Did you return to celebrating holidays?

by song19 38 Replies latest jw friends

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  song19

  With this new light, I am starting to try and figure out what to do with my life and my time... now that the world is opened up for me to finally explore.

  I have been wondering if I will return to celebrating the holidays with my 'worldly' relatives. My parents, brother, and in-laws are all witnesses. I have pretty much rejected the holidays say for 25 years. I am sure me rejecting the holidays caused a great divide between me and my relatives. I even sent out emails trying to explain that it wasn't the family I was rejecting, but the origins of the holidays.... bla bla bla, you know the drill.

  I came across this page the other day and found some of the points interesting.
  http://www.apostolic.net/biblicalstudies/holidays.htm

  I know that there are a few Christians who believe it is wrong to celebrate Easter and Christmas because the roots of these holidays are in paganism. There is no doubt that they have their roots in paganism. This is not disputed. What I do believe should be examined is the argument that says anything which has its roots in paganism should be avoided by Christians today. I would argue that nearly everything in our culture is rooted in paganism. Even the names of the months of the year and planets are named after pagan gods. The names of the days of the week also have their origin in paganism.

  So the question is... does it really matter anymore to me where the heck Christmas and other holidays originated? Should I still be on guard against things that have pagan origins? Would celebrating the holidays bring me closer to my family? or is that just a dream?

  I am curious as to how any of you have handled it. How do you feel about the holidays now? Did you go back to celebrating? How did your 'worldly' family react? How did your JW family react?

  thanx
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  Quandry

  Yes, I and my family have "returned" to the holidays. Actually, my daughter (twenty years old) never had celebrated, so it was interesting to say the least. We got a tree last year, and she and I even made some of our own decorations.

  We as a family went and bought some ornaments and other cute decorations, and music to suit the occasion. We put lights up around our fireplace, also. We put them all up right after Thanksgiving, and left them up until about the middle of January. It was hard to put them away. My daughter hugged the tree.

  My family was all opposed to the Witnesses. My husband and I, and later our daughter, were the only witnesses. It broke my parents hearts that we quit celebrating the holidays. Looking back now that both of my parents are dead, I am the one brokenhearted that I did not go to their house for Christmas and let them see their grandchild happily opening presents from Santa.

  I look at Christmas as an ancient tradition that keeps us tied to our roots-our ancestors. I love the music, the lights, etc. I always hated it when someone would say, "Look at those Christmas lights, aren't they ugly and from Satan?" I always said the lights were beautiful and could not help how they were used. That never went over well.
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  The Lone Ranger

  Althought I am still an 'active' JW, I know the truth about the truth. Regarding Holidays, I have taken my mum out to dinner on mother's day, althought she is a JW, she loved it. I don't think i will ever do Xmas, maybe just to please children and I do now buy some easter eggs for the kids but I never will celebrate it even if I fully left the WTS.
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  FlyingHighNow

  I gleefully returned to holidays as I enjoyed them so much, especially christmas and birthdays, as a youngster. Now I am to the point of taking them for granted again like most ordinary, worldly adults.Except for this one family on Baldwin St. They decorate every month in their yard. Today we noticed the theme is June Wedding and they even have a bridal veil stretched out in front of their house. I would have went with the summer solstice theme, but then that's me.
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  Gopher

  The "origin" of an event isn't so important. Did you know that the Awake magazine even recognized that fact in its article on the pinata?

  What's most important is the meaning it has now. I grew up JW and really have little or no emotional connection to holidays, because I didn't do them in my childhood. But now it means family, friends, food and laughing children. I will enjoy holidays as a time to get together, for as long as I live.
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  searchingforfriends

  YES!!! and it's just fun! I don't view any of the holidays as religios, just fun and tradition. It makes my granparents feel loved when I wish them a happy mothers/fathers day, christmas, etc... I've been celebrating for a year and it's been a blast. I don't really remember what the big deal was.. lol the reasons for abstaining just seem so weak to me now. ENJOY!
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  free2beme

  I celebrate them all and yet, I am a pagan.
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  lrkr

  Yes, and I find that I have to be careful, because sometimes I go a little overboard. I'm living vicariously through my kid. His birthday parties are great and we don't dare miss his friends parties!!!
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  BabaYaga

  I did not "return" to holidays, as I had never been allowed to have them.
  
  I did, however, little by little, celebration by celebration and year by year, add holidays to my life.
  
  It might take a while, but I can't TELL you how WONDERFUL it is!
  
  Don't rush yourself. Don't do anything you're not comfortable with. It takes a while to get the brainwashing out of your system. The thing about being free is to take your own time and do what YOU need to do, no longer relying upon the life altering and death-dealing demands of a small band of men.
  
  Cheers to you,
  Baba.
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  Switch

  Hi Song. I'm probably at the same level of re-integration into the real world as you are. I stumbled upon the pinata articles that Gopher mentioned last year. Here's excerpts from Sept. 22, 2003 Awake:

  We found that for many people in Mexico, the piñata has lost its religious significance and is considered by most to be just harmless fun. In fact, piñatas are used in Mexico on many festive occasions, not just for the posadas or for birthdays. And piñatas can be purchased in many forms other than the traditional star shape. They are sometimes made to resemble animals, flowers, clowns.

  When considering whether to include a piñata at a social gathering, Christians should be sensitive to the consciences of others. (1 Corinthians 10:31-33) A main concern is, not what the practice meant hundreds of years ago, but how it is viewed today in your area. Understandably, opinions may vary from one place to another. Hence, it is wise to avoid turning such matters into big issues. The Bible says: "Let each one keep seeking, not his own advantage, but that of the other person."—1 Corinthians 10:24.

  And in the July 8, 2004 Question From Readers:

  Piñatas

  I read with interest the article "The Piñata—An Ancient Tradition." (September 22, 2003) It left me with some questions. The ties to false religion are well-documented. But the article seemed to take the position that as long as it doesn’t bother someone’s conscience, it is OK. What about birthdays and holidays such as Christmas?

  S. W., United States

  "Awake"responds: Christians refrain from any celebrations or customs that continue to involve false religious beliefs or activities that violate Bible principles. For example, the Bible definitely puts birthday celebrations in a bad light. (Genesis 40:20; Matthew 14:6-10) However, if it is very obvious that a custom has no current false religious significance and involves no violation of Bible principles, each Christian must make a personal decision as to whether he will follow such a custom.
  

  We're taking things slow and I've been testing what I'm comfortable with. I'm not sure how we'll handle Christmas. Our parents are still JW's and we're not officially "out" of the congo yet. We recently took my 5 year old to a friend from school's birthday party. He had a great time. I was absolutely fine with it all and I'm not sure what the big deal was all about. Another post had mentioned that the two examples of B-days in the Bible didn't actually condemn the celebrations. And what if those two deaths had happened at a wedding celebration, would weddings be considered bad for the rest of time? It's simple reasoning to the average person but when you've been brainwashed for so long your mind automatically wants to reject these celebrations as bad.

  It's interesting though that the above articles about pinatas say that it's basically okay because pinatas have lost their religious significance. Haven't Christmas, Easter, etc. pretty much lost their religious significance? My brothers that are not JW's have always just considered it a family holiday and gift-giving time.

  Nobody says you have to do it the "traditional" way either. Every family can start new traditions. Think about it and enjoy the new possibilities.

  -switch