Did you see the "Memorial Season" as a tradition of men?

by truthseeker 8 Replies latest jw friends

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  truthseeker

  The Memorial Season

  What does it conjure up in your mind? Longer daylight hours? Five full weekends? Auxiliary pioneering during the months of March, April and May? An increase of congregation activity?

  Having seen this season come and go over the years, it always seems to be the same. It has very little to do with Jesus. He taught his followers not to observe the traditions of men - yet what is the Watchtower doing? Every year, they announce the Memorial Season.

  Jesus rebuked the religious leaders for their hypocrisy, "They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men” (Matthew 15:9).

  The Memorial seasons typically begins in March and ends on May 30. The sale push to get publishers out in the field and auxiliary pioneer is strong; so much so that typical Kingdom Ministry articles around this time will often begin with "Can we make [insert month] our best month ever?", followed by a full page on how to put in 50 hours for auxiliary pioneering and suggested weekly schedules.

  Having participated in the Memorial Season for many years, there is very little mention of Jesus at the doors or at the meetings. Considering how the Memorial speaker tells us all that "Jesus and Jehovah have done for us" you would think that Jesus would be mentioned a little more at the doors, but no, the special offer for the month of April is always the Awake! and Watchtower magazines.

  There is no biblical basis for the Memorial Season.

  It is one of the "traditions of men", peculiar only to Jehovah's Witnesses.
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  snowbird

  It's quasi-Easter without the trappings.

  Sylvia
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  byebyeborg

  I always hated the memorial. too much ritual

  passing the emblems around and having an elder hand it to another and then hand it back to him seemed so far out of line to me that i thought the whole crappy thing was nutz!
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  Brother Apostate

  "Long ago, in a land far away", is how I recall that season azadub.

  Many, many, moons have passed since I wuzadub.

  I now see that season as a time of introspection, reflecting on how I can better imitate my lord, not by the things seen by the masses, but by the things unseen by the masses.

  Of course, anytime is a good time to partake of the bread and the wine, so long as they are partaken of in an atmosphere and mindset of due respect and recognition of the pain our Lord endured so that we might be given grace by Him.

  BA- Thank you, Lord!

  PS- I am disgusted by how the JWs shut up the kingdom of heaven by teaching lies about two classes of Christians, forbidding all but a few to partake in the New Covenant of our Lord and Savior, an unscriptural teaching.
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  WTWizard

  This is what I have observed:

  The event itself--You make a special trip to the Kingdumb Hell, wasting gas and time. You run into congestion in the parking lot, and there are usually a dozen men telling you where to park your car (and they are rarely in agreement with each other, arguing amongst each other about where you are to park your car and getting pxxxed if you park before they are done arguing.

  Repeat the process once you get in the Kingdumb Hell. It is congested, and you find and claim your seat only to have the hounders move you. It is normal for single people to be moved several times in the course of the evening. You find all those people that haven't been to a boasting session in a while, along with those for whom this is the first time.

  Now, the main event. It is a boring 45 minute talk, the same one each year. The first time, it might seem special. After the fifth time, you realize that they are functionally identical. Then they pass a plate of stale crackers and a glass of spoiled grape juice, which most people reject (hence the REJECT Jesus Party). Then there is a sales pitch, and then the post-party hounding. Anyone that is new is hounded to go to all the boasting sessions, with another "special(?)" talk that Sunday. Those who haven't been in a while or that are not active enough (whatever that means) are hounded into doing more--when they are doing less now because they were miserable while doing more.

  Surrounding it--For this above wastefest, you are supposed to pio-sneer during the months of March, April, and May (hell, the event is only one fxxxing day, not three months). It is April 9 this year--and they almost always have a waste of paper distribution campaign preceding it. You are supposed to be upbuilt (it never works that way). And why in hell do they want people pio-sneering in May for an event that is either in March or April, never both, and never in May?

  I don't find anywhere in the Bible that you are supposed to step up your activity just in appreciation of passage of crackers and spoiled grape juice that you are not supposed to take any of. Not one scripture to support the "season" extending into May--unless, that is, the Filthful and Disgraceful Slavebugger twists it around (and then they could extend it all year long). That would be like having the Christmas season starting right after Halloween and extending through the end of January--which I believe they would disapprove of (at that, Christmas has better founding than the REJECT Jesus Party ever will).
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  halcyon

  I always ignored the memorial season. I guess to me it meant "better get to the store to find a new dress and don't forget to look for matching shoes as well! Don't wait til the day before."
  
  I would do the bible readings too. They were important to me.
  
  
  All the other stuff just blew over my head. Increased service time? Naaah.
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  Amha·’aret

  I think the 3 months of "Memorial Season" really help to boost the numbers - extra pioneers, extra hours, extra placements and of course the extra attendees all of which are counted as potential sheep even though most of the time the people come to be polite or to support their believing spouses.

  I wonder how the yearly report would look if it wasn't for that extra push?
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  truthseeker

  WTWizard - nice summary and I forgot about the "Special Talk"!
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  Meeting Junkie No More

  Memorial Season was just the lamest conjured-up slogan I ever heard, even while in. By every stretch of the imagination, just how can the Memorial of Christ's death be a season???? Next thing you know, they'll be printing up Season's Greetings cards for this supposed 'season'...I digress....anyhow, at least none of the folks in my cong ever used that phrase...I think I might have gone ballistic if I had actually heard it from someone's lips but it seemed to me it was just the slogan for the particular KM that would tout the increased call for pioneers during same....thanks for that memory - NOT!