Did You Ever Celebrate Birthdays Or Holidays As A Witness? (page 3)

minimus

It makes a "good Witness" feel better to deprive himself of a holiday or celebration, all in the name of being "persecuted for righteousness sake". In this way, one can justify a position and even feel good about looking down on some pagan.

minimus

Tell the truth, now.....

yesidid

Yes I celebrated birthdays as a witness and with the blessings of the congregation. In fact all Witnesses celebrated birthdays until 1951.

It was in the October 1 Watchtower that a Dorothy Dix question was the excuse to tell the R&F that birthdays were henceforth forbidden.

I remember it well.

*

w51 10/1 p. 607 Questions from Readers ***

Questions from Readers

? Is it proper to have or attend celebrations of birthday anniversaries??F. K., Nevada.

Such celebrations have their roots in pagan religions, and not Scriptural grounds. Some Bible commentators suggest that birthday celebrations may have had their origin in the "notion of the immortality of the soul". Astrologers and stargazers laid great stress on offering sacrifices to the gods each year when the stars and planets were in the same position as when one was born. In Egyptian mythology the "birthdays of the gods" were celebrated on certain days, and in Chinese mythology individuals offered special sacrifices on their birthdays to Shou Hsing, the god of longevity. The ancient Anglo-Saxons celebrated the birthday of the "Lord Moon", spoken of as meni at Isaiah 65:11 (margin), by making cakes "called Nur-Cakes, or Birthcakes"; and candles also are of pagan origin.?See Hislop?s Two Babylons, pages 95, 191-196.

After telling us that December 25 was the traditional birthday of Nimrod, and not of Jesus, the new book What Has Religion Done for Mankind? states: "The inspired Scriptures do not give the birth date of Jesus, and it does not matter, for neither Jesus nor God his Father nor the inspired apostles instructed us to celebrate Jesus? birthday. The only birthday celebrations that the Holy Scriptures mention are those of pagans, those of Egypt?s Pharaoh and of Herod Antipas who marked his birthday by having John the Baptist?s head chopped off. (Gen. 40:20; Matt. 14:6; Mark 6:21) Christ?s disciples of the first century shunned birthday celebrations as being pagan, unchristian!"

Doubtless many things practiced by Christians today were also practiced by pagans; but when these practices are steeped in false worship contrary to Bible principle they become objectionable. The celebration of birthday anniversaries centers the mind on the creature and exalts the creature, giving him and his birth undue importance. Romans 1:25 (NW) warns of those who "venerated and rendered sacred service to the creation rather than the One who created". Birthday celebrations could tend to take on this objectionable quality. If Christians wish to come together occasionally for profitable fellowship and relaxation, they do not have to await a day reminiscent of pagan religion. If they wish to present a brother with a gift, they do not have to await the anniversary of the day of his entry into the world, as though that were such a memorable occasion. If the precise day of Jesus? birth and its remembrance were of no such noteworthiness, whose are?

gumby

Minimus,

I can't believe you resurrected your own thread, 8 months old, and expect no one to notice.........you sly cheap bastard!

Gumby

Islandboy99

I've been df'd for a little over 6 years now....I have to say though the JW's have completely turned me off to all HOLYDAYS.... Sorry ...its just another day to me... my parents sent me some things that I opened last week...nice of them.. As for HOLYDAYS , I don' t really care of there origin, pagan or religous, or whatever.... All I care about now, as far as Christmas and New Years, are concerned, is 4th and 1st quarter earnings....

cheers

Islandboy99

Oh, I forgt to answer the question..... No, I didn't celebrate them as a witness. I was much to HOLY for that.... I must say that the best christmas present I've had this year is that I've found this site... I still have a lot of healing to do. So many thoughts and feelings I've kept quiet.

Thank you all.

cypher50

My family always visited my father's side of the family for a reunion on New Year's (up till his death when I was 17) and for Thanksgiving (up till I was 12 and my mom 'made her stand' against it). I do miss seeing the family around New Year's...it is funny that as a JW you don't celebrate because of pagan origins but when you do celebrate then it doesn't have anything to do with paganism.

onintwo

Never could get the difference between celebrating a birthday, and a baby shower. Seems like I remember JW women getting together to ooh and ahh over a newborn, bringing little gifts etc. Isn't that acknowleging or celebrating a birth? Seems right and proper to do it, but do it only once? I thought meaningful, important events were to be "remembered" annually. Oh well............

Onintwo

minimus

GOOD POINT, ONIN! What's the difference?

Did You Ever Celebrate Birthdays Or Holidays As A Witness?

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