Jehovah's Witnesses

You can find the dates and locations here:

http://jw-media.org/index.html

2008/2009 "Guided by God's Spirit" District Conventions of Jehovah's Witnesses

Three-day conventions begin in the United States on the weekend of May 23-25 and will be subsequently held in cities throughout the world. The public is welcome to attend. Last year, more than 12 million people attended one of the more than 3,200 of such conventions that were held worldwide.

You can also get that information by writing the branch office of Jehovah's Witnesses in that country. To get the address of the branch office, go to www.watchtower.org

They don't...

Inferior is a harsh term to use as well.

Granted they don't give women positions of authority in decisive situations, like any religion they do this because it is what their scriptural text says to do. But the women play a veryimportant role in the functioning of the organization*. No where in the Bible or in the Watchtower publications does it say women are inferior. You may have gotten this idea from the misapplication of scriptural text, or from your observance of human action, but humans make mistakes, so please forgive them for any injustice.

(Forgive them, for they know not what they do.)

The man of the household is viewed as the head, he takes responsibility for the household. This is in line with the Bible.

*Many of the men go to work to support the family and the women choose to voluntarily devote a set amount of hours in each year (or sometimes monthly if you choose to do so) doing work where they inform people about the Bible (this is why they knock at your door every day, but mostly Saturday mornings).

This volunteer work is not limited to only females and is not required, it is all voluntary. The amount of hours that the women put in is not overlooked, it is greatly appreciated and acknowledged, but it is important to stay humble as Christ did. We all play apart in the grand scheme of things.

In Genesis it states that it is not good for man to go by himself, and that he needed a helper (women)! Men could not do what they do without the help of women :) Women are vital and are recognized so by God.

If you don't believe in God or in the authority of the Bible that's fine, but Jehovah's witnesses do (or they should).

Gandhi said Christians should be more Christ like. So please forgive those who don't.

I hope this answers your question.

Those who are close to Jehovah enjoy another blessing-divine protection. The psalmist David, who was no stranger to adversity, wrote: "Jehovah is near to all those calling upon him, to all those who call upon him in trueness. The desire of those fearing him he will perform, and their cry for help he will hear, and he will save them. Jehovah is guarding all those loving him." (Psalm 145:18-20) Yes, Jehovah is near to those who love him and therefore can be swift in responding to their cries for help.

9 Why do we need divine protection? In addition to feeling the effects of living in these "critical times hard to deal with," true Christians are a special target of Jehovah's chief Adversary, Satan the Devil. (2 Timothy 3:1) That crafty enemy is out "to devour" us. (1 Peter 5:8) Satan persecutes, pressures, and tempts us. He also looks for attitudes of mind and heart that he can exploit. He has an objective in mind: to weaken our faith and consume us spiritually. (Revelation 12:12, 17) Since we have such a powerful foe to contend with, is it not reassuring to know that "Jehovah is guarding all those loving him"?

His promise of protection does not guarantee us a problem-free life in this system; nor does it mean that he is obligated to work miracles in our behalf. Nevertheless, Jehovah does provide physical protection for his people as a group. After all, he would never allow the Devil to efface true worshipers from the earth! (2 Peter 2:9) Above all, Jehovah protects us spiritually. He equips us with what we need to endure trials and to safeguard our relationship with him. In the long run, spiritual protection is the most important kind of protection. Why? As long as we have our relationship with Jehovah, nothing-not even death-can do us lasting harm.-Matthew 10:28.

11 Jehovah has made abundant provisions for the spiritual protection of those who are close to him. Through his Word, the Bible, he grants us wisdom to cope with various trials. (James 1:2-5) Applying the practical counsel found in the Scriptures makes a difference. In addition, Jehovah gives "holy spirit to those asking him." (Luke 11:13) That spirit is the most powerful force in the universe, so it can certainly equip us to face successfully any trial or temptation that may come our way. Through Christ, Jehovah provides "gifts in men." (Ephesians 4:8) These spiritually qualified men endeavor to reflect Jehovah's own heartfelt compassion in helping fellow worshipers.-James 5:14, 15.

12 Jehovah provides something else to safeguard us: spiritual food at the proper time. (Matthew 24:45) By means of printed publications, including the journals The Watchtowerand Awake!, as well as by meetings, assemblies, and conventions, Jehovah supplies us with what we need when we need it. Can you recall an occasion when you heard something at a Christian meeting, an assembly, or a convention that touched your heart and strengthened or comforted you? Have you ever read an article in one of the above-mentioned journals and felt that it was written for you?

13 One of Satan's most effective weapons is discouragement, and we are not immune to its effects. He well knows that prolonged despondency can rob us of strength, even making us vulnerable. (Proverbs 24:10) Because Satan is trying to capitalize on negative feelings, we need help. The Watchtower and Awake!magazines have occasionally featured articles that help us to combat discouragement. Regarding one such article, a Christian sister wrote: "I read the article almost every day, and the tears still well up. I keep it by my bed so that I can have it with me whenever I am feeling down. Through articles like these, I can just feel Jehovah's protective arms embracing me." Are we not grateful to Jehovah for supplying us with timely spiritual food? Remember, his provisions for our spiritual well-being are evidence that he is close to us and has placed us under his protective care.

people that hate life , the Jehovah's Witnesses are nice people

Satan the Devil, his demons and his followers, hate Witnesses. Jehovah's Witnesses are also 'witnesses' of the lies and murder the devil and his demons are guilty of. Some persons believe that the Devil is just a goat-like creature with horns, hoofs and a long, pointed tail. Well, Satan and his demons are rebels (John 8:44).

Before the Flood of Noah's day, these demons could materialize humans bodies: Genesis 6:1-4-- "Now it came about that when men started to grow in numbers on the surface of the ground and daughters were born to them, then the sons of the [true] God began to notice the daughters of men, that they were good-looking; and they went taking wives for themselves, namely, all whom they chose. After that Jehovah said: "My spirit shall not act toward man indefinitely in that he is also flesh. Accordingly his days shall amount to a hundred and twenty years." The Neph′i·lim proved to be in the earth in those days, and also after that, when the sons of the [true] God continued to have relations with the daughters of men and they bore sons to them, they were the mighty ones who were of old, the men of fame". So, these wicked angels produced the Nephilim, 'Fellers of Men' or Giants, as different Bible translations say, perverting God's creation. The Earth was so filled with violence, God brought about the Great Deluge. The Nephilim died along with everyone else who refused listen to Noah and get into the Ark (2Peter 2:5). 'Criminals' hate the person who 'unmasks' them, so it is no surprise that Satan hates Witnesses!

ADDITIONALLY

I would like to add that many people dislike Jehovah's Witnesses based upon misinformation.

Additionally: Well there are very many people who hate us just because of the name we stand for. There are many kids that I've gone to school with that were very surprised at first that I was a witness but then they started asking me all of these questions and I really enjoyed having the ability to answer them. But on occasion I have been greatly persecuted by some students and it was very hard but with the help of Jehovah's Holy Spirit I was able to endure. And also this goes along with what Jesus said that if they persecute me they will persecute you also. So we expect to have some opposition and we learn how to deal with it, we try not to take it personally or get our feelings hurt just because someone doesn't like our religion. But many times people don't make fun of me but they respect my beliefs even though they don't believe the same way. And others just don't know enough about Jehovah's Witnesses so they just go by what they hear and they base their views on us that way.

FROM AN OUTSIDE VIEWPOINT...

Now any Witnesses reading this, please try to understand. Just so you know, I am a catholic but I recently started dating a Witness. Now I never thought of them as weird, but the reason I've heard most often for disliking them is the way they try to get people to understand their religion- you know, the whole thing where they go up to random strangers' houses and start trying to show them their religion. I have heard stories from adults about how they made fun of the witnesses or their mothers did, and while I think that is wrong, it was still kinda funny. (Sorry, I heard that story when I was like 8. I don't think it's funny anymore, just rude.) My boyfriend's mom, while she is very nice most of the time, can get amazingly preachy and disses my religion as though I was a Satan worshiper, which I am NOT. It makes me cry. She kinda just randomly jumps down my throat about it, and that is the problem I have with her. I don't know if there are a lot of Witnesses like that, but that could be a reason why people don't personally like them. Most of the time, though, I don't mind them. Just when the preachy-ness sets in.

JASMIN HATES DEM!!!DEY DESTROYED MY LIFE WEN MA DAD GOT KILLED!!

I will tell you that i certainly do not. many of my friends are, even though i am not. if you hate them so much keep it to your self because one day you will tell this to some one that is a jahova witness they will not be very happy. if you hate them because they don't celebrate holidays, well that is just their religion. your very lucky that i am not a jahova witness.Answer: I'm one of Jehovah's witnesses and so far, I've met more people who like witnesses than those who actually hate us. but i can tell you, that a lot of people do hate us. most ex witnesses don't like witnesses, and will do anything to slander our name. so basically apostates hate us a lot.Wow; seriously who could be more rude about people. its just how they are and i know a couple and they are some of the nicest girls ever! =]

The business, if you will, of virtually all religions are exempt.

Their workers, clergy, and constituents aren't, (nor is unrelated business income), of course.

Why would they be?

A LITTLE MORE

The organization of Jehovah's Witnesses, as a religious organization remains tax exempt in most countries, as other religions are. There may be some countries where taxes are imposed, and Jehovah's Witnesses comply with local tax authorities in such cases.

We have no paid clergy or church leaders. All ministers' work is voluntary, including the door-to-door activity that we are well known for. Therefore, in most cases, each minister must support himself or herself financially through some form of secular employment. Each one of JW's must individually be responsible for their own obligations of paying taxes to the authorities for whatever income or property they may be taxed on.

We are continually reminded at our congregation meetings that we are accountable before GOD himself to honestly pay our taxes as required by the government under which we live.

Answer:

I've heard that in Canada, for about ten to fifteen years now the Witnesses travelling elders and those staying at the Watchtower offices have declared vows of poverty the same as the priesthood of other churches and are tax exempt. This is only for a privileged upper hierarchy and is not available to local elders and rank and file witnesses. Could they have kept this quiet because they sign the government forms as clergymen while they tell those who question it that this is more like being poor "monks" because they do not have clergy in their church? So one could ask if either the government is being mislead or the church goers are? This seeming twisting of the truth when it's financially advantageous or otherwise beneficial is a good question to raise with their travelling "non-clergy".

Reading the above, I suspect it is a confusion as to terms...and that again the people, any of the people, of a tax exempt entity are not themselves tax exempt.

And a prime indicator there wouldn't even be any need for those mentioned to be so: A monk, JW priest, or just unlucky person...who is in poverty and has no (or very limited) income and wealth, with others providing for them...l..pays no tax, exempt or not.

No! They pay taxes and are obligated to be honest in their tax preparation. In Jesus time, in an attempt to "trick" him into saying something to prove he was trying to subvert the Roman gov't ( a new gov't at the time that he lived) they asked Jesus if his followers should pay taxes. Jesus reply was, "Pay Caeser's things to Caesar but pay god's things to God." Jesus was in fact charged with sedition, but this statement that they prompted him to make, provided no proof of that charge.

We must pay taxes as a law abiding citizen, the question has arisen as to why we pay taxes even though we don't support the way much of it is spent. However, the way taxes are appropriated is the responsibility of the gov't not the witness, and the witness need not feel guilty for supporting efforts that displease Jehovah, ie war, expansion of the military, subsidized abortions etc. When are direct actions are in conflict with Jehovah, is joining the serive, this is when the Witness would choose not to obey a governmental authority.

Jehovah's Witnesses can attend Catholic funeral if they chose. Many will either chose not to attend or may attend without participating in the actual ceremony.

Many will view the ceremony as objectionable due to the teachings and customs sometimes attachted to such event.

The Governing Body have seen fit to address this topic.

Watchtower 2002 15th May Questions from Readers, Would it be advisable for a true Christian to attend a funeral or a wedding in a church?

'Our taking part in any form of false religion is displeasing to Jehovah and must be avoided. A church funeral is a religious service.... How unwise to expose oneself to such pressure!'

Each individual Jehovah's Witness when deciding for themselves would 'respond to the directions of the slave as we would to the voice of God' (W57 15th June p370).

Jehovah's Witnesses is the name of a Christian Group that worship the God of the bible, identified therein as "Jehovah". They are best known for their "Witnessing" or speaking about the gospel.
Jehovah's Witnesses are a Christian Group.

"Jehovah" is the English transliteration of the name of God found in the bible (YHWH) and a Witnesses is someone that testifies (speaks) about what they know or have seen, thus a Jehovah's Witnesses is someone that speaks about what they believe to be true about the God of the bible.

Jehovah's Witnesses did not rewrite the Bible. They brought out their own version starting in the 1950s. Prior to this they used Byington's version and the King James. In fact the WTBTS owns printing plates to the the King James version.

We use many translations, but the one we generally use is the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures, a modern English translation which accurately translates the thoughts of the original Biblical languages of Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek.

It has many fine features, the most notable of which is the fact that it restores the divine Name יהוה, YHWH or Yahweh in Hebrew, Jehovah in English, to the text where the majority of translators blasphemously removed it from their versions, replacing it with LORD or GOD usually in all upper uppercase letters, which proves a deliberate action of deceit on their part.

Contrary to the above, the Watchtower organisation developed the New World Translation of the Bible in 1961. As a 'translation, it is panned by almost all Greek scholars and Biblical historians. Adjectives used have included:"a frightful mistranslation,.. Erroneous...pernicious...reprehensible...intellectually dishonest...from beginning to end a shining example of how the Bible should not be translated...a shocking mistranslation...Obsolete and incorrect...It is neither scholarly nor reasonable...a distortion not a translation... and many others.

Its insistence on calling God 'YHWH' is offensive to Jews for whom a superstition became law that the name of God was deemed so holy that it should never be uttered. Thus they replaced it in speech with 'Adonai', which we translate as 'Lord'. JWs do not realise the offence they cause by their mistranslation of the Bible as none of the panel who translated the NWT were Greek or Biblical scholars, but were, themselves, JWs who translated verses incorrectly to back up their theology.

Such examples are:

1. The complete removal of whole verses for various reasons, most of which are to do with upholding JW theology and removing verses that disagree with it:

eg. Matthew 17:21, Matthew 18:11, Matthew 23:14, Mark 7:16, Mark 9:44, Mark 9:46 Mark 11:26, Mark 15:28, Mark 16:9-20 (all 12 verses!!), Luke 1:28, Luke 17:36, Luke 23:17, John 5:4, Acts 8:37, Acts 15:34, Act 24:6-8, Acts 28:29, Romans 16:24,

2. The removal of parts of phrases so as to dismiss the divinity of Jesus Christ as recorded in scripture so that they can then back up their bogus theology with 'scripture':

eg

• Colossians 1:2 this phrase removed: "and the Lord Jesus Christ"
• Colossians 2:2 another phrase removed: "and of the Father, and"
• I John 5:13 this phrase removed: "and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God"
• Rev 1:11 this phrase, commenting on the divinity of Jesus Christ, completely removed: "I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last"
• Rev 2:15 -- important phrase COMPLETELY removed "which thing I hate"
• Rev 21:24 removed: "of them which are saved"

Especially: I John 5:7 -- A vitally important phrase that was completely removed. In the Jehovah's Witness "New World Translation" it says, "For there are three witness bearers". The original Greek and the Christian Bible states: "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one." This is one of the greatest verses testifying of the trinity. That is why the Jehovah's Witnesses leave it out. They do not believe in the trinity and they do not believe that Jesus is God.

Of course JWs would have us believe that their 'scripture' is right and the others wrong and that Trinitarian theology is wrong and a work of Satan (as they believe it is).

Yet they cannot argue that the original Greek of 1 John 5:7 irrefutably mentions the Father (petra) the Son or Word (ie Jesus - logos) and the Holy Spirit (pneuma) and that these three are one in a Trinitarian Godhead.

Therefore, to all intents and purposes the JW organisation rewrote scripture to back up their own beliefs.

Additional Comment on 1 John 5:7 - Ask almost any clergy of Christendom and they will acknowledge that this verse was not in the original manuscripts, and is in truth, spurious.

One reason Jehovah's Witnesses don't celebrate Christmas is because of it's many pagan origins. Also, in the Bible, we are NOT told to commemorate Jesus' birth, but we ARE commanded to commemorate his death.

December 25 was the date of pagan festivals in ancient Rome - Mithra - the birthday of the invincible sun, and - Saturnalia - the festival of the Roman god Saturn.

When the Roman catholic church began, these festivals were given "christian" themes and names, even though most of the customs (lights in trees, mistletoe, giving of gifts, drunken merriment, etc) were kept the same as the pagan traditions.

Jehovah's Witnesses believe true Christians should not celebrate holidays based on the worship of false gods. And, because they believe what the Bible says about honoring Jehovah and Jesus in every aspect of their lives, this would also include entertainment. See Matthew 15:8,9 and 2 Corinthians 6:14-18.

In addition, according to Bible chronology, Jesus was born sometime in the fall, NOT on December 25th. In Luke chapter 2 we are told that, at the time of his birth, there were shepherds outside, but December is a very cold, rainy month in that area, sometimes even snowing, so during the winter season, the sheep would NOT be kept out-of-doors, especially at night.

The vast majority of "Christians" around the world celebrate the birth of Christ on December 25th. Christmas is a "Christian"festival that replaced the old pagan festivals near the winter solstice during the time that "Christianity" replaced pagan religions as the official religion in most of the Western World many hundreds of years ago.

Nevertheless, we know from God's holy word, the Bible, that any mixing of customs from false (pagan) religions with those of true Christianity in unacceptable in God's eyes. (See 1 Corinthians 10:21 and 2 Corinthians 6:14-18.)

To "Christians", Christmas is not simply a celebration of Christ's birth. Christians believe that Jesus Christ is 'God with us' - Emmanuel (as the prophecies state) - so that the coming of Christ into the world is not simply a 'birthday' but the time when God himself took o human flesh in the amazing miracle of the Incarnation (from the Latin 'in carne' - 'becoming flesh'). However, the group that call themselves Jehovah's Witnesses refuse to accept that Christmas is now a Christian festival and still regard it as somehow 'pagan' and so refuse to take part in any festivities at Christmastime, nor allow their children to take part in such a celebration. This is partly due to their misunderstanding of Christianity taking over paganism (the light overcoming darkness as testifies in John 1) but also they regard the birth of Christ as just that - a birthday - rather than a unique event in history when God took on human flesh in the Incarnation as believed by Christians since the earliest Church Many Christians regard this non-acceptance of Christmas, and, especially the forbidding of their children to take part in Christmas events, as cruel as Witnesses' children grow up not knowing the love, the wonder and the excitement of Christmas - not are they allowed to celebrate their own birthdays either, as JWs regard these too as contrary to scripture (based on very shaky evidence). On a personal note, as a retired teacher of nearly 30 years' experience, I taught many children of JWs. Almost without exception they were unhappy souls, often bullied, simply because their peers saw them as 'different' or even 'weird'. Many Christians, therefore, regard JWs as misguided and lacking Christian love because of the unwillingness to accept the true meanings of scripture rather than their mistranslated, misguided doctrines.

Of course, all who truly wish to follow in Christ's footsteps know to expect opposition, persecution, and sometimes even bullying. (See 2 Timothy 3:12.)

One event that JWs DO celebrate, though, is the death of Jesus Christ, as he commanded us to do so at Luke 22:19, but "Christian Churches" call this Good Friday. See also 1 Corinthians 11:24-26. However, JWs do not celebrate Easter, the day of the Resurrection, because of its 'pagan' connections with the god of fertility, new life and Spring. To "Christians" this is bizarre that they should celebrate his death but not the single event in history that marked Jesus as divine - his conquering of death and his everlasting reign.

Of course, it was only by his willingly undergoing death, that we have forgiveness of sins and the hope of everlasting life. Neither his death nor his resurrection alone give us those guarantees.

The specific date of Jesus' birth is not mentioned in the scriptures. According to Bible chronology some believe that he was born sometime in the fall (autumn), perhaps corresponding to our modern month of October.

The giving of presents on a specified day to specific people does not constitute love. If you wish to give someone a gift, why not do it whenever you want to? (J's Ws give gifts all throughout the year to whomever they wish, whenever they want.)

Jehovah's Witnesses refrain from most traditional holidays, and anything that hints of pagan roots. (See Matthew 15:8,9 and 2 Corinthians 6:14-18.)

However, there is one celebration mandated by Jesus which J's Ws DO celebrate, and that is the anniversary of his death, celebrated annually on the modern date corresponding to Nisan 14 on the Jewish calendar. This observance is typically called the Lord's Evening Meal, the Last Supper, or the Memorial of Christ's Death. You will find this command at Luke 22:19 and 1 Corinthians 11:24.

First, let me say that Jehovah's Witnesses are Christians, and we have very strong faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. He is our leader and our King and is divine, but, although like his heavenly Father in personality, Jesus is NOT God, nor is he equal to him. He is, in fact, just as the Bible states numerous times, God's SON. We also believe that Jesus' birth is one of the most important events in history. However, we do NOT believe that the common traditions of Christmas have anything to do with Jesus, nor do they honor him in any way.

If you were a mighty king in heaven, would you want people to continually be talking about your birth as a wee babe, or would you rather they learn about your current and future achievements and speak about those? Besides, of all the gifts you give at Christmastime, how many of them are given to and received directly by Jesus Christ himself?

Jesus was not born on December 25. In fact, the Bible does not say when he was born, but it gives enough information that historians and Bible scholars alike have been able to figure out that he was NOT born anytime in the winter.

If you read Luke chapter 2, you find that at the time of Jesus' birth, the shepherds in the area were LIVING OUTDOORS AT NIGHT with their flocks. In the winter, in that part of the world at night, shepherds kept their sheep in caves or enclosed stables. This is because, in that particular region, winter is a very cold, wet season, often with temperatures that drop below freezing.

There are several other indicators that confirm that Jesus wasn't born in the winter; in fact, he was likely born in the fall, possibly October. Why is this important? Not because of the fact that Jesus was not born on December 25, but because of what December 25 really was.

You see, about 300 years after Jesus died, Roman religious and political leaders decided to institute a celebration of the birth of Christ and decided to take an already existing holiday, which happened to be the pagan celebration of Saturnalia. They changed the name to "Mass of Christ" or "Christ's Mass", which eventually became known as Christmas.

The Saturnalia was a pagan holiday to honor the birth of the sun god. It was a week of festivities where people exchanged gifts, decorated their homes, engaged in general merry-making, and culminated on December 25. For many pagans this was their biggest holiday, and was already in existence when Jesus lived on earth. The religious leaders decided that if they could "christianize" this holiday, this would be a great way to convert pagans to the Catholic Church. (And for many, this worked.)

Jehovah's Witnesses feel that this violates a Bible command to not mix worship of other gods in with christian worship. (2 Corinthians 6:14-18) In fact, mixing true worship with pagan rituals was why God punished the Israelites many years before the time of Jesus. God considered it spiritual fornication for ones to include pagan worship with their service to Him. (Hosea 4:12; 5:4)

It is interesting that because of the pagan origins of Christmas, the holiday was actually outlawed by the Quakers and Puritans who first came to America. They considered themselves to be Christians and yet, they considered Christmas to be an unchristian holiday, so they did NOT take any part in its celebration. Jehovah's Witnesses likewise consider themselves to be Christians, and regardless of the name that the Catholic Church has attached to it, we consider Christmas to be an unchristian holiday, therefore we do not celebrate it.

It was not until several hundred years after Jesus lived on earth that people began to commemorate his birth on December 25. But that was not the date of Jesus' birth, for it evidently took place in October. So why was December 25 chosen?

Some who later claimed to be "Christian" "wished the date to coincide with the pagan Roman festival marking the 'birthday of the unconquered sun.'" (The NewEncyclopædia Britannica) In winter, when the sun seemed weakest, pagans held ceremonies, appealing to their gods, to get this source of warmth and light to come back from its distant travels. December 25 was thought to be the day that the sun began its return. In an effort to convert pagans, religious leaders adopted this festival and tried to make it seem "Christian."

The pagan roots of Christmas have long been recognized. Because of its unscriptural origin, Christmas was banned in England and in some of the American colonies during the 17th century. Anyone who even stayed home from work on Christmas day had to pay a penalty. Soon, though, the old customs were back, and some new ones were added. Christmas once again became a big holiday, and that is what it still is in many lands. Because of the connections that Christmas has with false religion, however, those who want to please God do not celebrate it or any other holiday that has its roots in pagan worship. For more information go to www.watchtower.org.

I really like what It says at Luke 2:8: "There were also in that same country shepherds living out of doors and keeping watches in the night over their flocks." This scripture also brings out that the shepherds were 'abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flocks by night'. Since December is cold and rainy in Judea, the shepherds would have sought shelter for their flocks at night."

So, if Christmas is so important for Christians to comemorate, don't you think Jesus or at least his disciples would have mentioned it somewhere in the scriptures?

The Bible tells us at (2 Timothy 3:16, 17) "All Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial . . . that the man of God may be fully competent, completely equipped for every good work." Again, if Christmas were of divine origin, wouldn't Jehovah God have inspired the Bible writers to say something about Christmas so that true Christians could be "completely equipped for every good work" like it brought out in 2 Timothy? I hope this answered your question on Christmas.

Another Answer from a former witness

Witnesses don't celebrate Christmas but they once did. The founders of the religion, Charles Taze Russel and Judge Rutherford, both celebrated Christmas and even handed out magazines and tracts as gifts.

Later, after much research and prayer, they reasoned that Christmas was not a holiday that true Christians should take part in.

Today the watchtower and tract society and all it's followers would allow a child in need of a blood transfusion to die. Apostates believe that it is impossible to celebrate the birth of Christ on December 25th, due to the historical origins of secular figures and traditions found in the modern day celebration. They also dispute the date of birth of Christ.

Jesus preached to the Jews and Gentiles alike. It is only fitting that his birth be celebrated in the same manner; inclusive of Gentile or Roman traditions, but the Jehovah witnesses do not follow Jesus, they follow the apostate teachings of the watchtower and tract society.

Of course, as we know from the scriptures, Jews and Gentiles alike had to make many changes based on their new knowledge, and one of the biggest challenges for them was to give up their pagan traditions. But, to become a Christian, they willingly did this, and more.

Further Answers about JW's with a deeper insight:

Please note that there are several religious groups that are of Christian Denomination that also believe that the observance of Christmas is wrong because it is bibically inaccurate, also that observing Christmas violates/goes against Bible scripture. There are several Biblical scriptures that are very specific in saying that Christians are not to mix man made traditions with the observance or worship of God. Matthew 15 verse 9 says, "But in vain they do worship me, they are teachings for doctrines the commandments of men." and also Mark 7 verse 7. So in the end, every Christian must ask themselves, does celebrating Christmas really honor Christ when the Bible clearly says NOT to mix pagan traditions with the worship of God or His son, Jesus Christ?

Additionally a Christian has to ask themselves: Does lying to your children about Santa, excessive spending, yearly greed and commercialism, the very fact that it is 100% proof positive that Christ was not born on December 25th, and so much more, with stuff like this that is associated with a holiday that is supposed to honor Christ? The true question is....does Christmas really honor Christ, or is Christmas more to appease the children and the desires of what the original pagan festival represented?

Or the better question to ask is, "What would Christ do"? Does any Christian really think that Jesus himself would approve of anything that is surrounded with lies, half truths and directly goes against scripture? Although I myself am not a JW, I agree that the observance of Christmas is truly wrong and blasphemous. The JW's are Biblically correct about Christmas being wrong, and Christians should NOT observe it. But at the same time, JW's also misunderstand many other scriptures such as the 4th commandment of the Bible, the clean meat laws, and totally mis-interpret the Bible by way of thinking man-made holidays like Thanksgiving and the 4th of July are also wrong to observe, when there is nothing Biblically wrong with those particular holidays, nor with observing birthdays.

Jehovah's Witnesses are border line at times of being extremely self-righteous and can be quite stubborn. My experience with Jehovah's Witnesses is that they are very convicted in their beliefs but when you question some of their beliefs or challenge what they believe in, challenge beliefs versus Bible scripture, the majority of them cannot support or answer questions on their own. Sadly most JW's cannot on their own, answer in-depth questions about their beliefs, for when you question them on things like the 4th commandment, the Sabbath as example, the general masses of JW's have to go to an elder or a group of elders to help assist them when questioned. My experience is even elders within the JW organization still have difficulty explaining their beliefs.

Although JW's observe the death of Christ, they do not observe it completely as outlined in the scriptures, the way Christ explained how to observe it. For example, in the observance of Christ's death each year, JW's do not participate in the "foot washing ceremony" as well as partaking of unleavened bread and wine. (1 Corinthians 11:24-30) Jehovah's Witnesses do not observe the other "Holy Days" God commanded all Christians to observe, such as The Days of Unleavened Bread, Pentecost, Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement, Feast of Booths, etc. JW's believe that these Holy Days were forgone with the death of Christ but that simply is not Bibically accurate either. The original Passover in Exodus 12:1-14 says "it shall be a FEAST you shall keep for all your generations as an everlasting ordinance....". Exodus 12:17 says that, "This shall be a PERMANENT LAW.....For GENERATION TO GENERATION", but JW's mistakenly believe Christ's death overrides this but no where in scripture does it say that all the aforementioned Holy Days are done away with. This also applies the the 4th commandment, The 7th day Sabbath, the 7th year Sabbath, and the Jubilee year, and other laws such as eating things like pork and shellfish for example. These are examples of questions you can ask a JW and they simply cannot answer and will default upon elders in their congregations and even the elders do not fully understand what they preach and practice. So in closing, even though JW's are correct that Christmas is a pagan holiday that Christians should NOT observe under ANY circumstance, they also are not in complete understanding of ALL the laws, Holy Days, the sacrificing of animals at the altar, and the way to commemorate Christ's death correctly each and every year.
Jehovah's Witnesses do not celebrate Christmas for a few reasons. First, they believe in celebrating Jesus' death and resurrection (Easter) over his birth. They also reject the pagan roots of modern Christmas, and, as for the "Christmas spirit" believe in espousing kindness and goodness as a part of life, not simply as a feeling to be remembered once a year.

Although they do not celebrate Christmas themselves, Jehovah's Witness' core beliefs encourage respect and free thought, and so, as an official stance, respect others' choice to celebrate it without interference.