Not celebrating birthdays or Christmas?

We had a very religious Christian colleague who definitely tried to recruit at work, handing out leaflets, always talking about Jesus etc. it's what the bible tells people to do, to be fair, but most don't because of modern societal norms.

Lots of people in the UK don't celebrate Christmas.

We have Hanukkah.

It's great.

We also don't make a massive deal of birthdays, but we do mark them.

Christianity isn't the only reigion.

That's the school treating them cruelly rather than their parents. JW children at my school didn't go to assembly either (nor did many Muslim, Hindu and Sikh children) and they stayed in a classroom and did things like art. No reason to stand in a corridor.

She didn't "confess". That's her belief. Would you question a Muslim or Hindu person not celebrating Christmas?!

More importantly, what does Jesus say about the sinners?
@Green777 your insistence that JW are following the Bible is laughable. I do not recall Jesus giving directions to shun the sinners. Quite the opposite. Unless, they are following the Old Testament, of course, in which case it is also unclear why they shun the sinners and not, say, disembowel and burn them.

What does Jesus have to say about celebrating birthdays? 🙄

The birthdays are a minor issue, she is raising her children in a cult.

I actually knew of a young witness woman who died just after giving birth to her first child from blood loss. She refused a transfusion.

She'd had an awful life prior to that.

She'd been abused as a child by a JW family member but it was never reported to the police because there weren't 2 independent witnesses to the abuse.

He got away with it. He wasn't even disfellowshipped because again, he denied it. There were no witnesses to the abuse.
That's a rule in the bible that they stick to.
Fuckers

As pagans we don't celebrate christmas, but then we don't bother with birthdays /anniversay either, no cards or presents. Saves a lot of hassle, just buy each other small thoughtful gifts through the year.
Works for us as we both agree with the arrangement.

@Green777
A number women would die of haemorrhage in childbirth if they did not receive a blood transfusion. Also if badly injured in road accidents and those with severe anaemia. There are many cases where it's life or death.

There are a lot of other religions that don’t celebrate Christmas, their kids are fine. I know a few families that are Jehovah’s witnesses and they do a present day randomly a few times per year where the kiddos get spoilt and they have a lovely day together so she maybe does similar.. Even if she doesn’t though, it’s really none of your business.

I think all religions are cults, but JW's are the cultish of them all!!

@Green777
Abstaining from blood in their view is a direct command from God, as with other religions. Other religions also prohibit pork, alcohol, drugs. It would be extremely extremely rare nowadays for someone to die without blood, due to amazing medical advances.

Abstaining from pork, alcohol and drugs isnt going to kill someone.
Refusing a blood transplant absolutely would, its not rare at all!! nothing in medical science can replace blood when needed!

I've never had a Mormon knock but if they did yes they would.

Some time ago I saw a terribly sad film about a gay man with AIDs who was completely ‘exiled’ from his JW family and community, because of his sexuality, which IIRC he’d kept hidden before he fell ill.
IIRC it was a ‘faction’ piece from Denmark

My daughter went through a religious phase, she was going to be the first female bishop, and if the JWs knocked we sent her to speak to them they were glad to escape, similarly the groups of young evangelical Americans who would appear at times.

I don't think Mormons deny blood or demand 2 witnesses to a child being abused before the elders will investigate or report to the police

I think this is an easy way to end up with your kids never speaking to you as adults!

What, an attempt at a serious discussion? Sure, why not?

My mum used to circle through religions. A couple of her sisters were JW and our next door neighbours were too, so inevitably we did spend a brief while ourselves as JW. Thankfully it was a short spell before my mum moved on but it was horrid and we were given toys, but not on our actual birthdays so they counted as presents. The poor boy next door was always miserable. And now all my cousins are grown up, non of them speak to their parents.

Mormons come knocking too
Do they get the same treatment?

it makes sense that you’re looking at it from an academic stance, it is really hard to understand people’s personal religious beliefs in the Bible etc from that standpoint but I understand and respect that too

I've been a Christian, I do have some understanding of how belief works from that perspective. Sorry that doesn't fit the narrative you're trying to put on me.🤷‍♀️

Re being open minded and respecting others beliefs... odd, last I heard, the children of witnesses are excluded from RE classes, so they don't get to learn about other religions other than what their parents/the organisation may or may not tell them.
When talking to JWs I've certainly never got the sense that they were at all open minded, no interest in my beliefs let alone respecting them. I was highly amused after having what seemed like a serious discussion for half an hour or so on my doorstep once when rather abruptly the senior guy said 'it's a pity you don't want to talk to us about this' and walked away ...er, what? More like he didn't want his younger companion exposed to my thoughts!

At my parents’ house when dds were still quite small, a pair of them tried the front door, but there was no reply, presumably because we were all in the garden with the children and didn’t hear the doorbell.

This pair of JWs actually had the barefaced cheek to walk round the side of the house into the garden, and then tell us they felt entitled to do so, ‘because we could hear the children.’

My father gave them very short shrift, I can tell you!

That's great for YOU, but multiple people on this thread have experienced or seen the contrary.

Do you really struggle to understand that people share different experiences? I can't imagine going through life so narrow minded..

Witnesses shunning doctors who are trying to save a child's life with a blood transfusion as I said is nothing short of neglect and abuse. You say it's 'rare for a blood transfusion to be needed.' More than 2700 children receive blood transfusions each year at Children's National Hospital and specialist locations. 7500 receive red blood cell transfusions, 2000 plasma, 3000 platelets snd 900 cyroprecipitate units.

I think you're very ill informed when it comes to transfusions saving children's lives.
Any parent who refuses this, is neglectful and abusive. The medical professionals have been known to take it to court to overrule the abusive parents, and have won, on many occasions.

What a waste of fucking time, money and resources, all for these people 'spreading gods word' knocking on our doors being a damn right nuisance.

When we my children had a birthday that fell in a school day we kept the day very low key and then celebrated it wholeheartedly on the weekend after.

Perhaps that's what they do, they don't celebrate birthdays but have other days throughout the year which are special .

The door-knocking is not to try to convert people. It’s designed so that they will experience basically nothing but anger and aversion from people outside of their religion, which strengthens their belief to stay. Us against them. Very clever. So next time instead open the door and say Welcome, ask them about their name or family, favourite food..anything to humanise people outside of JW. Don’t invite them in, but show nothing but friendliness and that it’s possible to have friends that are not JW.