The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1859-10-16
THE SUNDAY QUESTION.
HISTORY or SUNDAY LAWS.

street, by Rev. j. L. Hatch t
The lecturer confined himself that portion Of the his
tory Of Sunday laws which preceded the Protestant
Reformation. Ilo showed that Paul had a great con
lict with the "Judaizng Teachers in tho Grst cen
ury this very matter of the enforced observance
particular days rs holy and that in this conflict he
victorious, and established tho principle that With
gard TO holy days every DO fully persuaded
his own mind and follow his own convictions Of duty
not the dogmas Of others which might be attempted be
imposed upon Hmm deicrmnato which the great
Council Of Jerusalem, held about tho middle Of the first
century, fully sustained.
This decision respected and complied with the lee
trcr remarked until the time OF Victor, Bishop of Rome
Who In the latter part OF tho second century, assumed
authority by virtue Of his metropolitan position and
scquent commanding influence to order that Easter the
annual festival OF the Resurrection, should Ia future, be
observed by all the churches on the first day Of
the week, uniformly, some of them having been
accustomed to observe IL the l4th day or the
month irrespective of tho day Of the and others
the Sunday next after the l4th when the 4th did not come
Sunday. Thus as the first assumption Of arbitrary
cesiastca power by the Roman 500 In connection
with the enforced observance Of Sundaynot, indeed,
the weekly but the ANNUAL festival of tine
The Western bishops sustained Victor and threatened the
Eastern with communication II they did not comply.
This after some time they did, and thus Papa authority
was virtually established
Something than century later Constantine being
Emperor, union OF Church and State Effected and
the Papal authority confirmed Then the Of Victor
respecting Easter was made edict of the civil
law, and law was also passed requiring the
ton on the first day Of the week none but husbandmen
being allowed to pursue their ordinary tabor that day
BY the same act Constantine required the observance OF
Friday the day Of our Lords crucxion, FAST upon
which upon Sunday, labor but agricultural could DO
performed and no legal business transacted in the
The observance Of Sunday and Friday being thus
forced by law, there not few who still adhered TO
the old Jewish custom Of observing the seventh day,
saturday. day Of rest and worship. To prevent this
the Council of Iaodcea, in $780, decreed that
Lawful! 10 observe Saturday as holy day and anathema-
tzed all who should dare so to observe It,
As evidence OF the extent to which the asceticism
and resty tyranny for which the Romsh church after
wards became distinguished had already gained ground,
the lecturer remarked that this same Council Of La,acea
forbade all dancing ut marriage feass and directed that
the clergy should thaceor be elected by the Bishop OF
Rome and his proyncis and not any longer by the poo
pie 10 whom they were to minister.
step advance taken by the Council OF Orleans
in the sixth century, which prohibited agricultural AS well
as other labor Sunday.
The Synod Of Burgundy, held in -the century,
dered that If freeman saved his hay Sunday he
should forfeit the hay and II slave should labor on that
day he should be 'sbeatcn hard with cudgels." It was
in this century and by the same authority that the cebacy
Of the clergy was ordered
The Council of Consantinope, in the next century (he
SEVENTH ordered the priests to teach the people every
Sunday, but only as the light of The Church and doc
tors have determined i'll their writings, and ayma1
should be allowed to teach in the chI Oh, 10
any pretence .swithn the altar rails
In the next century thc eighth) the Councils OF Friu
and Frankfort ordered that the observance Of Sunday
should begin with vespcrs on Saturday evening", and
be kept by all "giving themselves to prayer and going
to church,
all marketing and trading, well as manual labor on
Sunday unlawful and the council ordered that
the priests and not the people should be considered the
owners (under God) Of the church property
The Council Of Gratea, in the tenth century, decreed
that whoever sold any goods Sunday should not only
forfeit the goods, but pay thirty shllings
In the eleventh century the Council Of Coyaco ordered
fasting on Fr6ay and church going on Saturday evenings
and Sundays with abstinence from ali and travel
the penalty differ with rank the oender persons
Of rank and influence TO be deprived Of the communion for
season; persons Of no rank or wealth to be whipped
tSfth nf in
the century, ordered the clergy should hair
cloth shirts on days Of fasting and penitcnce.
The Council Of Perth in Scotland, decrecd, in the first
part Of the thirteenth century, that Sunday should
mcnce at twelve clock Saturday and continue unit
Monday morning. This council was held by Cardinal sa
lerno, the Pcpes egate Another Of the Popcs egates
Cardinal Courcon, held council at Paris ten years later
in which i. decrced that though all work unIaw
full Sunday, II ''beter to dig plough Sunday
than to dance sportn
In England the asseic doctrine preached by
Eustachius, Abbot Of Ffay and when the people de
manded divine authority for prescribing their Sunday
sports, he produced parchment which he declared
an "Epse from Jesus, dropped down from Heaven aud
it had been forwarded to him This epistle commenced
thus"I the Lord, who commanded you that you should
observe the dominica day, and have not kept il and
went on to require strict and rigid observance of that
day, rom the ninth hour {three O'Clock p on Satur-
day TO sunrise on day morning" the drest iudg
mcns being threatened In case they refused Armed
with this remarkable document Euslachius made
great progress He absolved from all their sins
those who would keep the lords day holy BY strict
abstinence from all sports and recreatons as well as la
bor travel and traffic and narrated wondering crowds
how Judgments from heaven had overtaken those who
dared to transgress, g. carpenter who made a
wooden pin, and woman who nended torn gar
ment on Sunday, both struck with palsy there
for. Tho lecturer alluded to various other pre-.
tended miracles Of similar character got up this
time to enforce the observance OF Sunday and that
they were precisely OF the same piece Of imposition with
ciety y the "fresbyeran Board Of Publication and the
"sabbntb Committee, Of persons who had suffered the
Vengeance oil Heaven Tor breaking Sunday by work OF
/ play.
1t would be seen, he remarked in closing, that
the Sunday Sabba'aiian doctrine did originate will
The Puritans bu, with the Roman Catholics beginning
with tho erection of the Roman See and waxing stronger
and stronger as the church became aad cor
rUpt down through the Dark Ages, until the Protestant
Reformation The rcformcrs including the earliest Puri
ans repudaed it, but afterwards the Puritan Presbytc
Rams being in power in England revived enforced it.
In hs next ecnre (n the same place. at three O'Clock
p NJ TO day, Mr. IL said he would give the history Of
suRssy w soes The tan n
pirate remarks lie thought the history of the rise and
progress Of the Sunday Sabbaaran superstition beer
correctly given.
SUNDAY EXCURSIONS FROM LONDON.
i NEW YORK AND LONDON CONTRAsTED EXCURSIONS
TO THE SEASIDE AND DISTANT PLAcEs--oRIGIs
OF SUNDAY EXCURSION TRAINs.-LONG JOURNEYS
AND Low FARES.
Sunday in london, the metropolis Of the Old World
Sunday in New York, the metropolis of the New World
what difference. And still the people in both cities
speak the same language-have nearly all sprung from
the same parent stock-worship the same God-adoone
/ the same form Of worship.
In New York Sunday is a day of gIoom--a period o.
time in which man exists but does not liven which he
enters kind Of chrysals staterom which he returns
Mondays dawn into the full blown butterfly The streets
are deserted except at some half dozen times of day
when small portion Of the population are on their way
TO or from their various places Of worship; the Fifth
avenoodcs to or from their comfortably cushioned pew
where they receive consolation from the honicd words Of
the Rev Dr. Gently the dwelers in other avenues to OF
| from the conycnticc Of the Rev Dismal Growl whore
seated on bare boards, they the same time able
to feel the hardness Of their position this world and
learn how surely they all ourheyng along the broad
way TO everlasting perdion in the world come. But
the rest OF the popuationthe multitude--where are
iheys They cannot have rushed into the country TO enjoy
the fresh dir and receive strength for there have
Deen no railway trains no stages and hardly any
beats TO convey them there No: they compelled
rest Their limbs at home because is rucd that il is too