Los Angeles daily herald., 1889-09-01
CHURCH AND STATE.
The Movements for a National sum
day Law.

EDITORS HERALD-The agent of the
American Sabbath Union is here, and he
is here for the purpose of inducing the
people of Los Angeles to vote away their
liberty as American citizens by signing
petition to Congress asking the adop-
ton OF National Sunday law.
The facts of this issue are that when
our National Constitution was framed, it
was intended to have it stand separated
from all questions of religion, and the
wisdom of the fathers of the republic In
framing it has been shown by the fact
that during the nineteen years since
1870, $40 amendments to the con-
stitution have been offered none of which
however, have been adopted, and had it
not been for the way in which they fenced
it in it would have been ere this SO bur-
dened with outre amendments that it's
trainers would not recognize it as the
Constitution of free people. The legis.
lation which the American Sabbath
Union wish to have adopted is simply .
union Of state and church, and no amount
OF contradiction can make it anything
else. They want to get the nation by
law to commit itself to the defense OF
religious observance, so they can punish,
as in the days Of the inquisition and
the dark ages, those who dis
agree with them. For the state
to allow itself to be dictated to by the
church, as is here proposed by the Am.
erican Sabbath Union, is to render the
church superior to the civil power, and
which can end in nothing but the worst
Of religious despotism. Our Constitution,
as it is, has for more than one hundred
years proven to the world to have worked
better than any constitution that any
government ever had. 1t affords pro-
lection alike to the Christians who wor-
ship God on Sunday, the Greeks on
Monday, the Persians on Tuesday, the
Assyrians on Wednesday, the Egyptians
on Thursday, the Turks on Friday,
the Jews, the Seventh Day Advent
lists and the Seventh Day Bsptists on
Saturday, while the freethinkers, the
infidels, the agnostics, the atheists and
the Spiritualists, who worship as they
please and whom they please, receive the
same protection.
The population of the United States is
made up of every nation under the sun,
each and every one of whom has Just as
much right to establish his Sabbath by
law as the Christian has, and the right to
enjoy his religion without asking priest
or President, or even majority Of reli-
gious fanatics. To sign such q petition
would be permitting our political, civil and
religious liberty, of which Americans
boast 80 much about, to be trampled
under foot. The Government has moth
ing to do with religious beliefs and in
stitutions.
The work OF the Christian church is to
preach the gospel of Christian religion
according to the Gospel as taught by the
Christian Bible, and the same can be
said with regard to all other religions,
while the work of the state is to super
wise the life of the citizens who live un-
der it's Government. If theology is free
on Sunday 80 should pleasure be free. If
the temple of dead may open it's doors
so may the temple of live issues. If the
images and pictures in the cathedrals
may be looked upon, go may those
IN the art gallery. If the church has
right to disturb the people with her
clsngor of bells on Sunday morning, the
bands in the parks should have the right
to entertain with inspiring music on Sum
day evening. If those of the Christian
belief choose to attend church and see
the preacher present the bible, those of
other beliefs should have the same right
to visit the eeashore and see the waves
beat the beach. Desperate and persist
ent efforts are now being made by ma
jority of the ministers to engraft
laws into our Constitution en-
bodying denial of these privileges.
Are we going to accept this edict of slav-
cry, promulgated by Constantine, that
imperial butcher who deluged the Ro-
man empire with blood; who threw his
captives to wild beasts; who killed the
husband of his sister and the father of
his wife; who tore from the arms of q
pleading sister his eleven-year.old
nephew and murdered him who plunged
his wife into bath of boiling water;
who consigned to cruel death his own
innocent son, and who is the creator and
only authority for the Christian
Sabbath? Sunday is word not
found in the bible, nor is there any
authority for it, not even from Christ or
the Apostles, nor from the theological
scholars, either ancient or modern.
Luther, Calvin, Knox, Bucer, Erasmus,
and many other writer's of reformation
fame did not recognize Sunday as day
of religious observance, but only as a
command of Constantine, and for this
they gave but little consideration. 1t is
now within our power to say whether the
nation has right to imprison her citi-
zens on Sunday, and force them to OBJ.
serve that day as religious worship.
F. S. L.
Los Angeles, August 81, 1889.