The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1879-01-20
ST. UNIvERsALIsT CHURCH

THE AMERICAN sABBATH-sERMoN BY REV. E. c.
swEETsER.
Rev. E. c. Sweetser. of the Blocker Street Univer-
salist Church, preached on the American Sabbath.
His text was from Mark H.. 27-"The Sabbath was
made for man." There is proverb. said the rever-
end gentleman which says that there great loss
without some gain, and with equal truth may say
that there is great gain without some danger of
loss. The American governmental and
cial system. with its free institutions and
its welcome to strangers from every shore.
is unquestionably great gain in the interest of
humanity and civilization. and the American people
haze reason to be proud of their liberality. They
have reason to be proud that there is one nation
from which voice goes forth to all the earth,
saying, ''Ho! every one that thirsteth for civil
and religious freedom. come ye hither and
price" They have reason to be proud that that
nation is their own. But, while they arc justly
equally watchfu Of them for they not sclf-sus-
tanning but are open to many and serious dangers,
and III proportion to their value Is the necessity OF
ceaseess vigilance upon the part Of those whose duty
1t il to preserve them from harm.
WHERE THE DANGER LIES.
Now, continued Mr.. Sweetser one OF the chief dan
gers which beset this Republic arises from the fact
that the people who are 80 freely invited to these
shores and who come here in such swarming num-
bers have not been habituated to American ways,
but bring with them foreign ideas and customs
which are at variance with American ways and GUS
| toms, and in nothing is this variance more marked
| than in their notions and habits in regard
| to the Sabbath. This country was settled
| by Sabbath keeping people. Its laws
| and its customs were framed in accordance with
the observance of the first day of the week which
commentaries the resurrection of Christ a day of
from secular abors and secular pleasure and of
devotion to distnctively religious activities truly
religious observance of the sabbath Is of the
dtional features of the national life and Is part OF
the inheritance, and by the least part, trans
mitted from the fathers of the nation Great num-
bees of European people coming here to live and
| they bring with them their European ideas of the
Sabbath and already have begun To transform the
American Sabbath into simple holiday. in violation
American laws and of Americas hottest institutions
| and not lew of the American people have become
| infected with their views on the subject.
MUCH FREEDOM MORE.
1t Is argued that the Sabbath made for man.
| not man for the Sabbath. and that each ought
the people who here from other countries have
not the right to their way of keeping Sab
| bath as the people who have been born here aud
whose fathers were born here. unless their
way is such way as does not conflict
| with the established customs Of the country.
This is free country for every who chooses to
here and obey tho laws 1t is not tree country
for any who wishes to defy and destroy the laws.
This country belongs, under od to the descendants
of the who first colonized 1t and reclaimed 1t
from the wilderness, and Who founded its institutions,
and who laid down their lives defence OF its ber
ties. IL other people come here to enjoy those
| liberties both justice and honor require that they
shall conform the laws of the land and not violate
the customs of the people who generously receive
| them.