New Light on Beards

[Srecko Sostar]

 

[TrueTomHarley]

7 hours ago, Pudgy said:

have the complete DVD set of “Have Gun, Will Travel”. Excellent series about a gun for hire who preferred to settle disputes without violence.

It was a show well ahead of its time. Occasionally an episode is so surreal as to resemble a Twilight Zone. I like the running bit about the Chinese bellhop (is he really named ‘Hey boy?’) routinely reading Paladin’s telegrams and the gun for hire can do nothing about it.

[Anna]

10 hours ago, Anna said:

The admonition to abstain from blood seems pretty clear, I don't know how else one could interpret that..

My only wish is that not only fractions but also whole blood became a conscience matter, and not a disfellowshipping offense. Only because there  are some unanswered questions (although I did say it seems pretty clear to me).

[Many Miles]

7 minutes ago, Anna said:

My only wish is that not only fractions but also whole blood became a conscience matter, and not a disfellowshipping offense. Only because there  are some unanswered questions (although I did say it seems pretty clear to me).

I respect everyone having and holding a personal view. It should be that way. But I am compelled to say your comment above, though true, is an understatement. Noah was told how to abstain from blood, and what blood to abstain from. If we just focus for a moment on the how, Noah was told the abstention was that of eating.

Aside from eating (and completely unrelated to eating), for ancients like Noah there were then existing reasons and means of transplanting blood medicinally both as a therapeutic and preventative for health. God did not require Noah to abstain from that use of blood. It was not eating.

[Many Miles]

On 12/21/2023 at 9:10 AM, xero said:

My point is that when you can take what amounts to everything but the cell wall, just so long as you do it in small enough pieces just sounds to any unindoctrinated observer as pharisaical nit picking.

Regarding red cells, here's just how pharisaical it is under current JW policy:

JWs are not supposed to accept transfusion of red cells. But it is left to each JW to accept fractions of red cells. Right?

Fractionation matters. Right?

Quantity doesn't matter. Right?

JWs are taught regarding red cells, it matters not whether this is eaten through the mouth or transfused through the veins. Right?

It turns out that fractionating red cells is a very easy thing to do. Here are two methods:

- Add tap water to red cells. Done. All fractionated. No red cells!

- Boil red cells. Done. All fractionated. No red cells!

Since it matters not whether this is eaten through the mouth or transfused through the veins, JWs can now eat either of the above fractionated products.

If that sounds absurd, it is. But that's current JW policy.

 

 

[xero]

In the end I want non-blood medical management. Single unit transfusions are useless box-checking done to please the legalistic hospital administrators and to rack up line item expenses. Remember the hospitals and doctors are for-profit entities. My avoidance of blood in any form is more due to my ideas that it's not healthy for me physically, but even it if was good for me, like I had my own "blood boy" I would still not do it because of the history religious and otherwise. I suppose I might be likened to a jew who had never eaten pork and for whom doing so was gross. I might acknowledge that it was legal now since the mosaic restrictions aren't in place, but my brain would still be whispering "Yeah, so then why was it forbidden? Huh? Whatcha gotta say about that?"

[xero]

12 minutes ago, Many Miles said:

Regarding red cells, here's just how pharisaical it is under current JW policy:

JWs are not supposed to accept transfusion of red cells. But it is left to each JW to accept fractions of red cells. Right?

Fractionation matters. Right?

Quantity doesn't matter. Right?

JWs are taught regarding red cells, it matters not whether this is eaten through the mouth or transfused through the veins. Right?

It turns out that fractionating red cells is a very easy thing to do. Here are two methods:

- Add tap water to red cells. Done. All fractionated. No red cells!

- Boil red cells. Done. All fractionated. No red cells!

Since it matters not whether this is eaten through the mouth or transfused through the veins, JWs can now eat either of the above fractionated products.

If that sounds absurd, it is. But that's current JW policy.

 

 

I'm not even sure anyone is clear on the policy any more. All I get is "What should I do bro X?" and I say, read the scriptures, use your conscience and as long as you're settled in your mind and heart, that's all you can do. You can still be wrong, but then again everyone makes mistakes especially when things are ambiguous or they get complicated.

[Many Miles]

2 minutes ago, xero said:

In the end I want non-blood medical management.

Good patient blood management should be in place as a standard of care at every medical institution. Avoiding allogeneic blood transfusion is better for health and living if you don't need it for either. But, from a purely medical perspective, there are instances where the sole treatment to remain alive is transfusion of allogeneic blood. In those cases the choice is that of having an opportunity at more life or not.

[xero]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xtnH0fxDUg

 

[Many Miles]

4 minutes ago, xero said:

I'm not even sure anyone is clear on the policy any more. All I get is "What should I do bro X?" and I say, read the scriptures, use your conscience and as long as you're settled in your mind and heart, that's all you can do. You can still be wrong, but then again everyone makes mistakes especially when things are ambiguous or they get complicated.

It is confusing. The whole policy is a train wreck!

I can't tell you how many have approached me asking to help them complete their documents for them. Each one has the same concern. Each one wants to make sure their documentation lets them take as much as JW policy will let them accept. They don't want to mistakenly leave off anything they are allowed to accept. They're not reading the Bible and drawing conclusions. They're just doing whatever the society says they can do, and they're willing to accept anything the society lets them accept, because they want to live as long and healthy as they can.

[Pudgy]

The deeper all of this is analyzed, to me it makes the wisdom of “abstain from blood“ better and better.

Besides, we’re not supposed to be that afraid of death…

 

[xero]

7 minutes ago, Pudgy said:

The deeper all of this is analyzed, to me it makes the wisdom of “abstain from blood“ better and better.

Besides, we’re not supposed to be that afraid of death…