Should Jehova's Witnesses be allowed to refuse blood transfusions?

Question

A 22 year old mother has died after giving birth to twins. Allegedly she had refused, on religious grounds, a blood transfusion which may have saved her.

What an utterly pointless loss of a young life.

Apparently in the UK doctors are not able to overule their patients religious beliefs. I would argue that in these cases the patients brain is so riddled with irrational belief that they are incapable of making a sensible decision. I think that doctors should medically intervene to protect the patients interests, and the interests of her now motherless children.

http://news.independent.co.uk/health/article3132440.ece

Its all very well to say its her choice but the only reason doctors respect her wish is because of her religious beliefs.

If she'd simply decided she wanted to die and told doctors not to give her blood they would have refused and over-ruled her on the grounds that she must be mad. Why should a deluded belief in a supernatural cult change this.

Fireball - FYI this is a global forum.

Answer 1

Yes.

Death is unnatural, and saddens every reasonable person. It seems crass, however, to turn a tragic death into a platform for one's opinionated rantings.

This tragedy occurred nearly two weeks ago, on October 25, 2007. Despite what pro-blood activists and anti-Witness critics might pretend, her doctors informed the family that Mrs. Gough would have died even if she had received blood transfusions.

That's little consolation, but it is unsurprising.

During a hemorrhagic event, artificial expanders almost always work better than blood itself at keeping veins and arteries from collapsing. In addition, targeted treatment of specific blood fractions is considered preferable to old-fashioned "throw everything at it and see what sticks" thinking of whole blood transfusions. Of course, Jehovah's Witnesses generally accept artificial products and fractions derived from plasma, platelets, and red/white cells.

Since Jehovah's Witnesses only refuse whole blood and its four major components, doctors still have many many proven products and techniques. In fact, many or most doctors have come to prefer these products and techniques for ALL their patients.


It is not Jehovah's Witnesses who decide that blood is 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/index.htm?article=article_07.htm
http://watchtower.org/e/vcnb/article_01.htm

Answer 2

Yes, of course, if they are adults and they are following their conscience. It's their body, and they believe a blood transfusion would be a violation of it.

Children, on the other hand, should be protected until they're old enough to decide for themselves.

What is really sad to me is that JW's don't really get to make the choice for themselves, even the adults. Their religious leaders have made the choice for them, and if a member would decide differently, the member would be shunned by the church. Even their own families wouldn't have anything to do with them.

So even though they choose to die, it might not be the same choice they would have made if it weren't for the fact that their life would be ruined anyway if they had a BT and lived.

Answer 3

That decision was her right as a religious woman. Religious beliefs are sacracanct and no person should ever be forced to do something that from the stand point of their religion would be wrong. Likewise no person should be prevented from doing somethng required by their religion for any reason by any outsider either.

While I do not agree with the belief of Jehova's witnesses that causes them to refuse such things, I respect anyone that will adhere that strongly to their religious belief, regardless of what it is.

I applaud the UK for having such a rule and strongly sugest that they expand it to other areas where there may be a conflict between religious belief and other regualtins. I also STRONGLY suggest that the US take a page from that book and do likewise.

Answer 4

I remember hearing a case where a man's wife was giving birth and required a blood transfusion to save both the mother and child's lives. They refused because they were JW's. However, mere hours later, it became quite apparent that both would die, and the doctor announced a last-minute decision to give a blood transfusion. An elder there with them actually suggested to the father to sneak the baby and mother out and air-lift them somewhere else, essentially suggesting to the father to kill both of them. Of course, he refused. The infuriated elder said to them, "I hope your baby gets a disease from that blood" and walked out.

They mentioned how broken and confused they were in life after all that, but both the mother and child survived. And most personally, my older sister, born three months premature (over 20 years ago) would have died had my mother not accepted a blood transfusion. My sister was pronounced dead for 20 minutes. There was nothing for my parents to lose once the doctor miraculously got her heart to begin again, performing a procedure in minutes; one that usually takes hours. But people die and that is what happens when ridiculously misinterpreted Scripture takes hold of an organization and its followers. Watchtower is nothing short of a cult.

Sprite: By your reasoning, all "saved" Jehovah's Witnesses should just commit suicide because they're going to a new world, right? Oh that's right, you're saved by works so if you killed yourself, you wouldn't have well served your organization. You may not have served as much hours in service as the next guy, so Jehovah won't save you. Do you really believe that somebody should die because of your beliefs? I care about Jehovah's Witnesses because they are people, too. You don't even care about your fellow man (or woman). Can't you see what lies Watchtower has led you to believe?

Answer 5

Isn't the United States all about freedom of religion?

Besides, It would be better to die obedient to God, than disobey Him and have no hope for the future. -Acts 15:28; John 3:36

"For whoever wants to save his soul will lose it; but whoever loses his soul for my sake will find it." -Matthew 16:25

That woman had such great faith that she put her life on the line for the sake of obedience to God. Not many other religions would place obedience to God ahead of their own life. Didn't Jesus also die for righteousness sake?

You said " a blood tranfusion which MAY have saved her". Blood transfusion are not the only option available, There are other options such as volume expanders. Furthermore, blood transfusions are not guaranteed to work. Jehovah's Witnesses always seek alternatives to blood transfusions. They do this because they believe that the Bible shows that God does not approve of taking in blood (Leviticus 17:11, 14; Acts 15:28). They believe that God views blood as sacred. Blood represents a person's life and the blood of Jesus is the only blood which can give a person everlasting salvation.

Answer 6

This woman believed she was going to a new world.A world of everlasting life. Why would she risk that by saving her life she has now on this evil rotten world for a few miserable years in satans dominion?Why are you so concerned about the life of a Jehovah's Witness? The bible says to keep clean and abstain from blood.Blood is life.Tainted blood can do more harm than good. Their are lots of alternatives than receiving blood.

Answer 7

When you allow the government to become your nanny, or worse, your overlord, you have given up a right more precious than life itself. Many people have died for freedom. If you don't understand that, you are not worthy of the sacrifices they have made for you.

Answer 8

Freedom of thought baby. It is her choice to die, same as when relative of brain-dead patients can choose to cease artificial assistance.

Answer 9

Be careful. If we go down that road, one day the government will make decisions for you, just because your way of thinking is in the minority.
I don't agree with JWs on this point, but I will defend their right to have their wishes honored.

Answer 10

In the U.S., courts have overruled parental authority in the case of children who need transfusions.

Actually, there is a commandment to not kill, along with one to not eat blood. When you eat, it is digested and changed into elements. When you transfuse, you are imparting life saving hemoglobin. I'll go with the transfusions, and the deluded persons who die while killing themselves will face God for self-murder.

Shalom, peace in Jesus, Ben Yeshua