’s instruction is for their everlasting benefit.
We know that abstaining from blood means being obedient to God who can give us everlasting life. This doesn’t mean though that we want our kids to die. JWs want alternatives to blood transfusion. A lot of hospitals are recognizing the benefits of the alternatives and they have provided bloodless medical care to those who don’t want transfusion.

Regarding blood transfusion, the procedure is not explicitly found in the Bible but what you find is the law to “abstain from blood”. (Acts 15:28-29) It doesn’t always mean that if something is not found in the Bible that it is always acceptable to God. Cannibalism and cannibal are words not found in the Bible but there are some texts in the Bible which can explain why those are prohibited.

Abstain from blood is a general instruction, an unqualified one. Acts 15:28 -29 doesn’t say “abstain from eating/drinking blood” or “abstain from animal blood”. It only states “abstain from blood”. JWs believe the abstention includes human blood. That’s why Christians do not eat or drink human or animal blood (living or dead) because of the instruction in Acts 15:28,29. Blood transfusion and eating blood are different procedures, but uses the SAME product which is blood. Acts 15:28-29, tells us to abstain from BLOOD (the product). But notice that the abstention in Acts 15:28,29 is only specific to the use IN the human body. The things listed in Acts 15:28-29 all point towards the use in the human body. That’s why it also states “Good Health to you”

Answer 7

Dye or not die is not a issue. The regulation put out at that moment must be the hollyman according to his knowledge and stop his people to do it. If the blood transfusion can save a life, it will not a committment. We are easily to follow the regulation or rules but never go into the reason and think about it suitable or not. Such as we need to stop working on Sunday but save a life is not a working. Jesus did right. What is a pin point of a religious? is to make a happy life and better enviroment for people. The regulations are for the people who do not know how to be happier and better enviroment. The hollyman set up some regulations to limitate the behaviours which easily to commit sins.

For example; we need to have a system to control a faster production and good quality products. The system set up for people who doing think without consider a way to do. Now hit into the situation of production with circumstances; such as meterial problems, we need to change the system. We added in system if hit into so and so situation should go somewhere something to protect the systems. Then hit into another circumstances again, and set up a new systems to protect the previous systems. Added up to the systems and systems again. We will forget the aim point of our faster and better quality aim. We will only concentre on the system instead of the aim we need. These are our easily committing mistakes. Do you agree?

Answer 8

I guess when we decide the Bible is not important, and we no longer care what God says. Considering how prevalent non blood alternatives are, even to the point in my area where you have to request a BT, if the time ever came that we all stopped being Christian, it is doubtful many people would still preform BTs. Remember years ago, Leeches were THE thing to use. Before? that there was the Trepanning.

Princess Yum-Yum was incorrect in her explaination, oooops I mean Sasi, sorry their profiles are just so close, Identical in fact, hmmmmm.

Answer 9

When will you realize that is a false statement? No one NEEDS a blood transfusion.

Cancer patients NEED one of a number of therapies or treatments: radiation or chemo or surgery or a combo of the three.

Surgical patients also have a wide array of therapies or treatments available to them. Most doctors would rather rely on good old blood, without finding out what other alternatives there are. Thereby, the average person is not aware that there are a plethora of options.

See wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloodless_surgery

Answer 10

You must not know that 90% of the people who refuse blood transfusions aren't even Jehovah's Witnesses. They are just people who realize the danger in using someone else's blood. The other mere 10% are witnesses.