christmas?

moondance

hi, i am not a jehovahs witness. i was curious why you do not celebrate christmas and birthdays. i'm not judgmental, just curious. thanks.

Mulan

Hi moondance, you will find that most of the people on this board are ex Jehovah's witnesses, and most of us do celebrate Christmas.

The reason they don't is because of it's pagan roots, and because Jesus wasn't really born on December 25. That's the basic reason.

Marilyn (a.k.a. Mulan)

Scorpion

moondance,

This should help you understand better.

> http://www.freeminds.org/doctrine/holidays.htm

ElijahTheThird

Hi;
Many of the aspects of these Holiday Times can be enjoyed by most anyone and not fall foul of our Fathers aproval. *grins*

Yet you may fall afoul of some "religionists" judgemental attitude. Enjoy these holidays with a heart that won't condemn you, grt it?

Be of good cheer, it is but a calendar change, yet a New Year.

Thomas Poole

This is not a Jehovah's Witness group. This is a barrel of monkeys, and don't say you're not judgemental.

If you have a mind then start expressing it, if you want to learn.

Fall-afoul fell foul at the fall.
Falling twas foul in felling the foul-ups.
Foulups were feeling foul at the felling of falls.

anewperson

Before again says Christmas, Santa etc are pagan, read this:

The true story of Santa Claus is not "pagan" as some others have alleged (except for leprechauns) although it sounds like a romantic made-up myth, and yet it is true and historically documented, here condensed for easy reading from an article by Austin Miles, a highly reputable chaplain, writer and historian in Northern California which was on crosswalk.com on December 20, 2001. Miles was also a writer-researcher and technical consultant for the CBS award-winning rseries Ancient Secrets of The Bible.

To begin, about 200 AD some elders met at a little church in Myra, Turkey was to decide on their next bishop and, being uncertain whom this should be, they began praying, while out at sea a ship's crew battled a storm then in desperation shouted for Nicholas, a known man of God with a long white beard, to pray for them. He did, the storm calmed down, and the ship drifted into Myra's harbor. The church elders had quit their praying, feeling sure God wanted them to appoint the first man named Nicholas entering the church to pray within the hour. When Nicholas entered they gave him a long red robe and cane or miter, and he soon became known as The Bishop of Miracles because of many spectacular answers to his prayers.

Although from a wealthy family Nicholas gave away most of his own money but was also sometimes given donations of gold coins which he wanted to put to the best use. Girls back then who did not have a dowry to get married were sold into slavery which included prostitution. To combat this on December 6th at dark Nicholas wrapped gold coins in some little bags and visited homes with a daughter who had no dowry, dropping a bag through the windows so that it landed on the hearth where the girl's clothing was drying. The next morning each family was delighted that their daughter would not have to become a slave although nobody knew who the mysterious gift-giver had been. One night a bag fell into a stocking that was drying before a fireplace instead of on the hearth, giving rise to the custom came of using stockings to hold some Christmas gifts.

Shortly before Nicholas's death on a December 6th, people learned he was the gift-giver who had brought such great joy to so many families, and om the 9th Century, the Roman Catholic Church declared him a saint, that is Saint Nicholas. His story spread, and French nuns in the 12th Century also started going out at night each year to give fruit and nuts to poor families with children on December 5 the day before Nicholas' day so that it was called St Nicholas Eve. The tradition spread to the Americas where some people still celebrate on December 6th. Luther believed the true Christmas message about Jesus Christ was diminished by the St Nicholas connection, and the Dutch-German Protestant Reform Movement sought to highlight Christ more, using the German word for Christ and child which is Christkindl from which comes Kris Kringle.

The night before Christmas on 1822, Clement Moore, the son of the Episcopal bishop of New York, and himself a theology professor, wrote the poem The Night Before Christmas for his children, which was published 1823 in the Sentinel of Troy, New York. Moore used the name Santa Claus, likely from Dutch Sinter (Saint) and Klass which is short for Nicholas. Dutch knowing little English but aware gold had been found on the fireplace hearth in Nicholas' time started the legend that the original Santa Claus had come down the chimney, landing in the cinders, and called him Cinder Klaussen. Moore's poem popularized Santa famous, he named the reindeer, and made them fly perhaps because poet Washington Irving wrote a book in 1809 about a Dutch Colonist's dream in which St Nick rode above trees in a wagon bearing gifts.

Harper's Weekly cartoonist Thomas Nash depicted Santa as plump, jolly and dressed in the red that robes worn by St Nicholas had actually used. Haddon Sundblom drew the most famous picture of Santa which was for the soft drink company Coca Cola, and the elves came from Ireland's leprechauns....... Perhaps these documented facts will surprise some readers, since from about 1920 to 2001 so much misinformation was left about by those religionists in magazines on the alleged pagan origins of Santa Claus, some even claiming he derived from wizards in the far north of Russia or an ancient god who came down chimneys in the Orient, thus needlessly denying themselves and others much joy since the true story of St Nicholas is wholly Christian - the only possible exception being the elves. So, ho-ho-ho and a merry Christmas to all!

LB

welcome Moondance. You'll also discover JW's dont have much use for the flag, birthdays or most anthing else you find enjoyable. After all, JW's contend that satan is in charge around here so no use being a part of the world.

Never Squat With Yer Spurs On

Mum

Welcome to the forum, moondance. I like your name.

As the late Bill Cetnar once pointed out, there are two (2) reasons for everything: (a) the "reason" they tell you, and (b) the real reason. The real reason JW's do not celebrate special occasions is to keep the poor average JW with his or her dull grey life from bonding with their family, co-workers, neighbors, or other "worldly" people. In this way, JW's alienate their families, prospective friends, old (pre-JW) friends, co-workers and anyone else. These poor souls then learn that the only place they can find "love" is within the stone walls of the Watchtower.

The JW's are also forbidden from having friendships with "unbelievers" ("unbelievers" does not mean unbelievers, but non-JW's in the JW vernacularp

Regards,
Mum, recovering ex-JW, now free for 22+ years

Seize the day, and put the least possible trust in tomorrow. - Horace

I have learned to live each day as it comes and not to borrow trouble by dreading tomorrow. - Dorothy Dix

ISP

Welcome to the board moondance...hope you enjoy your stay!

ISP

christmas?

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