Birthdays Okay -- if done by Fractions

FatFreek 2005

I have 2 sons who live close to each other. Thankfully, they are emotionally close despite the fact that the oldest never was baptized and therefore not bound by WT standards.

The youngest, the JW, had a birthday on the 1st of the month. I wished him a happy one -- but, of course, only in my mind knowing that he would dismiss such a wish if he even talked with me on the phone. He can't, of course, because of their shunning policy.

I asked the oldest non-JW, jokingly, if he'd wished his brother a happy birthday. They talk almost daily. He said, "Dad, we did talk about his birthday this morning and G then told me something startling -- you're not going to believe this but Mom calls him every birthday and to 'acknowledges that special day'".

To me, that was nearly unbelievable but at the same time, ironic. I recall years ago when we were all together my ex-wife's (wife at that time) mother phoning her on her birthday and actually wishing her a happy birthday. Being the party-liner, I would chastise my wife for participating in that small celebration and she would dismiss it quickly. After all, that was her mother and we need to excercise a little empathy at times.

So here, ex was merely passing it down as it was passed down from her mother, now deceased. This all makes me wonder -- have the JW's morphed into the Catholic mode where there are mortal sins and there are venial sins? Talking to a disfellowshipped father -- that's me -- is a mortal sin but acknowleging birthdays a mere venial sin?

Is acknowledging a birthday kind of like taking blood in fractions? Is celebrating birthdays in fractions somehow okay?

Len Miller

ItAintTrue

Sounds like it is okay to celebrate it in 'fractions' for some JW's. My diehard JW mom calls me and my kids on our birthdays. She even made a cake for my son this year. No, it wasn't a bday cake but it was given to him the day after his bday.

sacolton

Oh how I love JW loopholes!

WTWizard

I have known witlesses to do this with other things. I have heard of Christmas celebrations in fractions--they would drive around to see the lights, have some holiday food, listen to those Christmas carols that are actually winter songs, have special gift days (usually off-date and without the fancy wrappings), and gatherings on that date. For birthdays, they would take a day that is not the actual birthday and give the person the gifts then.

However, this is by no means universal. All too many witlesses are super strict about things like these. Those are the children that are made afraid of the Christmas lights or songs, that would almost never get any gifts, and would have to stay away from holiday foods during the holiday season. They also often had to do field circus all day on holidays, despite that the householders did not want their celebrations interrupted by the witlesses.

sir82

You can have birthday cake, so long as you separate the cake from the icing onto separate plates before consuming.

You can receive birthday gifts, so long as the gift, gift box, and wrapping paper are given separately.

You can receive a birthday kiss, so long as it is done one lip at a time.

garyneal

Oh how I love JW loopholes!

Believe you me, I will be looking for them when approaching these things with my soon to be baptized wife. And she says that I need to get out of her kool-aid. How am I suppose to learn about all the wonderful loop holes?

sd-7

There's a Questions From Readers in there somewhere. Should a Christian have cake on his birthday? That is up to the individual to decide. What sort of cake is it? Yellow cake? Bundt cake? Rum cake? If it is rum cake, could the Christian potentially become intoxicated, thus violating the scriptural command? Worse yet, in such an inebriated state, could he or she begin praising false gods of gold and silver as did Belshazzar the night before his death?

See what I mean? But it's amazing how two scriptures relating to events that HAPPENED on someone's birthday suddenly becomes a COMMAND not to celebrate birthdays. Everything's in the Bible for a reason, they say? How about the description of the Shulammite maiden's breasts being like towers in the Song of Solomon? Does that mean sisters should talk about that sort of thing? We could use that logic to justify anything.

Okay, maybe that was more of an adult section comment, but it's true, ain't it? But it is comical, in hindsight.

sacolton

"Every year when each of Job's sons had a birthday, he invited his brothers and sisters to his house for a celebration. On these occasions they would eat and drink with great merriment." (Job 1:4 - New Living Translation)

Another:

New American Standard Bible (©1995)
His sons used to go and hold a feast in the house of each one on his day, and they would send and invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them.

King James Bible
And his sons went and feasted in their houses, every one his day; and sent and called for their three sisters to eat and to drink with them.

American King James Version
And his sons went and feasted in their houses, every one his day; and sent and called for their three sisters to eat and to drink with them.

American Standard Version
And his sons went and held a feast in the house of each one upon his day; and they sent and called for their three sisters to eat and to drink with them.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And his sons went, and made a feast by houses every one in his day. And sending they called their three sisters to eat and drink with them.

Darby Bible Translation
And his sons went and made a feast in the house of each one on his day; and they sent and invited their three sisters to eat and to drink with them.

English Revised Version
And his sons went and held a feast in the house of each one upon his day; and they sent and called for their three sisters to eat and to drink with them.

Webster's Bible Translation
And his sons went and feasted in their houses, every one his day; and sent and called for their three sisters to eat and to drink with them.

World English Bible
His sons went and held a feast in the house of each one on his birthday; and they sent and called for their three sisters to eat and to drink with them.

Young's Literal Translation
And his sons have gone and made a banquet -- the house of each in his day -- and have sent and called to their three sisters to eat and to drink with them;

mrsjones5

I usually get a call from my mother (jw) on my birthday, early in the day before the time I was born. Her opening line is "You know you're not (whatever age I'm to be that year) until 7:32pm". When I was a teen she would got out and get a cake with no writing on it in my favorite favor but she would always get my sister and I mixed up. We were never to tell anyone (jws) about the cakes.

Mad Sweeney

I'm not entirely sure of the rationale but it appears to me that a parent recognizing the birthday of a child is quite common in the rank and file. My Dub mom has done it every year for my entire life. I think they must reason that since they're not throwing a party, they're not beheading anyone, and they're not giving glory to themselves on their own birthday (both the beheading birthday parties in the Bible were by rich/powerful dudes throwing the party for HIMSELF, remember), that it is ok to celebrate the birth of their child in the minor way of remembering that day as special.

Of course, if they ran it past an uber-Dub or a GB member, they'd probably get a negative reaction, and if they tried to tell a lot of the others in the congregation that they should do it, they'd get DFd for 'promoting a sect.' But if they keep quiet about it, their conscience doesn't bother them.

How could it, really? There is no real conscience in the borg. There is fear and guilt for breaking rules; that isn't the same thing at all.

Birthdays Okay -- if done by Fractions

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