Will Jehovah witness family be offended ?

My mom%26#039;s neighbours are Jehovah Witness and long time friends. Their daughter and I grew up together and were best friends as kids. I remember I never wished her a happy birthday or merry christmas, because I knew they don%26#039;t celebrate that way. My friend%26#039;s grandmother passed away yesterday and we knew the lady too. Is it appropriate to bring over a card, or food or flowers? I know they came to my dad%26#039;s funeral, but only to pay their respects. They didn%26#039;t stay for the service. My mom is worried that we will offend them some way, because we don%26#039;t know how they mourn.

Will Jehovah witness family be offended ?
Jehovah%26#039;s Witnesses generally appreciate *ANY* sincere expression of good will, even if it does not exactly agree with what the Witnesses believe the bible to teach.





Customs surrounding funerals are mostly determined by community sensibilities and the family%26#039;s preferences, rather than by the bible. Please be assured that Jehovah%26#039;s Witnesses have absolutely no religious or conscientious objections to a sympathy card, flowers, or gifts of food.





A simple %26quot;Thinking of you during this difficult time%26quot; or %26quot;Our sympathies are with your family%26quot; or %26quot;May your [deceased] rest in peace, and awaken in a better place%26quot; are comforting sentiments. Really, almost any Scriptural passage is appropriate.





When selecting a pre-printed card with an illustration, it might be noted that Jehovah%26#039;s Witnesses avoid cross-worship and the vast majority of Witnesses expect an earthly resurrection for themselves (only about 0.01% of Witnesses expect a heavenly resurrection).
Reply:I%26#039;m sure the pain they feel is no different from the pain you felt when you lost your loved one.





Religious beliefs and practices aside, we all want to know that our loved ones will be missed by others. There is nothing wrong with taking a card and a casserole to your neighbors, and telling them how sorry you are for their loss.





I%26#039;m sure it would mean a great deal to them.
Reply:You%26#039;ve received some good answers above, but I might suggest another. Listen to your friend. Let her tell you how she feels and why. Though witnesses mourn, they don%26#039;t dwell on it for months and years. As was stated above, they look forward to seeing their grandmother again, only when they do, she will be a young and healthy woman, never to see aging or poor health again.





Imagine being able to play football with your grandmother, and having her beat you.
Reply:that would be very nice of your family to give a card, we do except cards and food. we cry when we lose a love one. I lost my husband three years ago, and I still cry. we do also except flowers.
Reply:It is lovely to read how thoughtful and concerned about their feelings you are.


Jehovahs Witnesses mourn the loss of their loved ones like anyone else.Even though we have the hope of seeing these ones again,for the moment the pain is just as bad.You would not offend them by paying them a visit,giving them a card.It shows you care.They know you are not witnesses.....go and see them
Reply:As long as you mean no offense, I doubt anything you say will be wrong. We Witnesses need support like everyone. When my Grandmother died Marlene, her in home nurse, came to the funeral services. She was so nervous. I reassured her that she only had to feel what she felt. There was nothing she could say wrong. I am so sorry for your loss.
Reply:Seems that a condolence card (not a christian card), or a simple offer of some food type with a sincere %26quot;I am sorry for your recent loss%26quot; when you deliver it, is appropriate .
Reply:As one of Jehovah%26#039;s Witnesses, I%26#039;d like to add that we do appreciate sincere expressions of condolences. And the fact that you are so conscious of offending your friends is commendable. Personally, if someone were to give me a card with or say something objectionable to my beliefs in an attempt to offer sympathy, I would graciously accept the expressions with the intent given.
Reply:My neighbor is JW and I accidentally gave her a poinsettia at Christmas. Later I said %26quot;My bad%26quot; and she said %26quot;No, they were very pretty flowers. It%26#039;s always nice to receive flowers.%26quot;





I think that doing something like that would be totally appropriate. Just say %26quot;I want to show you that we care and are thinking at you during your time of loss. You know that we respect your beliefs and don%26#039;t wish to offend you in any way.%26quot; Just by saying that last thing will show you%26#039;ve thought about their beliefs and are being respectful.
Reply:No, they would not be offended; they would be very touched at your kindness. We are not offended by other people%26#039;s beliefs, we just may not agree with them.
Reply:Bringing flowers to a Jehovah funeral, is acceptable.
Reply:Just do what you do. Chances are ANYTHING you do offends them. If you have a flag posted on your house, you%26#039;ve offended them. If you accepted a blood transfusion, you%26#039;ve offended them. If you had premarital sex... you get the picture.





Jehovah%26#039;s Witnesses, I believe, is more like a cult than an actual religion. Because if you commit a major sin, (adultery, etc), as a member, you could be disfellowshipped (i.e. shunned).



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