AIBU to want JW leaders to be held accountable for blood transfusion deaths.

I didnt sign up for it. I was 2 years old when my parents joined. Yes, I got out age 20. Many who get out are completely shunned by their family and everyone they know. These are often young teens who end up homeless and worse.
Its not that black and white.

Not in every case, and this certainly hasn't been the case historically especially in the USA, where the religion stems from. A 15 year old boy died in the UK 16 years ago because he would not have blood. In any case, the governing body should apologise and acknowledge the harm their policy has done, but they will never do that.

I left in my teens, I think my congregation must have been a lenient one because I was never shunned nor was my family. My parents will accept this as as a new directive and the previous deaths will be explained away in their heads as they will all meet in paradise anyway. It is a cult without a doubt but most of them are just rule followers it’s the ones at the top that are evil

Very ignorant comment completely ignoring the grooming aspect of the organisation, much of which starts at a young age, and the harmful shunning practices that occur. Also, many geenagers have historically died as a result of this policy.

Religious leaders and their stupid beliefs cause death and misery every day of the week and have done for centuries.

Surely there's more mileage in concentrating efforts on raising awareness of coercive control and preventing future harm to children unlucky enough to be born into cults?

Anyone joining Jehovahs Witnesses in 2026 with all the widely available content on how truly insidious their teachings and practices are should seek help from their GP. There’s a reason young JWs leave in droves as soon as they can.

I have a feeling this is going to be the straw that broke the camels back for a huge chunk of rank & file Witnesses. Once they recover from the whiplash they’re going to realise just how profound this move is and how many people needlessly died.

Younger ones who use social media will definitely see discourse around this and I sincerely hope (yes YOU if any are reading this comment) I hope that you understand how deeply destructive the organisation is.

The World really isn’t the demon infested hellscape the Governing Body want you to think it is. Get out and start living your life now because the longer you leave it the heavier the regret will be.

People who feel their relatives have died through being coerced could take legal action. Otherwise I'm not sure it's something the state could get involved in further than it currently does to protect children. When you start legislating around religious practices you open up a huge can of worms. Should we have laws to prevent children being frightened by the idea of hell? Should we prevent people being lied to about how the world came about? What about women 'indoctrinated' to believe they must continue pregnancies they don't want?

Doctors will overrule the wishes of parents. With a court order if necessary

This could go either way for them.
On one hand, the blood issue has been a major stumbling block for the general public. By removing this, will now make them more mainstream and could potentially bring in more converts.
On the other hand, it's an almighty blow for those who have lost loved ones due to refusing blood prior to 18th Sept 2026 and the sudden "New Light"
Many could wake up and leave

@CorporalJohntheir children didn’t understand the terms and conditions or agree to them.

People signed up for this cult knowing the terms and conditions.
Sorry the onus is on them.

A man in my neighbourhood was a JW. He had an accident on his moped. He refused transfusion and died leaving a young family

It is a dangerous cult. Imagine the fear you live in, worrying about what will happen after death and whether you’ve done enough.

@Exjw1975 did you watch the video where it was announced on JW.org?
I watched it last night. There is no reasoning behind it. Just complete waffle. But they will all blindly accept it including my parents. They wont question the absolute U turn.

Unless you have lived in the cult of Jehovahs Witnesses then I suggest you educate yourself on how strange it would be to NOT worry about this.

They are responsible for so much damage whether it’s the blood stance, shunning or rife SA cover ups - it is a toxic malignant religious group that unfortunately lures in victims with their holier than thou facade.

It would be an unrecoverable international scandal if the true figure of avoidable deaths were ever published.

Yep. I’ve got very close friends who are JWs. When the elderly man needed a heart bypass the JW elders took turns in always being with him at the hospital. He had originally said he would have the surgery, but it had to be abandoned due to his beliefs about blood transfusions. He’s dead now.

This is very dismissive of the op and their obviously upsetting experience of growing up as a jw.

They are nice people on the doors, but their leadership sure isn't nice. Many of us who have been raised in this organisation are understandably angry and bitter about changes like these, especially without any formal apology or acknowledgement. It is absolutely a brainwashing cult.

And they have acknowledged and apologised for their role in slavery. The governing body of Jehovah's Witnesses have never apolgised for anything! Not their million dollar payouts to child abuse victims (in fact, they have actively denied this and called it apostate lies), not the people who have lost their lives due to the blood doctrine, not the suicides caused by their shunning policy which they have also now become more lenient on. In modern terms, The church of England is nothing like JWs. People who weren't raised in this organisation will struggle to understand the level of control this organisation has, very similar to Mormons, Scientologist etc. Not your typical Christian church.

Revisionism happens in every religion. The Church of England used to condone slavery, for instance.

The Governing Body should apologise