It all sounds pagan to me???
It all sounds like fun to me!!!!!
I know Christmas is "wrong", but for god's sakes, what's so "wrong" about New Near's day?
by african GB Member 22 Replies latest jw experiences
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yknot
From the 'Bible Teach' appendix....
New Year’s Celebrations. The date and customs associated with New Year’s celebrations vary from one country to another. Regarding the origin of this celebration, The World Book Encyclopedia states: “The Roman ruler Julius Caesar established January 1 as New Year’s Day in 46 B.C. The Romans dedicated this day to Janus, the god of gates, doors, and beginnings. The month of January was named after Janus, who had two faces—one looking forward and the other looking backward.” So New Year’s celebrations are founded on pagan traditions.
.....and yet we don't use Clayton's calendar..... (well I take that back I have annually made one for 32 years)
http://www.archive.org/details/theCalendarOfJehovahGod
BTW today is... Starday, Temple 23, 2009
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undercover
Many JWs actually 'celebrate' New Years...they just don't advertise it.
I remember when I was still in we actually went to worldly New Years events and counted down to the new year. One year we went to Times Square in New York...with Bethelites leading the way.
It has occured to me in the last year that JWs, in their own way, celebrate most of the holidays. They do basically the same thing on Thanksgiving as everyone else, they just don't use the terminology or the decorations. I knew JWs who secretly celebrated Halloween. They might not have been able to dress up or go trick-or-treating, but they found a way to have fun with the holiday.
Xmas is the biggest one that they try to avoid, yet many dubs create their own traditions for that day, thus ending up celebrating that day in their own quirky way.
So try as they do to avoid 'worldy' holidays, they end up celebrating a tradition of their own making the same day every year. And using that day to celebrate that tradition is akin to the Christians using a pagan date to celebrate their savior's birth. They were just making do with what the local tradition was so they could enjoy their tradition.
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yknot
Similar to Undercover.......
Majority of my congregation will either be individually lighting fireworks or attending a firework display in honor of 'New Years'.........and most of them will be eating 'Hopin' John' on Jan 1 too!
This all said.....shouldn't 'New Years' be on the Winter Solstice?.....(Jehovah's willl and all)
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minimus
New Near's is very wrong.
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undercover
New Near's is very wrong.
Someone has been hitting the xmas spirit a little early
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blondie
FOOTBALL--WTS "reasoning"
*** jd chap. 9 p. 121 par. 19 Dealing With Others as God Desires ***Though Habakkuk was forced to keep looking upon mere trouble and the "violence in front of" him, it grieved him. You might now ask, ‘Would he be comfortable sitting with me and looking at the programs I regularly watch on television?’ Ask also, ‘Would he set aside time to be a spectator at so-called sports events that are violent by design, players even wearing protective armor like that of ancient gladiators?’ With certain games, the thrill for many springs from fights on the court or the field or those between crazed fans. In some cultures, many watch violent films and videos centered on warfare or the martial arts. This may be excused as history or a display of the nation’s cultural past, but does that make the violence more acceptable?—Proverbs 4:17.
NEW YEAR'S DAY--WTS "reasoning"
*** g02 1/8 pp. 20-21 Should Christians Share in New Year’s Festivities? ***The Bible’s Viewpoint
THE afternoon before New Year’s Eve is unusually calm," says Fernando, a medical doctor in Brazil. "Then, about 11 o’clock, they start to arrive—a steady stream of patients with stab wounds or gunshot wounds, teenagers injured in automobile accidents, and battered wives. Alcohol is nearly always a factor."
Considering the above, it is hardly surprising that one Brazilian journal referred to the first day of the year as international hangover day. A European news agency says that "New Year is for the lay hedonist," adding that it is "one more round in the eternal battle of man pitched against alcohol."
Granted, not everyone celebrates the New Year by drinking heavily and committing acts of violence. In fact, many have fond memories of the occasion. "As children, we could hardly wait for New Year’s Eve," says Fernando, quoted earlier. "There were always lots of games, food, and drink. At midnight we would embrace, kiss, and wish one another ‘Happy New Year!’"
Similarly, many today feel that they share in New Year’s festivities without going overboard. Still, Christians do well to examine the origin and significance of this popular celebration. Do New Year’s festivities conflict with Bible teachings?
Facts From the Past
New Year’s festivities are not new. Ancient inscriptions indicate that they were held in Babylon as early as the third millennium B.C.E. The celebration, which was observed in mid-March, was crucial. "At that time the god Marduk decided the destiny of the country for the coming year," says TheWorldBookEncyclopedia. The Babylonian new year celebration lasted 11 days and included sacrifices, processions, and fertility rites.
For a time, the Romans too began their year in the month of March. But in 46 B.C.E., Emperor Julius Caesar decreed that it should begin on the first of January. That day was already dedicated to Janus, the god of beginnings, and now it would also mark the first day of the Roman year. The date changed, but the carnival atmosphere persisted. On the first of January, people "gave themselves up to riotous excess," says McClintock and Strong’s Cyclopedia, "and various kinds of heathen superstition."
Even today, superstitious rituals play a part in New Year’s festivities. For example, in some areas of South America, many welcome the New Year while standing on their right foot. Others sound horns and set off firecrackers. According to a Czech custom, New Year’s Eve is a time for eating lentil soup, while a Slovak tradition has people placing money or fish scales under the tablecloth. Such rituals, designed to ward off ill fortune and guarantee prosperity, merely perpetuate the ancient belief that the turn of the year is a time for deciding destinies.
The Bible’s View
The Bible admonishes Christians to "walk decently, not in revelries and drunken bouts." (Romans 13:12-14; Galatians 5:19-21; 1 Peter 4:3) Since New Year’s festivities are often characterized by the very excesses that the Bible condemns, Christians do not participate in them. This does not mean that Christians are killjoys. On the contrary, they know that the Bible repeatedly tells worshipers of the true God to rejoice—and that for a number of reasons. (Deuteronomy 26:10, 11; Psalm 32:11; Proverbs 5:15-19; Ecclesiastes 3:22; 11:9) The Bible also acknowledges that food and drink often accompany rejoicing.—Psalm 104:15; Ecclesiastes 9:7a.
As we have seen, however, New Year’s celebrations are rooted in pagan customs. False worship is unclean and detestable in the eyes of Jehovah God, and Christians reject practices that have such origins. (Deuteronomy 18:9-12; Ezekiel 22:3, 4) The apostle Paul wrote: "What fellowship do righteousness and lawlessness have? Or what sharing does light have with darkness? Further, what harmony is there between Christ and Belial?" For good reason, Paul added: "Quit touching the unclean thing."—2 Corinthians 6:14-17a.
Christians also realize that taking part in superstitious rituals does not guarantee happiness and prosperity—especially since participating in such festivities can result in God’s disfavor. (Ecclesiastes 9:11; Isaiah 65:11, 12) Furthermore, the Bible admonishes Christians to be moderate and self-controlled in their conduct. (1 Timothy 3:2, 11) Clearly, it would be improper for one who professes to follow Christ’s teachings to be part of a celebration that is characterized by riotous excess.
As eye-catching and appealing to the senses as New Year’s festivities may be, the Bible tells us to "quit touching the unclean thing" and to "cleanse ourselves of every defilement of flesh and spirit." To those who comply, Jehovah extends the heartwarming guarantee: "I will take you in. . . . I shall be a father to you, and you will be sons and daughters to me." (2 Corinthians 6:17b–7:1) Indeed, he promises eternal blessings and prosperity to those who are loyal to him.—Psalm 37:18, 28; Revelation 21:3, 4, 7.
[Footnote]
Paul’s reference to "revelries and drunken bouts" may have included those that took place during New Year’s festivities, since these were popular in Rome during the first century.
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WTWizard
It's just another way to separate the witlesses from the general world. It is not enough to ban them from one holiday (which I think they do too much--a softer ban, simply not participating but not getting on people if they return a Christmas greeting or enjoy Christmas music because the song itself is well executed, would have been more appropriate if they really didn't believe in it.) But they have to ban Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, and Kwanzaa (which isn't even a political or religious holiday but a cultural holiday. All to make the maximum amount of trouble for the witlesses.
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Sapphy
"The Romans dedicated this day to Janus, the god of gates, doors, and beginnings. The month of January was named after Janus, who had two faces—one looking forward and the other looking backward.” So New Year’s celebrations are founded on pagan traditions."
So based on WT reasoning new year's celebrations are as pagan as doors and gates.
I wonder if we could sell knocking on doors as a pagan tradition honouring Janus...
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hamsterbait
I dont see how witlesses can decry others who celebrate ANYTHING they choose to after reading Romans 14 and Colossians 3.
What you celebrate is up to you, and you shouldnt let anybody condemn you.
Incidentally the new Moon celebration was NOT in the Mosaic Law. It is a Pagan custom the Jews adopted. So if paul said the celebration was okay, why not Christmas too? After all pagan Romans became Christians, didnt they?
The Witchtower is just like the judgmental men he criticises in Colossians.
HB