New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-12-23
THE SUNDAY QUESTION.
LETTER From OLIVER JOHNSON.


To the GATOR OF The TPtJVns
SIR Dr. Crosby rarely fails to hit the nail on the
head. and he never struck squarer effect
i've blow than when he said to tue New-YoIk Pres
bytery ii Monday last, according 20 THE TRiBUNg's
report: We must be rational and Wise and uso
common sense when appeal to the public" ON
ths Sunday question. DR.. Hall, though expressing
himself less empharically. appears t. have been
animated By the same spirit. Tho whole Presby-
terry indeed. seems to have accepted Dr. Crosbys
uuterance ~ eminently wise: while the Baptist
pastors evnoed the same common sens" in " in
tentionaily emitting" from their resolutions all
references to the Divine origin of the sabbath. in
crcr to obtain the cooperation Of all good citizens
Of whatever creed or nationality" in an e6or' to
secure the gcnsrsl o. servauce OF Sunday as day
Of rest, and to prevent il from becoming scene Of
disorder aud vice.
This forbelrance to set up the usual claim that
Sunday-keeping rests upon special command OF
God binding at the present day as part of tho
Christian ystem, is - most hopeful sen Of the
lines 1t is So. first because the claim IL without
warrant in the Scriptures, aud therefore unayail-
aoe mears Of influencing weltinstructed
minds aud secondly because It's elimination from
the controversy opens the way to hearty union of
all good ciiiZeus in the effort to prJmOte'the uni
ver,al Observance of Sunday a day of rest aud
opportunity Tor moral and social Improvement.
The attempt. 20 often made heretofore, TO lorcc the
institution upon tue public Is DlyIuey and pTecep-
lively establishei for all nations AMI al times has
hal a tendency 20 undermine the us uti1u IN the
minds of Thousands. ana /, Or woke multitudcs 70
disregard il. Dr. Crosby right when he says:
"Thoro Is no way Of breaking tho Sabbath SO
eile tually, gettlu n Fr-nrh sunday in New
W k 50 quickly as 10 say To the wOcIl: You must
observe the sabbath 0ecause 60 alys so.' We
8houd lose the qnlct OF our present Sunday in ten
years. IL IS pity that tas church AMI th5 pulpit
dld not long ago get upOn tho right glound, but
4" better late tnan never
the Christian daty Sabbath Keeping has been
Prominent t.eme of tho American pulpit ever
since the So settlement at Plymouth. How -
came TO be so | shall not now stop to iniuIre.
What desire 10 say is, thai there is no warrant for
snch preacnihs The Christian Scriptures. S'asch
the New Testament from the first verss III Matthew
to the last III RevelatiOn and not ono word can DO
found implying that the:p is fol Christians any
such hnty as sabbath keeping any such a.
notwithstanding. On the contrary, Ne have the
explicit declaration of PAM that the whole jewish
code. tho Jaw OF the sabbath ilcluded. was sup'r-
SO ed. by Christianity. lilo speaks of that code as
the m,n-tratiOn Of death written in stones, thus
referring especially to The Decaiogue. He included
the jewish Sabbath as belonging 10 " the uand-
writing OF ordinances tIat was AGAINST u.s. and
that CHRIST nailed to lils cross" lie said this IN
reply to those Christian jews who insisted that
mauy jewish avs and customs still bIuding,
ana To express d .cires: Let 40 mai therefore,
iudgs you in respect oi an holy day. or Of the new
moon, or OF tho Sabbath days. which are shadow
Of things to come. but tho body OF Christ" And
AGAIN: "Onc man estcenoth Que day above
another: another esteemeth every day ALIKE Let
every man br tally persuaded in his own mind
T .us while there WAS Iii the Christian Church
lol thvs, VITO cOCd not at once enancipate them
selves from jew isn laws aud customs, + lu insisted
tnat tneir Uoaiagc shoald MT be limit alton upon
others.
Moreover let 1t BE remembered that the whole
Jewish Code WAS gwen to tho lsraslteS alone, and
the Sabbath III pa.ticnar was declared to nc %
slgu" bet Yeon them ana God. at Is sign
between me aud The childton OF Israel forever"
True ID has been argued that the Sabbath was IN
stlted at the CREATION. bsctuso g is said that God
"ended HIS WORK" Oh tie seventh day. aud
blessed aud sanctiied It," But no commaDd was
then gwen to man TO observe it. Ta!s argument
ior the sabbath. hOTeyet plausible upon tia
sumption that the world was created in SIX solar
days, DecUm utterly nptenable when il is adj
N it'd a. tho best eNpJsltOrs do now admit. that
." day" IN that 30 ord mans an Indefinite geologic
p,rlod. Surely God did not require to rest
uUm labor during sucn period of time. There -
in truth no sufficient evidence that tho Sabbath
WAS of ante-M0salc orgil. IL was certainly not
observed by tho Gentle world, AMI therefore if it
had been part of Chris Ianty in any sense what
ever, iG wOaid have been the duty OF the Apostles
to explain it AMI cnfOrce its Observance upon tho
Gentlle converts. In that case the Lpistcs would
nave brlsied with warnings and representations
uaOu this subject. The TACT that the Apostles
neither speak of such duty rs Sabbath-kecplng,
nor of such y sin rs Sabbath breaking. is mega
tive pregnant" of the utmost significance. Tho
2resby Sd, IAN aud Ba ptst bVotnIen dill wisely IN
Welding the puint OF Divine command 20 keep the
Sabbath, and resting ;helr argument for day OF
rest exclusively npon the uesl OF man aud society
for such day. GA this ground the argument is as
solid as tho pyramids needing not to be buttressed
by any miraculous o supernatural manifestation.
The ,ary christians naturally fell into tho habit
of meeting together the frat day OF the week,
the day OF Christ's resurrection. Emancipaed
from the Jewish law, they at perfec. liberty
to adopt this pIactice az meeting their own
wants. and, thank God! it hes been Derpsiuaed
to lhls day, aId doubtless VIII be pespeluated 10
the end OF time. Euunued in the nature OF nan,
ANA iuli OF u,eiuIBrss blessing IL needs
To nc en orce b. SinaItic thulders and lightuiugs
man the duly of supporting sunday schOols or
wearing clothes ami 10 trce tue duty OF It's obsery-
ancc back 10 u JEWISH law H.. Us DR.. Crosby says.
MAKE men laugh at YOU" aud thus defeat
10 cun,c You strive 10 beneii.
rne views ncren expressed iind strong support
ia tho testimony OF the fathers OF the Protestant
Re sUImalOn. CALVIN urged that Christianity re-
uuir.d men 10 Keep holy not one day la seven, but
l. consecrate the whole course of their lives" To
the seivIce of God. christians" he says, "snUr1
have nothing to TO with q superstltous observance
OF days." fic says not that the jewish Sabbath
was perpetuated by change Gl thu day. but that
the Lord day. another AMI different Insl tuition,
va, substituted" Tor II. The FIRST being no lonher
binding tho way was open for the second. The
lord TeSuI ectlUn Calvin says, was the enc aud
accomplishment of that true rest which the Sab
bath tvplll.u." The Lords day, lie SAYS. by which
types were abolished" serves to admonsh Chris
tiaus against adEering 10 shad0wy ceremonies"
Luther, quoted by ColerIdge in his Table
Tai. wi IN ,l,Ser q tho lo.uA