Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1880-11-20

II was rem arEed by Martin Luther that Jesus
tentatiously, for a purpose. he walked the
tields he plucked, shelled, and ate the corn; he
treated the sick. and his spirit may be detected
pie OF the Iabor OF carrying his bed on the Sab-
bath day. He crowned his protest against
sterile Journalism by the enunciation OF a prin-
ciple which applies TO us 30 day as much as TO
the world In the time Of Christ. THE Sabbath
was made for man, and not man for the Sab
bath"
Though the Jews. to their detriulent, kept
themselves as nation Intellectually Isolated,
the minds OF individuals We're frequently col
ored by Greek thought and culture. The
learned and celebrated Philo, who was contem-
Philo expanded the uses OF the seventh day by
including In its proper observance studies
which might be called secular. Moreover" he
rom which you may learn the proprlety
Of studying philosophy. AS on that day 1t Is
SAID God beheid the works that He had made, so
OF nature" Permission to do this is exactly
what the members OF the Sunday society
humely claim. The jew. Philo, would grant
them this permission, but our straiter
Christians wilinot. Where shall we ind such
samples OF those works Of nature which Pnilo
commended TO the Sunday contemplation Of
his countrymen as 10 the British Museum?
Within those walls we have, as il were, epochs
acknowledges OF divine energy illustrated.
But the efficient auUboritie5-among wnon /
would include shortsighted portion OF the
d
from the contemplation OF these Thugs the
multitude who have only Sunday to devote to
them Taking them on their owl ground, we as1.
are the authorities logical In doing SO? Do they
who thus stand between them and us really BE-
leve those treasures TO be the work Of Col? ID
they or do they not hold with Paul, that the
seen from 1.-The things that are nader" IL they
dO-and they dare not affirm that they do not
| fear that Paul, fn his customary lang lage
would pronounce their conduct TO be without
PXcuSp.3
With regard to the time when the obligation
to keep the Sabbath was imposed, and the rea-
sons for It's imposition. there are grave differ
ences Of opinion between learned aud ptaus
men. Some affirm that it was instituted at the
creation in remembrance OF the rest OF God
Others allege that 1t was imposed after the de-
parture of the IsraelftieS from Egypt, and in
memory of that departure. The Bible counte-
nanceS both interpretations. In Exodus We
find the original OF the sabbath described With
unmistakaDle clearness, thus: For In six days
the Lord made Heaven and earth, the sea- and
all that 10 them Is. and rested the seventh day.
Wherefore the Lord blessed the seventh day, and
naloNed It." In Deuteronomy this reason is
suppressed and another IS assigned. ISRAEL being
servant IN Egypt God, &c Is stated, brought
them out OF 1t through mighty hand and by
stretched-out arm. Therefore the Lord Thy
God commanded thee to keep the Sabbath day."
After repeating the Ten commandments, and
assigning the foregoing origin 50 the Sabbath,
the writer In deuteronomy proceeds thus;
'These words the Lord Spake unto all your as
Sembly Ia the mount. and out OF the midst OF
fire. OF the cloud, ana the thick darkness, with
a loud voice: and he added no more But Ia
Exodus God not only added more. but some
thing entirely different. This has been dill
Guilty with OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES formidable. II
the Bible be treated as any other ancient book,
but extremely formidable on the theory OF
plenary inspiration. l remember 10 the days OF
nay youth being shocked and perplexed
by an admission made by Bishop Wat
The Bible" written in answer 10 Tom Paine.
You have" says the bishop, disclosed a few
weeds which good men would have covered up
from view" That there were weeds IN the
Bible requiring TO be kept out OF sight was 10
ne. at that time, new revelation. I take little
pleasure IN dwelling upon the errors and blem-
lshes OF book, rendered venerable to me by
Intrinsic wisdom and imperishable associations
But when that book is wreSted to our detri-
ment, when It's passages are invoked to Justify
the imposition or yoke, irksome because I'M
natural. we are driven IN selfdefence to be crit
zeal. In self-defence, therefore, We plead these
two dfscordant accounts OF the origin OF the
Sabbath, one OF which makes il purely Jewish
institution, While the other, uales5 regarded as
mere myth and figure Is In violent antago-
nism TO the facts OF geology.
With regard to the alleged proofs" that Sun
day was introduced as substitute for Satur-
day. and that its observance is as binding upon
Christians as their Sabbath was upon the Jews
can only say that those which have seen are
OF the ilitnslest and vaguesJ character. "If,"
they impose upon us the obServance5 OF par
t1cular day, how do they pre- Yunle, without the
authority OF divine command, 10 substitute
another Gay in its placer" Outside the bounds
OF theology no one would think OF applying the
term proofs to the evidence adduced for the
change; and yet On this pivot, II has been, al
legged, turns the eternal fate OF human s3u,s.
Were such doctrine not actual 1t would be IN
credible. It has been truly said that the An who
accepts ii sinks, in doing So to the lowest depth
or atheism. 1t is perfectly reasonable for a
religious community to set apart one day In
seven for rest and devotion. Most OF those WHO
object to the JHdatc observance Of the Sabbath
recognize not only the wisdom bat the nece5-
Slty OF some such institution, not on the ground
OF divine edit but OF common sense. They
contend, however, that lt ought to be as far as
possible day OF cheerful renovation both OF
body and spirit, and not a day Of penal gloom.
There is nothing that should withstand more
than the conversion OF the first day
OF the week int a common working day. Quite
as strenuOuSly. however, should | oppose its
being employed as day for the exercise OF
SacredotaI rigor.