Did you know about the organ transplant ban when you were a believer? (page 2)

Heartofaboy

Watchtower, November 15, 1967, page 702, Question from Readers

Humans were allowed by God to eat animal flesh and to sustain their human lives by taking the lives of animals, though they were not permitted to eat blood. Did this include eating human flesh, sustaining one’s life by means of the body or part of the body of another human, alive or dead? No! That would be cannibalism, a practice abhorrent to all civilized people. Jehovah clearly made a distinction between the lives of animals and the lives of humans, mankind being created in God’s image, with his qualities. (Gen. 1:27) This distinction is evident in His next words. God proceeded to show that man’s life is sacred and is not to be taken at will, as may be done with the animals to be used for food. To show disrespect for the sanctity of human life would make one liable to have his own life taken.—Gen. 9:5, 6.

When there is a diseased or defective organ, the usual way health is restored is by taking in nutrients. The body uses the food eaten to repair or heal the organ, gradually replacing the cells. When men of science conclude that this normal process will no longer work and they suggest removing the organ and replacing it directly with an organ from another human, this is simply a shortcut. Those who submit to such operations are thus living off the flesh of another human. That is cannibalistic. However, in allowing man to eat animal flesh Jehovah God did not grant permission for humans to try to perpetuate their lives by cannibalistically taking into their bodies human flesh, whether chewed or in the form of whole organs or body parts taken from others.

Heartofaboy

http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/jw/friends/166438/1/Organ-transplants-cannibalism

Heartofaboy

http://ajwrb.org/organ-transplants

AndDontCallMeShirley

My feelings are very much like yours, Apog. I had heard some comments growing up that the WT used to view organ transplants as cannibalism, but that was about all I knew. No need to look into it further, the current view was no longer the old view (amazing how skillfully WT has indoctrinated JWs with that mindset, isn't it?).

I was a damn good JW, too. I studied; I kept up with Organizational changes and could explain the reasons for them; I could explain any WT eschatology and prophecies in detail, etc, etc.

When I started waking up, my biggest shock was in one fact: I knew virtually NOTHING of my religion's past !!! I was dumbfounded ! How could I be a fourth generation JW, very active, and yet for my entire life I never heard of most of what I was now learning? It revealed not only WT's dark past which had been masterfully obscured by WT, but it helped me to realize this Org. was not, and never has been, "God's Organization".

It also led to one vital question: If WT was wrong on the organ transplant issue, what else are they wrong about? Enter the Pandora's Box of WT's history. Game over for WT !

millie210

I remember ai little paragraph in the back of an Awake during that time period. It was about a man who had a heart transplant and was showing signs of acting like the person who gave the heart.

Im sure they found the little blurb somewhere but they paseed it on because it supported their previously held ideas. It was obviously slanted to show how bad the idea was.

A few decades later in the video "Knocking" there they are glamorizing transplants in their bloodless surgery part of the video. Why? Because they had convinced the Drs to do it "their way" (running blood through cell savers etc)

Like mentioned above, so many policies change based on the prevailing winds of the time. None of them were ever Bible based so I guess that makes it possible to "change them.

Change (sadly) seems to be based on legalities and lawsuits - not on updates from the "Holy Spirit".

Apognophos

Thanks for all the answers so far. I hadn't counted on so many of you remembering when the teaching was in effect, including from when the "ban" was first instituted. I'm just a whippersnapper by comparison; the whole flip-flop was done with by the time I was old enough to really know my religion's beliefs.

But like ADCMS, I thought I was knowledgeable about my religion. I listened to the oldsters talk about the changes in doctrines over the years. I enjoyed reading the Proclaimers book when it came out. Some of the embarrassing history was in there, but needless to say, no mention of the organ transplant debacle.

Heartofaboy

The Watchtower organisation's ability to survive is dependant on feeding misinformation to its adherents rather than giving them the truth Apognophos.

Vidiot

notsurewheretogo - "Seriously, on what planet would a god ever act in this manner?"

I'd normally attribute that kind of behavior to guys like the Olympians.

They were certainly f**ked up enough.

Shirley - "It revealed not only WT's dark past which had been masterfully obscured by WT, but it helped me to realize this Org was not, and never has been, 'God's Organization'."

A realization which very neatly explains said obscurity.

After all, if it's not "God's Organization", what incentive is there to stay?

j dubb

So, did people not read the literatrash? Its not like it was a hidden belief. There were talks on the TMS about it.

James Brown

I knew about it. The organ transplant deal.

Back before the 80's there was no internet and not much communication.

I don't think transplants were as popular as they are today, just because I lived in

a small world and got my news and info from limited sources. The daily newspaer and Time magazine.

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When I was a witness, the JW's were against everything including life itself.

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Then in the early 80's a sickly friend had a kidney transplant and he got better.

I wondered how could that be?

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I remember when you couldn't have organ transplants.

And you could not eat Milky way, 3 Muskateers bars and snickers bars, any Mars candy bars

Because the society said they had blood in them.

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I remember when the United Nations was bad sort of like the Devil or the Harlot riding

Babylon the great and then I find out the Society was a member.

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Looking back I see the society was double minded about many things hiding behind the excuse

that the light was getting brighter and brighter.

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I don't think there light is getting brighter and brighter. I think they were staring into a

strobe light and it was confusing them.

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Like one of the early witness presidents said religion was a snare and a racket.

That must be why he got into it, to snare and rackateer innocent gullible people.

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When people are in the middle of the forest they can not see the forest for the trees.

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I have a friend who is a scientologist and we have talked about it.

I told him how L.Ron Hubard said a person could make a milllion dollars if he started a religion.

My Scientology friend does not get it.

But he did say he had to stop going to scientology whatever where ever they go because he did not have enough money.

He was saving up.

Did you know about the organ transplant ban when you were a believer?

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