Children, Blood Transfusions and The Canadian Courts

I support the right of competent adults to die for their beliefs. I don't believe that parents have the right to sacrifice the lives of their children for these beliefs. As a society, we reject the types of brutal child sacrifices that were common in times past. It makes little difference that the advocates of this type of ritual may have been sincere in their beliefs. Society must protect the lives of the young and innocent.

The beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses may seem more benign, but they can be just as deadly. They are also willing to let their children die because of the religious symbolism of blood. This poses great moral dilemmas for the courts who sometimes feel compelled to intervene to protect innocent children.

Recently, this issue has been getting a lot of attention in Canada, where a set of premature sextuplets were born into a Jehovah's Witness family and given blood transfusions. The Winnipeg Free Press has an interesting article on this ongoing legal challenge.

See also this video about the sextuplets.

2007-A Bloody Year for Jehovah's Witnesses

Here are just a few news stories about Jehovah's Witnesses refusing blood transfusions in 2007.

2007-A Bloody Year for Jehovah's Witnesses

First Post

Jehovah's Witnesses have a strict and confusing policy about taking blood transfusions. Many have died as a result. I firmly support the right of individuals to make personal decisions about their medical care. However, I believe that the leadership of Jehovah's Witnesses has misrepresented Biblical texts on blood and the medical benefits and dangers of blood transfusions. They also threaten their members with extreme, ritualised shunning if they accept a blood transfusion, even if their life is in danger.

In my opinion, the current blood policy of Jehovah's Witnesses is immoral, unscriptural and deadly. I feel compelled to speak out and hope this blog will raise awareness of this tragic situation.

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