How can the watchtower prohibit a selective transfusion of white blood cells that was needed to save the life for the children in Awake May 22 1994 if these cells are part of mothersmilk?

Answer 1

Jehovah's Witnesses forbid the 'taking of blood' because in Acts 15:29, Paul states that this should 'not' be done. JWs take literally the whole of The Bible, at face value, and so, for them, this verse forbids them from 'taking' blood.

However, reading the context of this verse throws up the real reason for Paul's comment. Jews were forbidden, on good health grounds if nothing else, from eating meat that had not been drained of blood. However, when Christ came, he expressly said that nothing that goes into a person can defile that person - only what comes out of their mouth (ie slander, anger, lies and so on). Also Peter saw a vision where he was shown all manner of things to eat - some of which were previously forbidden - with the message that all was acceptable in Christ, and the old rules were no more. Thus, some of the Jewish converts in the early Church began to eat pork, undrained meat, shellfish and so on.

In the context of Acts 15, there were many Jews that were converts to Christianity but who, because of habit and certain misgivings, preferred to stick to their old diets. Paul says in this passage that, in order to avoid offending such people, the converted Jews, who now ate pork and blood, were to abstain from these things while visiting them or ministering to them. Thus, they would not cause offence to the new converts. However, this ruling was never, never, ever meant to be a ruling for all Christians for all time - and even if it was it was a ruling that controlled the devouring of blood and blood products and never blood transfusion. This is not only born out in the early Church customs, but also by Christ himself. His command, to 'eat my "flesh" and drink my "blood" ' at the Last Supper would be an alien and horrific concept to the Jew unless the ruling on blood products was relaxed. Despite this, in the jehovah's Witness belief system they are quite content to watch their own loved ones die (even their own children) for the want of a blood transfusion.

Despite what Jehovah's Witnesses claim in that they represent the 'true Church' of early Christianity, nothing is further from the truth. They represent the disgraced Arian doctrines (where Jesus is not classed as divine) that were resurrected by their founder Charles Taize Russell, who had a very warped and confused theological belief. Thus, just as the witnesses' ideas on Christ's atonement are confused, as they regard him as a 'semigod' (whatever that means), and are not in accord with the Christian Church, so are their doctrines on other things, like blood, based on a skewed interpretation of scripture.

Therefore, to answer the question put, the JWs have really no defence when it comes to white cells and placental transfer, simply because their rulings on blood are not only not of God, but simply do not make a great deal of sense.

Answer 2

Jehovah's Witnesses follow bible law. There is a biblical prohibition ONLY against the use of blood. Nothing is said regarding blood fractions. Jehovah's Witnesses therefore refuse transfusions of both whole blood and its primary blood components. (Acts 15:29). When it comes to fractions of any of the primary components Jehovah's Witnesses view it as a personal matter of conscience and each individual must make their own decision.

Some refuse to accept gamma globulin, blood-based clotting factors (even fractions intended to provide temporary passive immunity), and so on, because they are derived from blood which must be collected and processed. Others reason that since certain plasma proteins can pass from one system to another (mother fetoeus immunoglobulin transfer) they could accept a blood fraction derived from blood plasma or cells.