Can I Get A Witness

You can spot them a mile off, dressed in their Sunday best, toting a briefcase full of their religious tracts. In my neighborhood, they stand out even further because the color of their skin is in direct contrast to the vast majority of the local residents. At any rate, when they are spotted on the road, suddenly no one is at home.

The Jehovah's Witnesses like to proselytize door to door, and they're achingly pleasant about the whole affair. Not intrusive, just a knock and an offer to talk about Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Thanks just the same, but I've got a church and it's not perfect but I'm rather fond of the incense and the candles and the colorful robes.

They have their own take on the sanctity of the body, as so many of us are aware. It's the Jehovah's Witnesses who won't undergo a blood transfusion, and it could be that they are the inspiration behind research into non-blood transfusion materials. Here in the land of freedom of religion, our medical personnel are sensitive to the little quirks of different faiths. I would hope that emergency rooms and hospitals would have some protocols in place to deal with medical care for those who are a bit particular about sharing body bits.

Not so in Ireland, where everyone is Catholic, or at least they should be if they know what's best. That's why the case of Ms. K, a Nigerian immigrant, has resulted in some legal discussions that might puzzle the average secular American. Poor woman had a difficult birth at the Mater, lost a lot of blood, and then she turns up her nose at a transfusion. Even to save her life, she refused, and Mr. Justice Abbott had to make a decision.

Ms. K doesn't have anyone in Ireland to mind the baby if she dies, so it would be in the best interest of the infant to keep its mammy alive. That's the basis of the judge's decision to force a blood transfusion on the mother. As far as the law is concerned, Ms. K is not being asked to undergo some bizarre medical experiments, nor is she being forced to endure surgery. Just a simple, relatively non-invasive blood transfusion, and it's all for the best. The Mater has Mr. Justice Abbott's approval to restrain the poor woman if she fights.

So, religious beliefs can hang and Ms. K is getting transfused whether she likes it or not. Honestly, did the woman think she had landed in the USA when she arrived in Dublin? Expecting freedom of religion? There's a company in Northbrook, Illinois that manufactures artificial transfusion products. Maybe they should be looking into a sales call in Dublin.