Patients who refuse a specific medical treatment for religious reasons must often overcome strongly entrenched presumptions held by physicians and judges, presumptions frequently based on personal values. A case in point is the refusal of blood transfusion therapy by Jehovah's Witnesses. / This paper rests on the following theory: The sanctity of life principle is not necessarily violated by respecting the autonomous decision of a patient who, for religious or moral reasons, chooses one therapy over another that may be favored by the treating physician. Where a patient has decided for conscientious reasons against a certain treatment in any given medical situation, the need to be informed will shift from the patient to the physician. The physician must understand the nature of the religious or moral conviction, as well as his own moral and legal obligation to respect the patient's wishes by providing the best medical care under the circumstances.

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The current work is an intellectual history of how blood permeated early modern Spaniards' conceptions of morality and purity. This paper examines Spanish intellectuals' references to blood in their medical, theological, demonological, and historical works. Through these excerpts, this thesis demonstrates how this language of blood played a role in buttressing the church's conception of good morals. This, in turn, will show that blood was used as a way to persecute Jews and Muslims, and ultimately define the early modern Spanish identity.