ABO blood group system A-type blood, with A2 making up almost all of the rest. These two subgroups are not always interchangeable as far as transfusion is concerned, as some A2 individuals produce antibodies against the A1 antigen. Complications can sometimes arise in rare cases when typing the blood. With the development of DNA sequencing, it has been possible to identify a much larger number of alleles at the ABO locus, each of which can be categorized as A, B, or O in terms of the reaction to transfusion, but which can be distinguished by variations in the DNA sequence. There are six common
Jehovah's Witnesses and blood transfusions of outdated medical beliefs. Dissident Witnesses say the Society's use of Leviticus 17:12 to support its opposition to blood transfusions conflicts with its own teachings that Christians are not under the Mosaic law. Theologian Anthony Hoekema claims the blood prohibited in Levitical laws was not human, but animal. He cites other authors who support his view that the direction at Acts 15 to abstain from blood was intended not as an everlasting covenant but a means of maintaining a peaceful relationship between Jewish and Gentile Christians. He has described as "absurd literalism" the Witnesses' use of a scriptural prohibition on