Birthdays
In Genesis 40:20, we can see that Pharaoh celebrated his own birthday.
B'reisheet (Genesis) 40:20
And it came to pass the third day, which was Pharaoh's birthday, that he made a feast unto all his servants: and he lifted up the head of the chief butler and the head of the chief baker among his servants.
However, are we to follow Pharaoh's example? Or are we not rather to do the exact opposite of what the Egyptians do?
King Herod and John the Baptist
In Mark 6:21-24, we see that King Herod celebrated his birthday, and that this led to the death of Yochannon haMatbil (John the Baptist).
Marqaus (Mark) 6:21-24
21 And when a convenient day was come, that Herod on his birthday made a supper to his lords, and the high captains, and the chief men of Galilee;
22 And when the daughter of Herodias herself came in and danced, she pleased Herod and them that sat at meat with him; and the king said unto the damsel, "Ask of me whatsoever you will, and I will give it to you."
23 And he swore unto her, "Whatsoever you shall ask of me, I will give it to you, up to half of my kingdom."
24 And she went out, and said unto her mother, "What shall I ask?" And she said, "The head of Yochannon haMatbil (John the Baptist)."
King Herod was not a good king, and birthdays are still not commanded in Scripture. That being the case, is King Herod's birthday celebration really a good Scriptural example for us to follow?” – About Birthdays, nazareneisrael.org
Okay, sure anywhere in Scripture a pagan ruler is mentioned celebrating their birthday something bad happened. Big deal; as I said before, they thought of themselves as gods and they deserved praise and worship and service on that day. So God decided to knock them off their high horse that day in front of all their subjects. They had it coming. These things may serve as warnings to us believers about thinking too much of ourselves, but I can’t say this is saying we cannot recognize the day of our birth.
Pastor G. Reckart asked:
“Is there a Biblical doctrine against observing birthdays?
No!
No one has presented one. All they have presented is a man-made theory. They will not confess that this doctrine came from the Jehovah's Witnesses and Charles Taze Russell got it from his Muslim studies as a member of the Masonic lodge.
Did observing or counting birthdays come from paganism?
No!
And anyone who claims they did needs to repent. The fact of counting years of living from one's birth is in the Bible before there was what we know as paganism.
I have been a student of the Bible since 1968, and although I learned of the JW doctrine that year, I was not convinced birthdays had a pagan origin based upon the two events of Pharaoh and Herod. There was nothing in these passages that indicated birthdays were of pagan origin. What was evident is that two men, separated by nearly 1,600 years held their birthday as a special event to celebrate. On the face of this reality, it became obvious these two men of record were observing a day associated with themselves and not an idol or pagan god. Paganism has at its root, idolatrous religious practices and beliefs that are condemned in the Word of God.
For a teaching to be SOUND DOCTRINE, it must have a Biblical basis. There is not one Scripture in the whole Bible that condemns birthdays, observing the annual day, or counting them. Each and every time I have had to confront the accusations I am allowing paganism, I have asked for Bible and not one person yet has produced a single verse where the celebration is condemned. ”
This Pastor even uses the Torah to back up his point:
“There is nothing in the 613 precepts of the Law about birthdays. If God does not specifically condemn or prohibit something, then man has no authority to create a law and bind it upon others for obedience and faith. Man-made edicts and religious laws have no Scriptural authority. No one is obligated to follow or observe what is not found in the Word of God by principle or by direct reference. There is nothing in the Word of God that by principle or direct reference condemns observing birthdays.”
And from a Jewish stand point isn’t ones birth recognized at least once at ones Bar or Bat Mitzvah!?
I think the recognition of birthdays can even be found in Scripture.
Genesis 5:1-2
This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that Yahweh created man, He made him in Yahweh's likeness.
2 He created them male and female, and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.
3 Adam lived one hundred thirty years, and became the father of a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth.
4 The days of Adam after he became the father of Seth were eight hundred years, and he became the father of sons and daughters.
5 All the days that Adam lived were nine hundred thirty years, then he died.
Now how could it have been possible for "The Generations of Adam" to have been recorded in Scripture if Birthdays were not acknowledged? Answer: Neither the "Generations of Adam" nor the generations of any of G-d's Chosen people would have been possible if they had not kept track of Birthdays.
There are many other places in Scripture where we see one has kept track of their birth. Just to name one is the G-d ordained census in Exodus. Now I realize that this leads no proof either way if they recognized or marked their birthday with a party or what have you. But it still shows birthdays were at least counted.
I realize there are controversy regarding some of the B-day entrapments that I do think are pagan. Such as the cone hats which come from witchcraft as a method to channel energy from entities or nature. Some regard the cake as an offering to the gods, you can only really link that to Ishtar the Queen of Heaven and worship of her. But just as Freud said, “Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.” Well, sometimes a cake is just a cake! I’m all for separating myself from paganism in every form, but I’m not a pagaphob (fear of anything pagan) and fear that every little thing can be traced to paganism or is pagan in some way.
Personally, I see nothing wrong with celebrating ones birthday as long as one acknowledges the reason for one’s birth, namely God and your parents. BIRTHDAYS are not a sin unless we put more emphasis on them than on obedience to YHWH and His Torah. Secondly if I was to celebrate my own birthday it would be on the Hebrew Calendar and not the Pagan secular calendar. I suggest you do what the Native American’s do for ones birthday. They don’t receive presents, they have what is called a “Give Away”, in other words, THEY give gifts to their guests! If your parents are still living turn it in to a party to honor them, or at least let them be the honored guest at you shindig. Volunteer at charity or a community service facility on your birthday. Give to charity and ask others to on your birthday if the insist on doing something for you. There is no reason one can’t turn their birthday into an opportunity to serve God and others. Hey have a Bible study or a praise and worship jam session on your birthday. Humility in observing ones birthday I think is key and a good exercise in practicing humility. And should we rob others of a blessing if they want to throw us a birthday party in love and appreciation for us?
If one wishes to do so, one can find their Hebraic Birthday by going to:
http://www.chabad.org/calendar/birthday_cdo/aid/6228/jewish/Jewish-Birthday.htm
And plug in the necessary information to correctly calculate your Hebraic Birthday.
If it is your conviction NOT to celebrate your birthday, fine, just don’t push it on others.
B'reisheet (Genesis) 40:20
And it came to pass the third day, which was Pharaoh's birthday, that he made a feast unto all his servants: and he lifted up the head of the chief butler and the head of the chief baker among his servants.
However, are we to follow Pharaoh's example? Or are we not rather to do the exact opposite of what the Egyptians do?
King Herod and John the Baptist
In Mark 6:21-24, we see that King Herod celebrated his birthday, and that this led to the death of Yochannon haMatbil (John the Baptist).
Marqaus (Mark) 6:21-24
21 And when a convenient day was come, that Herod on his birthday made a supper to his lords, and the high captains, and the chief men of Galilee;
22 And when the daughter of Herodias herself came in and danced, she pleased Herod and them that sat at meat with him; and the king said unto the damsel, "Ask of me whatsoever you will, and I will give it to you."
23 And he swore unto her, "Whatsoever you shall ask of me, I will give it to you, up to half of my kingdom."
24 And she went out, and said unto her mother, "What shall I ask?" And she said, "The head of Yochannon haMatbil (John the Baptist)."
King Herod was not a good king, and birthdays are still not commanded in Scripture. That being the case, is King Herod's birthday celebration really a good Scriptural example for us to follow?” – About Birthdays, nazareneisrael.org
Okay, sure anywhere in Scripture a pagan ruler is mentioned celebrating their birthday something bad happened. Big deal; as I said before, they thought of themselves as gods and they deserved praise and worship and service on that day. So God decided to knock them off their high horse that day in front of all their subjects. They had it coming. These things may serve as warnings to us believers about thinking too much of ourselves, but I can’t say this is saying we cannot recognize the day of our birth.
Pastor G. Reckart asked:
“Is there a Biblical doctrine against observing birthdays?
No!
No one has presented one. All they have presented is a man-made theory. They will not confess that this doctrine came from the Jehovah's Witnesses and Charles Taze Russell got it from his Muslim studies as a member of the Masonic lodge.
Did observing or counting birthdays come from paganism?
No!
And anyone who claims they did needs to repent. The fact of counting years of living from one's birth is in the Bible before there was what we know as paganism.
I have been a student of the Bible since 1968, and although I learned of the JW doctrine that year, I was not convinced birthdays had a pagan origin based upon the two events of Pharaoh and Herod. There was nothing in these passages that indicated birthdays were of pagan origin. What was evident is that two men, separated by nearly 1,600 years held their birthday as a special event to celebrate. On the face of this reality, it became obvious these two men of record were observing a day associated with themselves and not an idol or pagan god. Paganism has at its root, idolatrous religious practices and beliefs that are condemned in the Word of God.
For a teaching to be SOUND DOCTRINE, it must have a Biblical basis. There is not one Scripture in the whole Bible that condemns birthdays, observing the annual day, or counting them. Each and every time I have had to confront the accusations I am allowing paganism, I have asked for Bible and not one person yet has produced a single verse where the celebration is condemned. ”
This Pastor even uses the Torah to back up his point:
“There is nothing in the 613 precepts of the Law about birthdays. If God does not specifically condemn or prohibit something, then man has no authority to create a law and bind it upon others for obedience and faith. Man-made edicts and religious laws have no Scriptural authority. No one is obligated to follow or observe what is not found in the Word of God by principle or by direct reference. There is nothing in the Word of God that by principle or direct reference condemns observing birthdays.”
And from a Jewish stand point isn’t ones birth recognized at least once at ones Bar or Bat Mitzvah!?
I think the recognition of birthdays can even be found in Scripture.
Genesis 5:1-2
This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that Yahweh created man, He made him in Yahweh's likeness.
2 He created them male and female, and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.
3 Adam lived one hundred thirty years, and became the father of a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth.
4 The days of Adam after he became the father of Seth were eight hundred years, and he became the father of sons and daughters.
5 All the days that Adam lived were nine hundred thirty years, then he died.
Now how could it have been possible for "The Generations of Adam" to have been recorded in Scripture if Birthdays were not acknowledged? Answer: Neither the "Generations of Adam" nor the generations of any of G-d's Chosen people would have been possible if they had not kept track of Birthdays.
There are many other places in Scripture where we see one has kept track of their birth. Just to name one is the G-d ordained census in Exodus. Now I realize that this leads no proof either way if they recognized or marked their birthday with a party or what have you. But it still shows birthdays were at least counted.
I realize there are controversy regarding some of the B-day entrapments that I do think are pagan. Such as the cone hats which come from witchcraft as a method to channel energy from entities or nature. Some regard the cake as an offering to the gods, you can only really link that to Ishtar the Queen of Heaven and worship of her. But just as Freud said, “Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.” Well, sometimes a cake is just a cake! I’m all for separating myself from paganism in every form, but I’m not a pagaphob (fear of anything pagan) and fear that every little thing can be traced to paganism or is pagan in some way.
Personally, I see nothing wrong with celebrating ones birthday as long as one acknowledges the reason for one’s birth, namely God and your parents. BIRTHDAYS are not a sin unless we put more emphasis on them than on obedience to YHWH and His Torah. Secondly if I was to celebrate my own birthday it would be on the Hebrew Calendar and not the Pagan secular calendar. I suggest you do what the Native American’s do for ones birthday. They don’t receive presents, they have what is called a “Give Away”, in other words, THEY give gifts to their guests! If your parents are still living turn it in to a party to honor them, or at least let them be the honored guest at you shindig. Volunteer at charity or a community service facility on your birthday. Give to charity and ask others to on your birthday if the insist on doing something for you. There is no reason one can’t turn their birthday into an opportunity to serve God and others. Hey have a Bible study or a praise and worship jam session on your birthday. Humility in observing ones birthday I think is key and a good exercise in practicing humility. And should we rob others of a blessing if they want to throw us a birthday party in love and appreciation for us?
If one wishes to do so, one can find their Hebraic Birthday by going to:
http://www.chabad.org/calendar/birthday_cdo/aid/6228/jewish/Jewish-Birthday.htm
And plug in the necessary information to correctly calculate your Hebraic Birthday.
If it is your conviction NOT to celebrate your birthday, fine, just don’t push it on others.