Holiday Pagan Chart Of

Jehovah's Witnesses 

"Woe to you, . . . who strain out the gnat, but gulp down the camel." 
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because you give the tenth of the mint and the dill and the cumin, but you have disregarded the weightier matters of the Law, namely, justice and mercy and faithfulness. "
- Matthew 23:23-24   

PAGAN CUSTOM

WATCHTOWER REASON

REALITY CHECK

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Birthdays
 

1. Pagan Pharaoh of Egypt kills baker. (Gen 40:20) 
2. King Herod kills John the Baptist. (Matt 14:6) 
3.Rooted in Astrology.		 Do these two events make it displeasing to God and worthy of death ? Job's children regularly celebrated their birthdays. (Job 1:4,5; 3:1-3) Abraham had a party for Isaac when he was weaned. (Gen 21:8)

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Christmas

1. Dec 25 the birth of the sun god Mithras 
2. Week long Saturnalia Festival 
3. The tree, mistletoe, gift giving and more have pagan roots. 
4. Birthday celebration. 
5. A holiday of Apostate Christendom, which is considered to be part of "Babylon the Great."		 Is this really being "unevenly yoked with unbelievers" and "part of the world", being "fashioned after this system of things ?" (Rom 12:2;  2 Cor 6:14; James 4:4)  "Really, let no man judge you...in respects to a festival" (Col 2:16) Also, if the date of Dec 25 is connected to the Macebean rebellion, (Chanukah) then it has non-pagan roots. 

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Baptism

JW's get baptized as a part of "God's organization".

1. John the Baptist was send to baptize for the forgiveness of sin against the Law Covenant.

2. Jesus Himself submitted to baptism by John the Baptist. And He sent His disciples to baptize in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. (Mat. 3:7, John 3:22, etc.).		 Baptism definitely comes from a pagan practice. Even according to the WT 1/1/93, p. 4, baptism preceded the Christian faith. It was used in Babylon and ancient Egypt, "where the cold waters of the Nile were thought to increase strength and bestow immortality." Yet, neither John, nor Jesus rejected it because of its "pagan" origins

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Easter

1. Rabbit and eggs represent the fertility god 
2. Name connected to False god Astoreth (Astarte) in Hebrew scriptures and Artemus in the Greek scriptures. 
3. Jesus told them to celebrate his death, not resurrection. 		 Yet Jesus' body was 
wrapped in spices, "according to the Jewish tradition", that came from the ancient Pagan religious custom of mummification, and that was acceptable. 
(Acts 19:27; John 19:40)

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Thanksgiving

1. Nationalistic or Patriotic, part of Satan's system. 
2. Ecumenical or Interfaith, sharing with "Babylon the Great" - Empire of False Religion		 My experience as a witness, was every year me and many others, refused to eat with our families, yet would have a non-thanksgiving dinner, including turkey, with other witnesses. No scriptural support.

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Mother's Day

1. Possible connection to mother worship, thus displeasing to Jehovah There is no scriptural support for this which "goes beyond the things written." Wedding anniversaries honor mothers just as much, and yet that is allowed.

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Father's Day

1. Showing father too much honor. Again, no scriptural support and is not allowed by the Watchtower. Can I please say this is ridiculous ?

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Memorial &  Labor Day

1. Nationalistic, thus part of Satan's political system and being a "friend of the world." Again, not allowed. Is this really a compromise of integrity or "straining out the gnat?"  Is it really going against God and sinning to watch a parade on these days?

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Halloween

1. Connected to spiritism 
2. Connection to "all souls day" and those destroyed by Jehovah during the flood of Noah's day. HALLOWEEN: The word Halloween came from All Hallows (Holy Ones/Saints) Evening when parents had children dress as saints to encourage them to be good, the normally harmless pranks coming from Ireland possibly from pagans as also are wedding rings, names of days, months, some Christian names in the Bible like Apollos and Jason.		 Again, not allowed, and I can understand that spiritism is directly condemned in the Bible. However is dressing up and getting candy displeasing to God ? I don't believe so. Also what right does a religion have to enforce this? (Deu 18:9-13)

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

St.Patrick's Day

1. A holiday of Apostate
Christendom, which is part of "Babylon the Great."		 How can it be acceptable to put men, such as former Watchtower presidents on a "anointed" pedestal and then be condemned for honoring this man Patrick as a saint?

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Chanukah

1. Following the Mosaic Law. 
2. A holiday of false religion, which is part of "Babylon the Great."		 This story can only be found in the apocryphal books and yet Jesus did not condemn this celebration, which is mentioned in the Greek scriptures. Also, Why did Jesus teach in Synagogues, if that was not part of the Mosaic Law, but a manmade doing? 
(John 10:22)

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Wedding Anniversaries
 

1. Not considered Pagan 
2. Jehovah instituted the marriage arrangement		 It perfectly acceptable to have an anniversary party with gift giving. Yet this is not considered as "parent or spouse worship" as other holidays are by the Watchtower. Inconsistent, after all, the rule is made by men, not God, and these men, the Watchtower Society "make the word of God invalid."

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Wedding Ring

1. Secular sources show a Pagan origin, however this is allowed. Here is a double standard. This clearly comes from pagan religious origins, yet the Watchtower allows it.

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Toasting & Clinking Glasses

1. Pagan origins. "To the gods" and toast. This is not practiced by witnesses and frowned upon. Witnesses use the names of days and months that are clearly from pagan sources, yet toasting is a no no.

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Saying "God Bless You"  To Someone  Sneezing

1. Pagan custom to ward off evil spirits. This is not practiced by witnesses and frowned upon. Saying "Merry Christmas" is also a compromise of integrity to God. "The letter kills."

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Throwing Rice at a Wedding

1. Pagan custom Is this really being "unevenly yoked with unbelievers" and "part of the world", being "fashioned after this system of things ?" (Rom 12:2; 
2 Cor 6:14; James 4:4)

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

4th of July

1. Nationalistic, thus part of Satan's political system and being a "friend of the world." 
2. A Birthday celebration of a country		 Is it in harmony with Christ and bible teachings to believe that Jehovah will destroy you for bringing your children to see fireworks? 

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

The Wedding Honeymoon

It was the accepted practice in BABYLON, 4,000 years ago, that for a month after the wedding, the bride's father would supply his son-in-law with all the mead he could drink. Mead is a honey beer, and because their calendar was lunar based, this period was called the "honey month" or what we know today as the 'honeymoon'. Honeymoons are allowed by the Watchtower Society, even though it has Pagan origins. Perhaps an article will be printed in the future banning them? Whatever the leaders, the Governing Body of Men, not the bible, decide.

Pagan Custom

Watchtower Restriction & Reason

Reality Check

Funerals and Headstones

The Watchtower Society not only condones them, elders conduct the WBTS's version of "funeral services".JW's use headstones, including the one on the grave of the WT’s founder and first president, Charles T. Russell, which, by the way, is in the shape of a pyramid and has the symbol of the Cross and a crown on it (the original symbol of the early Jehovah's Witness, or Bible Students, followers).
Both the practice of funerals and the use of headstones can be traced back to pagan origin.

MANY MORE COULD BE ADDED

It may seem to be petty to have a chart like this, but if these things weren't enforced, disfellowshipping those who dare celebrate these holidays, and did not burden persons with these said and unsaid laws to follow, along with a guilt trip, then there would be no need to mention any of this refuse.

When disfellowshipped, a person is shunned ( not even a "hello") by all witnesses, and all Jehovah's Witness family members who are not living in the same household. So these holiday celebrations are taken very seriously by the Watchtower Society. This is legalism at it's worst.

CONCLUSION

There is practically nothing which cannot be traced back to a pagan origin.

What does the Bible say about various celebrations?

 
Romans 14: 5-6: "One man considers one day more sacred than another, another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special does so to the Lord. . ." (vs. 10) "You then, why do you look down on your brother or judge your brother? We all stand before God’s judgment seat. . ." (vs. 13) "Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another."

Col. 2:16: "Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink or with regard to a religious festival. . . The reality is found in Christ."

We have been set free in Christ and are not under the do’s and do not’s of any organization of men. Always remember Christ died and set us free from the "traditions and doctrines of men who heap heavy burdens on you which are not of the Lord" (read Col 2: 20-23).

Whether you choose to celebrate traditional holidays or not is your decision and should not be left to the dictates of an organization which tries to claim Biblical reasoning where there is none. God cares only that you honor Him. His word to us all is to "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind and then to love you neighbor as yourself" (Mark 12: 30-31).

To the Jehovah's Witnesses who claim that they are free to choose to celebrate or not, try celebrating a birthday. Call your family together on Thanksgiving Day for a feast. Exchange gifts on December 25th, instead of a few days before or after. Then see what the reaction from your leadership, your family and members of your congregation is and ask yourself again whether you do have that freedom within the WBTS.

Lightbearer's
EscapeFromWatchtower.com