Chapter 13
A Godly view of Life
The book says;
Life is a gift from God the creator. He provides food and water to sustain us. “To enjoy life to the full, we need to learn God’s laws and obey them”.
God values human life. He punished Cain when he murdered his brother and gave laws to Israel about respecting life. We should respect our own lives by avoiding harmful practices like smoking tobacco or taking drugs. It is important to be safety conscious too. We should keep our homes and cars in safe condition and avoid dangerous, thrill-seeking sports.
“The life of an unborn child….is precious to Jehovah”, so “abortion is wrong“.
Killing animals for food or clothing is fine, but not for sport.
We must show respect for blood by not eating it. Texts are quoted from Genesis and Leviticus. Christians must “abstain from blood” according to Acts 15. “Does the command to abstain from blood include blood transfusions? Yes”. An illustration is given about alcohol. If a doctor told you to abstain, would you inject alcohol into your veins?
If a Christian is injured, alternative forms of treatment may be used “to preserve God’s precious gift of life”. If you took a blood transfusion “just to stay alive a little longer in this system of things”, you “would be in danger of losing everlasting life”.
The only proper use of blood is in sacrifice to Jehovah. The Mosaic Law, with its sacrifices, “pointed forward to the perfect sacrifice of God’s Son, Jesus Christ….. Jesus gave his human life for us by letting his blood be shed as a sacrifice”.
Appreciation for life should “motivate us to tell others about the opportunity to gain everlasting life. Godly concern for the lives of fellow humans will move us to do this with eagerness and zeal ”.
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My response:
In this chapter, the expression "true Christians" is used. This is Watchtower code for "Jehovah's Witnesses". They are trying to set themselves apart, suggesting to their followers that they alone, in all the world, are the only "true" Christians. Whether they are Christians at all, is a question for another time.Respect for life is important to any thinking person, whether religious or not, but again, it is not always a simple matter. Philosophers from Aristotle to Peter Singer, have written whole books on the sanctity of life, including animal life.
Many people who oppose abortion make an exception in the case of rape, particularly of minors. They reason that the early embryo stage of cell development is not a viable human life. Thus, they would permit cessation of the pregnancy in cases of rape, without feeling that they are disrespecting life. There is a huge difference between “abortion on demand” for reasons of convenience and cases of rape. It is not a simple matter.
While some religions have great respect for animal life, to the extent that their adherents are vegans, followers of the Bible have no such dilemmas. Killing animals is justified by God and that is very convenient for us. Unfortunately, this has led to factory farming on a grand scale, particularly in America, where animals are kept in unnatural, filthy conditions, barely within the law, to satisfy the appetites of carnivore humans. Should our “respect for life” not extend to these?
God gave dietary laws regarding the treatment of blood in the Old Testament. It was to be poured on the ground when an animal was slaughtered. Eating blood was forbidden, but this command cannot possibly be logically extrapolated to include blood transfusions. It is, quite simply, a ridiculous notion, dreamed up by an ignorant Watchtower leader in the 1960s. The illustration about injecting alcohol, is even more stupid.
When we eat blood, it travels into a closed system (the gut) and is digested into amino acids, since it is mostly protein. Every time we eat meat, we are consuming molecules of blood which are in the interstitial tissues. Some meats are more bloody than others, so it is impossible to be a carnivore and not eat blood. But the Watchtower argues that this is fine, so long as animals are slaughtered and blood is poured out (not kept for sausages etc).
When blood of the correct type is transfused into us, it mixes with our own blood, becoming part of our total body fluid in the vascular system. Water balance in the body is vital. Excess fluid is filtered from the blood as it flows through the kidneys and expelled in the urinary system. This journey through the arteries and veins can never be compared with “eating blood”, except by someone who has dismally failed High School Biology.
The Watchtower likes to quote Acts 15:28-29 - “abstain from blood”. “Abstain” means avoid completely, they say, so the OT laws are repeated, in effect, to Christians. Once again, if you are still thinking and questioning, you should be reading whole chapters of the Bible now when the Watchtower quotes isolated verses. Read the whole chapter of Acts 15 now.
It tells us that, in the early Christian congregation, there were Jews and non-Jews (Gentiles). A question arose from Judea about male circumcision, which practice, the Jews followed from the Law. The Jews said that “proper Christians” should be circumcised like them. The Gentiles objected, so several men went to Jerusalem, to the apostles, to sort this out. After some debate and under the influence of the Holy Spirit, James wrote a letter to all Christians, “to abstain from things polluted by idols and from fornication and from what is strangled and from blood” (Acts 15:20) And why? Because Moses “is read aloud in the synagogues every Sabbath”. Jews still attending the synagogue were hearing the Mosaic Law read out every week, including its dietary prohibitions. So, for the sake of the consciences of the Jewish Christians who, all their lives had avoided blood, fornication, things strangled and idolatry, James instructed the Gentiles to have respect for the Jews’ sensitive viewpoint. It is as simple as that.
If you need further confirmation, read all of Romans 14 and 1 Corinthians chapters 8-10. Here, Paul writes to settle disputes about what it is right to eat. Why? Because, for the first time, Jews and Gentiles are mixing socially and in the congregation. They are sitting down together to eat, but with the Jewish Christian mind affected by following the Law all their lives. The Gentiles sit at table eating what they have always eaten - everything and anything - blood, food bought in pagan temples and animals which have not been bled. The Jewish Christians are appalled, but Paul, says, “It’s alright. Eat what you like. Nothing is unclean now, BUT you Gentiles, be considerate of the feelings of your Jewish brothers and you Jews, stop being too sensitive about what others eat.”
Once again, a plain reading of the Bible shows us the truth. It is impossible to find anything in scripture about blood transfusions, unless you read Watchtower publications to “help you understand”. This sick, perverted, man-made rule brings death to its followers.
The fact is, blood transfusions save lives repeatedly, but the Watchtower leadership has taught Jehovah’s Witnesses to argue with doctors on matters about which they are not at all qualified. All sorts of “alternative treatments” have been suggested, but none of them, without exception, is so effective as blood because blood IS blood and that is what the vascular system requires, to transport oxygen to the cells.
Over the years since the 1960s, when this deadly policy was introduced, the Watchtower has repeatedly adjusted its stance on “the blood issue”. Originally, blood transfusion was simply forbidden, but in the intervening years, they have made allowances which permit Jehovah’s Witnesses to accept certain blood fractions. Don’t ask me what they are! They have changed so often, that Jehovah’s Witnesses themselves don’t know. Doctors are even more confused because they can see how stupid it is to forbid one part of blood while accepting another and still declaring, “We do not take blood!”.
One thing is certain; Jehovah's Witnesses are allowed to take fractions of blood with the blessing of their leadership in Brooklyn. But where do these fractions come from? The answer is simple. Donated blood. And are Jehovah's Witnesses numbered among blood donors? No. Donation of blood by a Witness would lead to a "judicial" committee and expulsion from the religion. So, while Witnesses do not mind taking blood according to their crazy, hair-splitting rules, they will not give blood, so that others may benefit. The Bible's admonition that "there is more happiness in giving than in receiving" is turned upon its head by the Watchtower. In recent years, the Watchtower has introduced Hospital Liaison Committees. These are elders (always men) who will “assist” Witnesses in hospital, advising them on what treatments are acceptable for Jehovah’s Witnesses. A more cynical person might think they are there to keep an eye on weak Witnesses who might quietly follow their doctor’s advice……
As a result of this blood policy, tens of thousands of Witnesses have died in the last 50 years, while millions of others have lived in fear for themselves and their loved ones as necessary operations or childbirth approached. Others have avoided having essential surgery, knowing that blood transfusion would be an essential part of treatment.
There is a famous case in Scots Law (Rex v. Blaue 1975) in which a young, female Jehovah’s Witness was stabbed in the chest. She refused a blood transfusion and died four hours later. The case is interesting because the assailant appealed, saying that the woman’s religious belief caused her death, but Lord Lawton, in his wisdom, rejected the Appeal. It was the stab wound that caused death. The important principle is “that those who use violence on other people must take their victims as they find them. This in our judgement means the whole man, not just the physical man”. But again, this woman would have lived had she accepted a blood transfusion.
This policy on blood is only accepted by most Jehovah’s Witnesses because they know that there is a fair chance they will never have to face it. But when an emergency arises, they have to put all human compassion for their wives, husbands or children aside and follow this stupid Watchtower law.
In view of the foregoing evidence, which I hope you have checked for yourself, does it seem to you that the Watchtower organisation shows “respect for life”? And why has your Witness teacher waited until now to reveal this difficult and controversial teaching?
Finally, the chapter ends with encouragement to go preaching with Jehovah’s Witnesses. Gradually, the student is being drawn into a time-consuming routine, attending meetings and giving up leisure time to promote the Watchtower message.
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