Have you heard: "Worldly people just live for the holidays" (page 2)

love2Bworldly

I forgot about that scripture that talks about removing a straw from your brother's eye when a rafter is in your own eye.

Sure sounds like the JWs to me. They're the ones with rafters in their eyes.

Love2bworldly, as you say, for many people the holiday is mostly about family. Is it so wrong to yearn to get back together with one's relatives? Apparently so if you're a JW, because those relatives don't share "the Kingdom hope" and are to be approached with caution (unless they display interest in studying with JW's).

OTWO, what an interesting idea, that JW's could come up with their own special celebration. It wouldn't even need to be at the end of December. In addition to those you mentioned, Hindus have their Diwali celebration and Muslims have Ramadan. Both of these occur around October (give or take a couple weeks).

Could JW's ever overcome their deeply entrenched holiday-phobia and embrace a new tradition? The ultra-conservative, reactionary style of their current leadership will prevent any such positive changes for a long time to come.

praiseband

My experience with my dil's family and friends (all JW's) is that even though they say they don't celebrate the holidays, they are excited to go shopping for all the good buys (but they don't give gifts) and they always get together with each for a big meal and to play games.

Our family (all Biblical Christians) buy or make gifts for others, have a big meal together and play games. See any similarities here? The only thing different from the dil's family and congregation is that we also attend worship services on Christmas Eve. We get together to thank God for the gift of his son.

We've decided that we will spend the next year making scarves and hats and along with some purchased socks and gloves give them out to homeless people in our area when it starts to get cold next fall. That is what Christmas is about. "What you do for the least of these you do for me".

Praise

OnTheWayOut

JW potential holiday to give them that "Not-Left-Out" feeling-

Dedication Day. This is that day when you reflect on your dedication to Jah
before your baptism. For new ones, this is the day you declare your dedication
and start going over baptism questions for the next assembly. Think of how they
could really get the WT Literature Students all excited about Dedication Day- and
they could ~~earn their salvation~~ prove their faith and dedication on that day by
sneaking special tracts under doors all around the territory. They could cancel
assembly baptisms if they ever became profitless (it could happen) and change
Dedication Day to Baptism Day, celebrated locally by the tub in the parking lot.

Reminds me of George Costanza's family celebration of Festivus on Seinfeld.
FESTIVUS for the REST of US!!!!

Gopher

OTWO, how would Dedication Day work? The JW growth rate is dwindling, and in most congregations the number of celebrants would be zero. Edited to add: maybe if they included everyone it could be a "Re-Dedication to Jehovah Day".

I think the closest JW's come to celebrating a holiday together (apart from their non-holiday get-togethers at holiday time) is when they go out to eat together (at a restaurant or someone's home) after the yearly Memorial. This practice was not uncommon in this area.

MsMcDucket

Did they include atheist and agnostics in that myth too? What about non-Christians? What about other Christian religions that don't celebrate holidays? Jehovah's Witnesses believe that they are the only ones that don't celebrate holidays, so . . .I don't get it? Does this mean that there are no unhappy Jehovah's Witnesses?

Gopher

Did they include atheist and agnostics in that myth too? What about non-Christians?

It would take too much thinking to look at what different people actually do. It's easier to lump all others into the "worldly people" group and dismiss them with a few simple comments like "they just live for holidays".

What about other Christian religions that don't celebrate holidays? Jehovah's Witnesses believe that they are the only ones that don't celebrate holidays, so . . .I don't get it?

JW's wouldn't want to recognize any commonality with other religions. They believe they're special, and any commonality between them and other groups are trivial because those other groups don't recognize their Faithful and Discreet Slave class (appointed by Jesus Christ himself, don't you know!).

Does this mean that there are no unhappy Jehovah's Witnesses?

If a JW is unhappy, it's probably their own fault. They're not going out in service enough, studying enough, or praying enough. If they're being "true Witnesses", then supposedly they're in step with "the happiest people".

TopHat

That's just not the truth.....some wrily peeps look forward to living in heaven when they die.

Sad emo

I've never been in, here's my perspective.

Of course we live for holidays!

But if we do, it's not for the reason the JW's say, it's because we're free to enjoy ourselves and live every aspect of life to the full without having an organisation telling us what to do, what to think, how to dress, who to talk to......

OnTheWayOut

Dedication Day. This is that day when you reflect on your dedication to Jah
before your baptism.

You can read this two ways. The ones who are baptized (for years) reflect on
their dedication that took place before their baptism. They celebrate by leaving
tracts under people's doors.

Work with me here, I am trying to create something that the warped WTS could
actually celebrate. They can all have a "get-together" after demonstrating that
they have worked for their salvation. At the get-together, they can drink their
$0.89 generic 2-liter sodas, and potatoe salads with lasagna and fried chicken.

Someone will make a cake that has a Watchtower logo on it, and if there are
any new dedications, they will give service bags and umbrellas to them. They can
combine the holiday with the commencement of the service year and honor any new
pioneers, plus give them umbrellas and comfortable shoes. It could also be a time
to fill out "No Blood" cards.

After the cake, they will study the WT like the Bethel families do, and sing Kingdom
Songs. They might even make the service year start January 1st, so this could be
celebrated on December 31st at the stroke of midnight- yelling "Happy Service Year."

They could also have Exemption Day. Brothers would be allowed to grow facial hair.
Everyone could display tattooes from their WORLDLY days (or get temp. tattooes).
Sisters can dress sexy or in pants and tell brothers off.

Have you heard: "Worldly people just live for the holidays"

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