Celebrating Birthdays--Disfellowshipping Offense--Where stated in WT pubs? (page 5)

minimus

They were merely celebrating anniverseries.

onacruse

The "mechanism" of WTS policy plays out like this:

"No, you can't be df'd for simply for celebrating birthdays."

"But you know that celebrating birthdays is very ill-advised."

"Why do you want to go against the good advise of the governing body?"

"It appears that you have some doubts about God's direction of this organization."

"Perhaps you might have some apostate thinking...let us help you."

[Investigative committee is formed]

[Birthday celebrations cease, or else a judicial committee is formed]

[After sufficient emotional brow-beating and elder posturing...] and you know the rest.

Craig

shotgun

Craig and Blondie...have you ever discovered the original wording used to condemn Birthdays in the late twenties?

cruzanheart

Bullshit. Celebrate a birthday and even if you are not DFd, watch all the informal shunning you will receive and all the back-stabbing comments that will be made about you.

Ah, Farkel, that's beautifully put! A year ago in early March, when we had a big Apostafest in Dallas, we asked a JW friend to watch our kids overnight, in case we ran really, really late. Now, I was fresh out and she had no idea how "out" I was, just that I didn't attend meetings. Our kids kind of cinched it that night because Jackson happily asked his [then] best friend to come to his birthday party! Evidently that degenerated into quite the argument among the kids, with Jennie's [then] best friend telling her that birthdays were from Satan. I'm proud to say that both my kids argued back on that one, but it resulted in a surprise visit one evening from their mother, Bible in hand. She started off the conversation by saying, brightly, "now, what can I do to get you back to meetings?" I said, "nothing," and the discussion went downhill from there. The subject of celebrating birthdays came up, the child abuse issue came up, and when she left she said, "call me if you need me." A few months later she sent me a card telling me how much she missed me but in spite of a couple of e-mails I sent to her the only reply I received was an invitation to the Memorial. Even before those events I was pretty sure how much our "friendship" meant to her, and that just sealed it. I guess she didn't tell the elders, though, because it took them a year and a half to come and visit me and they didn't bring up birthdays.

Nina

Voyager

Blondie:

My cousin who was a JW was disfellowshipped for attending (2) Birthday parties.

One of the birthday parties she attended was a company party, and she was (unaware) that this was a birthday party, until after she was already there. The second birthday party she went to,-she went to (willfully), because one of our relatives had just turned (100 years old).

Here is the scriptural references used in her judicial committee:-quote

Make Sure Of All Things/page65/Heading: Worshipers of Jehovah DO NOT PARTICIPATE in Ceremonies That Give WORSHIPFUL Honors to the Memory of Prominent Men----------(or anyone else for that matter).

Make Sure Of All Things/page66/Same Chapter/Heading: Servants of God Noted for NOT Celebrating BIRTHDAYS; Only PAGANS Observed Such Celebrations.

Watchtower/1988/April/15th/p.26-27/Heading: Cut Off Throughly.-quote: "Christians do not hold themselves aloof from people. We have normal contacts with neighbors, workmates, schoolmates, and others, and witness to them even if some are "fornicators, greedy persons, extortioners, or idolaters'. Paul wrote that we cannot avoid them completely, "otherwise we would have to get out of the world." He directed that it was to be (different) though with (a brother) who lived like that:-Quit mixing in company with anyone called a brother that (HAS RETURNED TO SUCH WAYS), not even eating with such a man." )Cor. 5:9-11; Mark 2: 13-17

A (PRACTICE) of sin warrants the person disassociating themselves, or being disfellowshipped, and this is what the Elders accused my cousin of doing,--(practicing).

Make Sure Of All Things/page66/Same Heading/paragraph 4,-quote: "Certainly we are told that the later Hebrews looked on the celebration of (BIRTHDAYS) as part of (IDOLATROUS WORSHIP).

Watchtower/1986/October/15th/page. 31/: quote: "The Scriptures warn though, that some would try to remain among God's people and there (ATTEMPT TO MISLEAD OTHERS). "From among you yourselves men will rise and (SPEAK) twisted things (TO DRAW AWAY) the disciples after themselves.

Here the Watchtower feels that if you (confuse, mislead, or cause divisions in the congregations by attending Birthday parties, or (speak or encourage) others to attend birthday parties, that you are guilty of encouraging others to (Idolatry) or causing divisions in the Christian Congregation, and if they think you are (practicing) this,---then they will get rid of you.

Awake/1986/May/8th/page-6/Heading: Astrology-Birthdays--quote: "True, the Israelites also kept birth records. But this was done so as to establish men's ages for priestly, military, and other services. (Numbers 1:2, 3; 4:2; 2Kings 11: 21). The Bible, however, (does not) record the bible dates of even prominent men, such as Noah, Abraham, Moses, David,--or Jesus Christ! "To be sure," the above authors admit, "there are birthday celebrations mentioned in the Bible, but (ONLY TO COMMEMORATE THE NATAL DAY OF SUCH WICKED HERETICS AS PHARAOH AND HEROD). When the early Christians were trying to fix the date of Christ's birth, many of the Church Fathers considered it (SACRILEGIOUS). They proclaimed that there should be (NO ATTEMPT TO CELEBRATE) it, as this was an (IMPIOUS PAGAN CUSTOM)."

Thanks for giving me something to do Blondie---I needed to get off my lazy @#$%%^&.

Voyager

cyberguy

Voyager,

If the elders want you "out" they can twist most anything to make it so. I?ve seen hideous abuse of their "office" over 4 decades! Sorry to hear about your cousin!

A friend of mine (an x-elder, who had been assembly overseer, city overseer, blah, blah, blah) recently pointed out that his son-in-law?s father, who is an elder (PO), self-righteous to an extreme, accidentally ate blood pudding while on a European vacation?hehe! Will such a jerk turn himself in to the congregation "authorities" for removal as an elder and face a possible judicial committee? HELL-NO! On the other hand, he?d more than likely pursue anyone celebrating a birthday.

JW?s are a hypercritical organization to an extreme! I?ve got to get off this subject before it makes me too ill to function for the rest of the day!

XQsThaiPoes

CG

Because the blood pudding was more likely cooked then the blood was fractionated in the process. So I assume his concience allows fractions and there is no need to report it to the elders because it is a conscience issue.

Voyager

CyberGuy:

Thanks for the interest CG. I was in for 45 years myself, and the (crap) I saw in all those years was enough to choke a horse. You are right in what you wrote also. (If they want to twist scripture----or if they really want you OUT, and don't have enough evidence on you for one mistake---then they will use something else--no matter how (slight) it may be--and then make a mountain out of it, in order to scam their way into removing you, whether you are guilty or not.

I think that Elders and their family members were some of the worst in (getting away) with just about anything. They could committ (serious) sins--and nothing was done-----yet others who they(were not sure) of committing a sin were (executed) to the max. Goes on everyday.

And I do know how you feel----and so does everybody else here--gets our bloodpressure UP!

Keep up the good work.--Voyager

Sweetp0985

Make Sure Of All Things/page66/Same Chapter/Heading: Servants of God Noted for NOT Celebrating BIRTHDAYS; Only PAGANS Observed Such Celebrations

So does this make Job PAGAN???

Voyager

Hi Sweep0985:

Its sort of like what Cyberguy said---they can make their rules and regulations say (anything) they want them to say.

This subject came up back in the late 70s and early 80s. Several JWs (including Elders) worked for a corporation called (Harris Corporation). In one of the semiconductor sections of the corporations, we had to drill circuit boards for electronic components.

Several of us were (made to quit) our jobs because it had been found out that some of the circuit boards we were drilling were actually going into circuits for (Bomb) making. Yet the Elders who worked for the very same corporation, who were working in the (offices) handling the (sales)--were NOT required to give up their jobs.

This really caused some problems. Many of the brothers who were required to quit (or be disfellowshipped) had families to feed just like everybody else. But we either had to quit, or suffer the consequences.

So I guess if they want their rules to read that our jobs were serving the Military, then they can do so whenever they want to. But if they want to say that (selling) the very same product that (helps) to make those Bombs is OK for Elders to engage in,-then I guess they can scam their way through that also. All I know is,-it took me several weeks to find another job, while the Elders stuffed their bank accounts with a full paycheck.

Voyager

Celebrating Birthdays--Disfellowshipping Offense--Where stated in WT pubs?

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