Jehovah's Witnesses on vaccination (let's remember)

by opusdei1972 13 Replies latest watchtower medical

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  berrygerry

  BTW, I do not see the images of the references.

  There is a post at: http://www.vaccineriskawareness.com/Vaccines-A-Religious-Contention-

  JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES
  
  Jehovah’s Witnesses have historically been against vaccination because it is contrary to scriptures, and their religion totally banned it up until 1952, although in more recent years they have stated it is up to the individual Jehovah’s Witness to decide: "As vaccination is a direct injection of animal matter in the blood stream, vaccination is a direct violation of the law of Jehovah God." (The Golden Age publication, 1935 April 2 p. 465).
  
  "Oh, yes, serums vaccines, toxins, inoculations, are all -harmless', because the man who is selling them says so. You, my friends, believe this LIE, and continue to submit your body to these violations; then all I can say is, 'God have mercy on your soul'. All vaccination is unphysiological, a crime against nature." (Consolation 1939 May 31 p. 8).

  ‘Would it be proper to accept a vaccination or some other medical injection containing albumin derived from human blood? Witnesses have long realized (Interesting wording - not "the GB", but "Witnesses" realized - does that mean that Witnesses are able to realize things on their own) that this is a matter for private decision in accord with each one’s Bible-trained conscience. Some Christians who feel that they can in good conscience accept such injections have noted that antibodies from the blood of a pregnant woman cross into the blood of the baby in her womb.” (The Watchtower, October 1, 1994).

  The reason for this about turn? In 1952, when Jehovah’s Witnesses lifted the ban on vaccination, they wrote: "The matter of vaccination is one for the individual that has to face it to decide for himself. . . . And our Society cannot afford to be drawn into the affair legally or take the responsibility for the way the case turns out." (my emphasis – The Watchtower, 15 December 1952).

  Essentially they still disagreed with vaccination but were too afraid of the medical profession taking legal action against them.
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  berrygerry

  Actually, better quotes (especially remember the "filthy pus") from jwfacts

  http://www.jwfacts.com/watchtower/medical.php#vaccinations

  Vaccinations

  From 1921 to 1952, the Golden Age presented information against vaccinations. To cement this viewpoint in the minds of followers, vaccinations were described as worthless, harmful from a medical standpoint, and morally wrong from a biblical standpoint.

  "Vaccination never prevented anything and never will, and is the most barbarous practice...We are in the last days; and the devil is slowly losing his hold, making a strenuous effort meanwhile to do all the damage he can, and to his credit can such evils be placed. ... Use your rights as American citizens to forever abolish the devilish practice of vaccinations." Golden Age 1921 Oct 12 p.17

  "Thinking people would rather have smallpox than vaccination, because the latter sows the seed of syphilis, cancers, escema, erysipelas, scrofula, consumption, even leprosy and many other loathsome affections. Hence the practice of vaccination is a crime, an outrage and a delusion." Golden Age 1929 May 1 p.502

  "Avoid serum inoculations and vaccinations as they pollute the blood stream with their filthy pus." Golden Age 1929 Nov 13 pp.106-107

  This was partially supported on the basis that blood byproducts could not be used.

  "Vaccination is a direct violation of the everlasting covenant that God made with Noah after the flood." Golden Age 1931 Feb 4 p.293

  "Of all the inventions that have been foisted upon mankind for their defilement the most subtly devilish is that of vaccination." Ibid p.295

  The Golden Age 1931, February 4 issue devoted 10 pages to why vaccinations were not for Christians. The index page to the 1931 article claimed this as the viewpoint of the Creator.

  

  A series of images further enforced the point.

  
  Golden Age 1932 Mar 30 p.409
  
  
  Golden Age 1939 May 31 p.5

  The cartoon picture above shows dead and pock marked babies below a clergy like representation. In reality, it was vaccinations that practically eliminated small pox. With little medical knowledge, the society went about using scare tactics to convince the people that vaccinations were wrong. This resulted in some Witness children being barred from schools in America for refusing vaccinations.

  Legal concerns seem to be a factor behind the Watchtower Society reversing its position and allowing vaccinations from the 1950's.

  "The matter of vaccination is one for the individual that has to face it to decide for himself... And our Society cannot afford to be drawn into the affair legally or take the responsibility for the way the case turns out." Watchtower 1952 Dec 15 p.764

  Did Holy Spirit direct the Society to decree vaccinations were unchristian for a period of time, and later say they were acceptable? For followers who are trained to accept everything coming from the Organization as food from Jehovah, this has potentially led to needless loss of Witness lives.

  In 1993 the following was written, and whilst strictly correct it can be understood in light of what appears above to be quite misleading.

  "Previous articles in this journal and its companion, The Watchtower, have presented a consistent position: It would be up to the Bible-trained conscience of the individual Christian as to whether he would accept [vaccinations] for himself and his family." Awake! 1993 Aug 8 p.25
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  opusdei1972

  williamhconley: As you pointed out, the Society knew for many years that vaccination was OK, but the Watchtower did not want to admit it publicly.

  A famous ex-witness who wrote a book exposing the history of the Watchtower wrote me the following:

  I remember well how this was enforced. As a boy, my grandfather was very angry with the Golden Age. He was a medical doctor, and it was as much because of vaccination as anything that he refused to become a Bible Student or Witness. I have a letter to him from a physician in Michigan who told him - in answer to a letter that he had written - to ignore the Witnesses; they were just fanatics.
  When I moved to Arizona in 1948, Witnesses regularly put lemon juice on their arms after being vaccinated when coming from or going into Mexico. However, the society began to forget about vaccination - as Macmillan points out - when it affected young men in prisons for refusing military service and when the society began to send missionaries abroad. Undoubtedly, Knorr and other high Watchtower officials were vaccinated. Otherwise they couldn't have traveled to Latin America or Asia. Yet curiously, the society failed to tell the Witness community that vaccinations were okay for many years. What absolute hypocrites!
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  opusdei1972

  Did Holy Spirit direct the Society to decree vaccinations were unchristian for a period of time, and later say they were acceptable? For followers who are trained to accept everything coming from the Organization as food from Jehovah, this has potentially led to needless loss of Witness lives.

  In fact, the President of the Watchtower Society, Joseph Rutherford, taught that no holy spirit was directing the Society:

  “After the holy spirit as an advocate or paraclete ceased to function in behalf of the consecrated, then the angels are employed in behalf of those who are being made ready for the kingdom. ‘For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all they ways’ -Ps. 91:11″ (Preservation, 1932 p. 51-52)

  “By his spirit, the holy spirit, Jehovah God guides or leads his people up to a certain point of time, and thus he did until the time when ‘the comforter’ was taken away, which would necessarily occur when Jesus, the Head of his organization, came to the temple and gathered unto himself those whom he found faithful when he, as the great Judge, began his judgment, in 1918.” (Preservation, 1932 p. 193-194)