JWs Celebrating Brithdays

Franklin Massey

I keep hearing of more and more JWs that are celebrating their birthdays or, doing "special days" for their children on the day of their birth. I'm sure this has always been done but what interests me is that many people aren't ashamed to admit it since they have used their own fully functioning minds to figure out that the Society's birthday ban doesn't hold up. One young couple with two kids (he's an MS, she's an ex-pioneer who dropped off the list to tend to the kids) explained it to me this way...

"The happiest days of our lives include the births of our children. We have a blessing in our family that we want to reflect on when our kids' birth dates come around. We (meaning husband and wife) can celebrate our wedding anniversary with no consequence. How is a child's birthday any different? It's a day to celebrate life and family. Try explaing to your kids that you can't give them a gift or have a speical dinner on their birthday because in the Bible someone got killed at a birthday party. That logic could apply to all parties not just birthdays. It's not like anyone is going to 'lose their head' because we want to celebrate how happy we are to have two beautiful kids."

That "lose their head" comment cracked me up. Not only was it witty but it also points out how flimsy the anti-birthday arguement is.

leavingwt

Some here will tell you that you cannot be DF'd for celebrating a birthday.

wobble

I would ask Cantleave about that one LWT ! depends on the quality of nazi there is on the B.O E

Sure looks as though the control of thought is loosening its grip on some at least, Good !

Giordano

It's a MEANingless teaching. Really simple minded. One of the things I fault the society for is the disregard they show for their human resources.

alanv

One witness I know had a special day for her grand daughter in the summer. Not her birthday you understand just a special day for her.

When I asked her if it was her birthday she proudly said Oh no we do not celebrate birthdays.

She could not see it was the same thing.

troubled mind

It is great some are using their thinking abilities ......but it is too bad they have to do so quietly and in secret . I imagine they have to tell the kids not to say anything at the Kingdom Hall about it ?

cantleave

There is more tolerance regarding "non-religious" celebrations but birthdays are still classed as "pagan" and can have you up before a JC. But as we all know each individual body of elders will deal with these things in their own way. If there is a perception that R&F members are finding ways to circumvent the birthday rules, I am sure that the CO's will be given an outline clarifying the issue.

undercover

Some here will tell you that you cannot be DF'd for celebrating a birthday.

Technically speaking... one cannot be DFd for celebrating a birthday.

One can be DFd, however, for lack of repentance in partaking of pagan celebrations and customs.

It's all semantics though... the end result would be the same.

As for actually getting away with it...I think it comes down to how strict your elder body is and how discreet you are in how you go about celebrating that 'special' day.

Franklin Massey

A few things that the Birthday Rule Reformers are doing are the above mentioned "Special Days" and the "We didn't have a party" line.

The Special Day is like the JWs who give their kids a few gifts over the Christmas break from school because they don't want their kids to feel left out of the fun that all of their schoolmates are having. "We didn't give the gifts on Christmas. We all just had the time off of work and school so it was a good fit."

The not-an-actual-party thing shows respect for the lives lost at Biblical birthday parties (as if that is what it was really all about) while still leaving room to acknowledge the explusion of a child from its mother on the day in which that event happened.

I forgot about Thanksgiving dinners, too!

Pretty soon, JWs will be celebrating half of the holidays all while remaining, technically, in the safe zone.

The problem is when someone gets offended. I've seen elders meetings called for the most trivial matters just because someone in the KH got bent out of shape about something another person did.

clarity

In other words the watchtower is training it's followers to be underhanded, liars and cheats!!!!

Well I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree!

clarity

JWs Celebrating Brithdays

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