Heads up, the Local Needs part this week is a special talk on blood transfusions.

A brother called me to ask who was delivering the talk at our hall. I didn't know what he was talking about. He then explained to me that this week, for the Local Needs, congregations across the US will have a brother deliver a special outline on blood transfusions.

I'm wondering what caused this.

More confusion?

This week or next week?

This week Baltar. I'll hear it tommorrow. I wonder if Ynot has this outline.

Where is Ynot? I haven't seen her post in ages.

Refresh my memory please, this would not be about signing the cards, right? That happens towards the end of the year?

Already had this talk in my hall.  It speaks about helping your children through it, even though the law of the land prohibits parents from making life-saving decisions.  Hospital Liason Commitee, bla bla bla.

Its probably the stupid talk where they hand out the power of attorney so they cant be sued by the courts.

See kids if you get into a terrible accident and the Doctor wants to give you a blood transfusion to save you from dieing, you say no

let me die because thats what Yahweh wants and it will make him very happy.

Show front cover of Awake magazine with those kids smiling because they choose to die, rather to live on a make god angry.  

It's true, this was covered in meeting tonite omg !  I'm still sick!

They literally said to be faithful and refuse blood for your child.  If child was older teach them to be obedient and faithful.  Prepare them...what to say.

Seemed like they were kind of hoping the authorities would step in though, and give the blood.  Hypocrites!!  Said it was all the parents responsibility to do this ...not the society!!!!  oh yeah!  

Imagine, watching your child bleed out.  Idiots!  The reward from the wt will be your childs picture posted on the front cover of the awake magazine!

This is an excellent link on the whole issue of blood, showing it is not scriptural at all!

http://jehovah.net.au/blood.html

clarity

i hope/pray the hackers become interested since children's lives are involved and go after them like they did the scientologists.  

Someone told me that this same talk was heard on the first day of the recent Elders school.  Theme something like:  'How Parents Can Protect Their Children From Misuse Of Blood.'

I'm not here, but...

The talk is based on the S-55-E information sheet from the elders school.

The talk outlined the steps parents must take in order to not be considered responsible if the child ends up with a court-ordered transfusion. My high level summary:

Prepare the kid with what to say.

Tell doctors your stand.

If a doctor says that he cannot guarantee he will not give blood, but will do his very best to avoid the use of blood, then it is okay for the parents to accept the treatment and they should not be judged on this. However, they should still continue strongly object against blood transfusions.

If they are in court, and the court asks if they parents would feel it acceptable transferring the responsibility of the decision to the court, the parent must emphasize that is their responsiblity and they want no blood. Do not say in court that you want your child to be martyr, or that you're willing to let them die if it means taking blood. Rather you say that you want the best quality transfusion-alternative health care.

If the court goes ahead with the court order regardless, the parent will continue to please with all doctors and medical personal that they want blood transfusions alternatives and not a blood transfusion.

If the parent has followed all these steps, then they should not feel responsible  if their child received a blood transfusion.

The jist of this was mentioned in a 1992 Kingdom Ministry article:

*** km 9/92 p. 3 par. 6 Safeguarding Your Children From Misuse of Blood ***

6 In view of this, what if, in your search for a suitable doctor for your child, you find one with a record of good cooperation with Jehovah’s Witnesses and who had in the past performed the same bloodless procedure for other Witnesses, yet he feels that the law does not allow him to give you an absolute guarantee that blood would not be used? However, he assures you that he feels there will be no problem this time as well. You may decide this is your best option. Under these circumstances you might conclude that you could grant permission to proceed. Make it quite clear, however, that in giving permission for medical treatment for your child you are not giving permission for blood transfusions. Taking this course would be a responsibility you would have to bear without your decision being viewed as a compromise.

My impression was similar to clarity's. Do what you can, and show that your are fighting (but hope like hell that they will not listen to you and instead save your kid's life). At least that's what I'd be thinking.

Until next time...

i went through this. my baby needed a tranfusion and my JW family was sitting outside while we were talking with the doctor. i told the doctor how this situation put additional stress on us. he was pretty well informed on the wittness stance. so i asked him on what i could tell my JW family and he told me a few things acceptable to JWs. so that's what we repeated outside, simply ignoring the blood part.

it's terrible, the whole situation is exhausting even without all that JW stuff, and you only have additional pressure put on you by all the JWs who just want to help and ask if you'd need the anti blood squad around.

Sounds like more legal wrangling to make the WTS. or the parents not accountable or libel, just in case the child dies.

Or to make any government official who forces a BT by court order, to look evil and unjustifiable for the action taken.

The WTS. lawyers are not only fighting for the right of JWS who are parents to pursue their religious freedom,

they are also in a battle to win public appeal in the courts.  Recently (some) of governments are wining the battle and have been issuing court orders

 for the doctors to proceed with a BT when it is a most medical urgency.   Yeah Governments   

The local needs part was entitled:   'How Parents Can Protect Their Children From Misuse Of Blood.'........or something along those lines. 

Left me & my wife wondering why same talk thru out U.S. on local needs part?  What's the need? Someone on the forum know?

Yep, the theme is this:

"It's not enough that you must be willing to sacrifice the life of your child to protect the sanctity of some anonymous stranger's blood; no, you must make sure your child, even if a pre-teen, is willing to commit suicide by doing so himself."

This made me ill to read this. I'd want to keep anyone from the HLC the hell away from the Hospital and Doctors.

Heaven forbid they educate the people about blood in a talk, just tell them to refuse it.

I'm so annoyed with this stance words are starting to fail me.

Pretty astonishing when you consider that blood transfusions were completely unknown in bible times.

The witnesses made this up all on their own.