What Do Jehovah’s Witnesses Eat?

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Jehovah’s Witnesses only have one dietary restriction; they cannot consume blood. They thus cannot eat raw meat, extremely rare meat, or dishes made out of blood products, such as black pudding, blood soup or blood sausage. Aside from that, Jehovah’s Witnesses eat whatever they desire.

The Watchtower and Bible Tract Society of Pennsylvania states that adherents to this faith do not partake of blood because the Bible admonishes all individuals to abstain from blood in both the Old and New Testaments. The organization uses a few Bible scriptures to support their stance on this issue, including Genesis 9:4, Leviticus 17:10 and Acts 15: 28 and 29.

Jehovah’s Witnesses do not accept any form of blood into their systems, including the blood supplied by medical facilities to perform blood transfusions. While they are not opposed to accepting medical treatments, followers of the religion must refuse blood transfusions, even in life-or-death situations. Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that blood represents life and is symbolic of the sacrifice that Jesus Christ made when he shed his blood on behalf of all mankind. They believe that partaking of blood is disrespectful to Jehovah or God, the giver of life, and his son, Jesus Christ, who made the ultimate sacrifice.