Bethany Hughes died here in Alberta. I have followed her story with interest, including reading the court's full judgements. Lawrence Hughes even came and spoke to us. For those of us wondering about apparent inconsistencies,
- Bethany was originally put under government custody so that she could be administered blood transfusions. It was at this time that Lawrence re-read all the scriptures on blood, and came to a different conclusion than the society.
- Bethany became so ill that the doctors considered her to be terminal. Her status was changed to "mature minor", as the doctors were convinced that she was now fully aware of the gravity of her condition, and could make decisions about her own health care. The government gave back custody to the parents.
- About the same time Lawrence was denied access to his daughter and was not told where she was, as he and his wife were estranged over the issue. He was not given enough time, even, to travel to her bedside when she died.
- This explains how Bethany early on received blood transfusions, and later stopped.
- According to Lawrence Hughes, Bethany was on a treatment that made her severely anaemic. The treatment most likely killed her, and she would have likely lived longer if they had either left her alone, or given her a blood transfusion.
Even though Bethany was very determined to uphold the society's stand on blood, including speaking up about her rights on radio and writing a poem, I have my doubts as to how much Bethany was in charge of her own choices. We all know what kind of pressure the society can bring to bear. A portion of that poem, by the way, was read at the last convention. Pretty typical of the society. Don't give full credit to the individual martyr. Quote a snippet instead, a token memorial.
defd, whenever I read an amazing story on this board, I go and check it out myself before spouting my doubts. As others have said, do your own research.