2007-03-25 03:01:30 · 15 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
I am a Jehovahs Witnesses. We do not celebrate Christmas because it is simply not in the bible, nor is it even Jesus' real birthday. The only birthday that was celebrated in the bible was of a pagan woman who didn't worship Jehovah.
Most people don't understand that in any bible, there is not a mention of celebrating Christmas. People just go along with Christmas because their pastor told them it's ok without even showing them in the bible that they never even celebrated such a thing.
I really hope that i helped you out a bit. ;-)
2007-03-25 03:14:46 · answer #1 · answered by blogchic88 2 · 6⤊ 0⤋
For a few reasons. We feel it is wrong to celebrate as it has it's roots in Pagan celebrations. In fact my hometown paper used to publish the origins of various Christmas celebrations around December.
Another reason is that, as I understand it, those who do celebrate Christmas are doing so as a Celebration of Christ's birth. December is not when Jesus was born. Also nowhere do we read of Christ supporting Birthdays. Also the only 2 birthdays mentioned in the Bible are mentioned in an unfavorable light.
For this reason we choose not to Celebrate this holiday. I have heard that there are one or two other Christian faiths that don't as well, though I cannot swear to it.
2007-03-26 12:09:53 · answer #2 · answered by Ish Var Lan Salinger 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
1. It's because of it's pagan origins of it's practices. Please
look up the origin of Christmas or any other holiday on the
Internet and it will tell you the origin of it's customs.
2. We are not told to celebrate his birthday, in fact, his date
of birth is not mentioned in the bible.
3. The only references to birthdays being celebrated in the
bible were by pagans. John the Baptist lost his head on
Herod birthday. The Israelites and early Christians did
not celebrate birthdays.
We follow the advise given at 2 Cor. 6: 14 & 15 "Do not become unevenly yoked with unbelievers. For what fellowship do righteousness and lawlessness have? Or what sharing does light have with darkness? Further, what harmony is there between Christ and Be'li.al? Or what portion does a faithful person have with an unbeliever?" verse 17 "Therefore get out from among them, and separate yourselves, says Jehovah, and quit touching the unclean thing and I will take you in."
We are told to celebrate his death at Luke 22:19 "Keep doing this in remembrance of me." We know his date of death of Nissian 14, which falls on April 2nd this year. Jehovah's Witnesses do celebrate the memorial of Jesus death. All are welcome to attend at their local Kingdom Hall.
2007-03-25 19:53:15 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
If Jesus was born in the fall, if the Bible says we must worship God with spirit and truth, if Christmas customs have pagan origins, if the Bible does not tell us to celebrate Jesus birth, if the holiday gives glory to Santa Claus instead of YHWH/Jehovah, if Constantine in the 3rd century started Christmas and it is a man made holiday, aka the winter solstice celebration,....why does anyone celebrate Christmas?
2007-03-25 10:08:00 · answer #4 · answered by tienna 3 · 6⤊ 0⤋
If you do some research you will find that MOST holidays are pagan based and not mentioned in the Bible. I am not a Witness (though I did study with them for a while,) and I don't celebrate most holidays either because they have no real meaning.
2007-03-25 10:47:42 · answer #5 · answered by ♥ terry g ♥ 7 · 5⤊ 0⤋
christmas was originally a pagan holiday that was celebrated on january 6th but the cathlic church adopted paganism into their beliefs and just changed the name and date to suit their pleasure. Jesus was born in the spring time when lambs are born. He was the ram that was to be sacrificed, he was not born under the sign of the goat/man like catholics have made him.
when the Lord was born it said the shepherd were tending their flocks by night. They would not do this during the winter when there is snow on the ground. It was spring time when he was born
2007-03-25 10:59:23 · answer #6 · answered by God help us 6 · 6⤊ 0⤋
The personal name of Almighty God is "Jehovah". Please do not pretend that any true Christian would refer to himself as though he were Almighty God; an adherent of Jehovah's Witnesses might be called "a Witness" or "a JW" but certainly not "a Jehovah".
Jehovah's Witnesses are Christians; they teach that Christ was and is Divine and of the same nature as God.
Jehovah's Witnesses teach that no salvation occurs without Christ, that accepting Christ's sacrifice is a requirement for true worship, that every prayer must acknowledge Christ, that Christ is the King of God's Kingdom, that Christ is the head of the Christian congregation, that Christ is immortal and above every creature, even that Christ was the 'master worker' in creating the universe!
Jehovah's Witnesses love and respect and honor Christ. They do NOT celebrate so-called "Christmas" because "Christmas" does NOT celebrate Christ; "Christmas" celebrates the pagan Saturnalia. Jesus was not even born in December. Nearly all so-called Christmas customs dishonor Christ.
(Jeremiah 10:2-5) This is what Jehovah has said: "Do not learn the way of the nations at all... 3 For the customs of the peoples are just an exhalation, because it is a mere tree out of the forest that one has cut down, the work of the hands of the craftsman with the billhook. 4 With silver and with gold one makes it pretty. With nails and with hammers they fasten them down, that none may reel. ...the doing of any good is not with them."
http://watchtower.org/e/19981215/article_02.htm
http://watchtower.org/e/20001215/
http://watchtower.org/e/20041215/article_01.htm
http://watchtower.org/e/19981215/
http://watchtower.org/e/rq/article_11.htm
By contrast, it's tragic that the one holiday Christ actually *DID* ask Christians to commemorate is entirely ignored by almost all of Christendom. It is, of course, the Memorial of Christ's death, sometimes called "the Last Supper" or "the Lord's Evening Meal".
(1 Corinthians 11:23-25, NWT) The Lord Jesus in the night in which he was going to be handed over took a loaf... Keep doing this in remembrance of me.” 25 He did likewise respecting the cup.. Keep doing this... in remembrance of me.”
(1 Cor 11:24, 25, NEB) "Do this as a memorial of me.”
Christ Jesus himself personally celebrated and explained the significance of that Last Supper to his followers (see Matthew 26:26-29). Christians who commemorate the Last Supper have done so on the same Jewish calendar date as Jesus did, Nisan 14, which generally falls between late March and mid-April. Interestingly, Christians in the centuries immediately after Christ's impalement were sometimes called "Quartodecimans" which literally mean "Fourteen-ers", because the early Christians were well-known for this true holy day.
How would Jesus feel to learn that the holiday he commanded was widely ignored, while his so-called followers chose to celebrate a pagan false god and their own traditions of men? We don't need to wonder.
(Matthew 15:6-9) You have made the word of God invalid because of your tradition. 7 You hypocrites, Isaiah aptly prophesied about you when he said, 8 ‘This people honors me with their lips, yet their heart is far removed from me. 9 It is in vain that they keep worshiping me, because they teach commands of men as doctrines.’”
2007-03-26 17:06:48 · answer #7 · answered by achtung_heiss 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Jesus was born in the late fall. Jesus told us to remember his death and what it has done to reconcile us to God. The early Christians did not celebrate Christmas. Christmas is a melding of pagan customs along with a token Christian thought. It came with the melding also of church and state. But Jesus said that we are no part of the world...so we separate ourselves from those worldly types of celebrations. We love Jesus and his Father, Jehovah. We do believe totally that Jesus is the Son of God, and we most definitely do believe that he came here in human form, but is now a reigning King in heaven.
Isaiah 9: 6&7: "6Â For there has been a child born to us, there has been a son given to us; and the princely rule will come to be upon his shoulder. And his name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. 7Â To the abundance of the princely rule and to peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and upon his kingdom in order to establish it firmly and to sustain it by means of justice and by means of righteousness, from now on and to time indefinite. The very zeal of Jehovah of armies will do this."
Notice that it says princely rule, because Jehovah is and always will be over everything, even his Son Jesus. Jehovah is the Universal Sovereign! However, Jesus is now King of God's Kingdom for his thousand year reign. He is n ot a baby in a manger, but a powerful King in heaven, over the earth.
2007-03-25 10:24:58 · answer #8 · answered by wannaknow 5 · 6⤊ 0⤋
Christmas is actually a collection of pagan rites and rituals. It's taken several centuries to develop the Christmas you see today.
When the puritans came over to the new world, Christmas was one of the pagan celebrations they were leaving.
It didn't get started in the new world until the Irish started immigrating over.
2007-03-25 10:24:30 · answer #9 · answered by rangedog 7 · 5⤊ 0⤋
For the same reason true Christians don't celebrate Christmas (or Easter, for that matter) -- because it is clearly a pagan worship feast, worshiping false gods. And God's Word, the Bible, clearly says:
"take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, 'How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise' " (Deuteronomy 12:30).
2007-03-25 10:23:28 · answer #10 · answered by BC 6 · 6⤊ 0⤋