- cross-posted to:
- atheism@lemmy.world
- cross-posted to:
- atheism@lemmy.world
So… which higher up at the JW organization needed a life saving transfusion? No way they changed their minds on this unprompted.
The hierarchical structure of this organisation is absolutely vile.
Also,the ones out witnessing at the train Station or going door to door are usually at the bottom of the hierarchy,so I for one am always politenl to them,even if i dont engage. It’s not nice to mess with them or slam the door or whatever.
Next up in the news, “Jehovah’s Witnesses are going door to door asking for the blood of the innocent.”
Christianity also updates its Ts&Cs on occasion, like in 2007 when Pope John Paul II had a document commisioned, the publication of which was also authorised by Pope Benedict XVI, that basically said unbaptised children now go to heaven instead of limbo.
That was a good retcon though
The Mormon church ‘conveniently’ decided to change their rhetoric about non-white people being marked by god because of past sin, right around the time of the Civil Rights Movement.
They were also firmly disproven by DNA evidence in their claim that native Americans descended from Israelites. Oops.
Well what did they witness this time?
J/W’s are a 19th century pyramid scheme.
Is this another of Satan’s temptations?
Is this a major version bump? Like are we on 3.0 now?
So about 25 years ago, my mother remarried. Her new husband was a Jehovah Witness, or at least he had been before his previous divorce made him no longer welcome. Well, with their marriage he’s suddenly welcome again, and so both he and my mother were JW.
Fast forward five years, and my mother has a condition in which she had to undergo surgery. During surgery, her red blood cell count dropped dangerously and thus required a blood transfusion. No medical issues with the transfusion, it all went well.
A few weeks later she has to return for further surgery. My siblings and I are visiting with her in the pre-op room, and we’re suddenly joined with elders from her church. They’d heard about the earlier transfusion, and were there with pre-filled out paperwork for her to sign to decline any further should the medical need arise this time. I interrupted, and as the oldest of her children, I told her that under no circumstances would she be signing that. Ultimately, she did not sign and they left the church because of it.
If someone has a deeply held belief, who am I to tell them they’re wrong. But my mother had no belief in the “sin” of blood transfusions. She’d only been part of the church for a handful of years. And even those “deeply held beliefs” of the church, they were subject to change themselves. Organ donation was once viewed within the church the same way they’d been viewing blood transfusion, but at some point the benefits of organ donation were clear enough to alter the “rules.” I’m glad they’re finally changing their views on this, but they could have killed my family member if I hadn’t insisted they leave, and I won’t forget that.
This is how you know it’s all made up bullshit.
In the US there is more control die to waivers and health insurance etc,but in Ireland my JW Friends have orders to obey the law of the land when it comes to doctrine conflicting with health matters,therefore they will grudgingly accept emergency blood transfusions.
Whenever I see stupid shit like JW refusing blood, i’m reminded of the parable of the man in the flood, who keeps getting rescuers coming to him time and time again, only to refuse it all with the declaration that god would save them… and then they finally die in the flood, and they angerly accost got about why god didnt save him, and god is all like “Fuck you, You fucking idiot. You refused every rescue that came your way. This is your fault for being stupid”
I’ve seen it in the form of a comic or a short story and God literally said “who do you think sent the rescuers” which if you believe in God is kinda how it’s supposed to work I believe, rather than God straight up lifting you out if the water
Well, sadly most user manuals for religions, are filled with stupid shit, with the odd exception like “Love thy neighbor” (which apparently has the corollary “but fuck anyone far away enough to not be your neighbor”).
I believe!!! That Satan has a hold of you. I believe! That the Lord God has sent me here! And I believe that in 1978 God changed his mind about black people!!
It’s kind of interesting how religions handle change in their theology. The Catholics have very few teachings that have been designated “infallible” - almost everything is potentially up for grabs (https://uscatholic.org/articles/201105/is-there-a-list-of-infallible-teachings/). Judaism has a whole thing about “since God gave the Torah to us at Sinai, it is now ours to interpret, and God himself said that we should rule on legal matters by majority vote (Exodus 23:2)” (https://www.mayimachronim.com/not-in-heaven-the-snake-oven-of-akhnai/) I am sure other religions have their own get out of jail cards, too.
Prayers for those who died of blood loss 2 hours before God pushed the “allow transfusions” hotfix ☹️ 🙏
Hospitals in areas with large JW populations have opaque IV bags available, and at patient’s request will lie to visitors about what is in it. Members have been “following their conscience” for decades, and I suspect this change is more about not ostrasizing those members than actually changing behavior.
I wonder if they are using AI for their revisions now.
But do they get christmas?






