Pagan Origins

by brotherdan 46 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  Olin Moyles Ghost

  It's just another example of The Watchtower--like all religions--picking and choosing. The WTS is eager to condemn things that God himself didn't bother to address in the Bible. I guess the WTS feels that almighty God didn't get it quite right...that he really meant to make rules about birthdays, but maybe he just ran out of pages...if only he had not included so many pages of "begets" back in the Old Testament! (or perhaps if he hadn't included contradictory genealogies of Jesus in Matthew and Luke...but that's another post entirely)

  It's funny how there isn't any single religion out there (that I'm aware of) that simply follows the Bible. Every one of them has to add a bunch of extraneous nonsense to it. Does that speak more to human weakness / desire for power, or to issues with the Bible itself?
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  brotherdan

  About John being beheaded on a birthday, I will suggest a RADICAL view point.

  How bout this...

  Let's condemn MURDER and MURDERERS instead of the birthday! If someone is killed on a saturday, let's be angry at the murder and not the date. If someone is killed at a Bar Mitsvah, lets go after the killer instead of banning the Bar Mitsvah.
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  seenitall

  I have an old Golden Age magazine that states since the days of the week are Pagan names they need to be renamed. It went so far as saying calenders are pagan, one shouldn't use them and the new theocratic names for months, days of the week and years counting from creation day were to be used. It was quackery at it's finest. Unbelievable words written down for the building up of the cong!
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  brotherdan

  You're right Olin. There is not 1 single true religion. But that's not the point of Christianity. The 1st century Christians did not believe exactly the same things either. But they all believed in Jesus and him crucified for our sins. They were allowed to disagree on other topics. We will never understand the TRUE truth until Jesus comes again.

  We all just do the best we can with what we have...the Bible. Witnesses don't follow it, obviously. And neither do many other religions. There is a difference between faith and religion and between Christianity and religon. Religion is man made. Christianity is Christ made.
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  cantleave

  The bible doesn't give us a date for Jesus's birth, why?

  So we could choose the date / pagan festival we wanted to celebrate it on.

  You are talking sh*t again debator.
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  brotherdan

  Debator, the Bible doesn't give us a date for a lot of things. It doesn't give a date for the desruction of Jerusalem, but JWs say it is 607. It doesn't give the date for Adams creating, but JWs have a date for that too.

  So it doesn't have a date for Jesus birth. But why is celebrating my anniversary ok and celebrating my Lords birth wrong? It makes no sense debator. We don't celebrate it just because it's not a command?!? How is a command a real celebration anyway?!? A celebration is a way to show you appreciate something, right?

  I feel ashamed that I have never showed an outward appreciation (via celebration) of my Lords birth. You should be ashamed of yourself too, Debator.
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  Pistoff

  The 1st century Christians did not believe exactly the same things either. But they all believed in Jesus and him crucified for our sins

  Maybe not; Paul certainly did, and he said so to all that would listen. It became a point of doctrine hundreds of years later, part of the creed, but there is no good evidence that ALL 1st century christians believed that Jesus died for their sins.
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  brotherdan

  Well unfortunately for the non-believers, their words were not included in the inspired scriptures. Pauls were. Paul also said that if Jesus was not crucified and resurected, then Christianity meant NOTHING. (1 Cor 15:12-14)

  There are basics that must be believed to be Christian. My only point was saying that there could have been disagreements between the churches without there being a need for one to say that the other was not saved because of such a disagreement.
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  WTWizard

  This is subject to a lot of abuse. Take Christmas all by itself. How many things are there that are potentially associated with Christmas? Food: Eggnog, pumpkin, various types of pies, fudge, peppermint sticks, ham or turkey, bean casserole, squash, cranberry sauce, cookies, and wine. What does this mean, we are not supposed to eat any of these things because it is "worshiping the sun"?

  Additionally, things like giving gifts (we are not supposed to give someone something they need or want, just because we feel like it?). Putting up lights (OK, so there goes installing reading or task lights, street lights, security lights, or other lights we use for safety or so we can see what we are doing). Sending cards (no more sympathy cards or get-well cards). Shopping (so we can no longer buy things we need). Listening to the music (anything that even mentions one of these things is now a "bad song"). Winter activities (no more skiing, snowman making, snow structure making, sledding, or snowshoeing). The list is virtually endless. And that's just one "pagan" activity.
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  Hadit

  How about Jesus' words "My yoke is kindly and my load is light." Hmmmm . . . love God and love your neighbour as yourself. Rest is up to you. Don't judge what others do. Live your life and enjoy it. That's what it's for.