The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-01-22
SUNDAY OPENING OF THE WORLDS
EAlE,


pleads that Jewish legislation is not bind
ing upon the Christian church: Christ did
not keep the Jewish Sabbath, but was a
chronic Sabbath breaker, and Paul did
not keep it. arguing that Christ took the
place of Moses. The reasons given by
Moses for keeping the Sabbath day are OF
no force to us and in any event are not an
argument for observing the first day in
place of the seventh. Arguments drawn
from the law of Moses have no bearing on
Christian customs The law Of Moses was
not accepted by Pau! as the foundation of
the Christian church, and Paul is better
authority than United States Senator
Matt Qnay. of Pennsylvania, VINO accepts
the law of Moses as "the constitutional
law of nations" Christ was chronic
| Sabbath breaker, as Bishop Wayland
frankly admits; his followers for a time
kept two days, one as the followers of
Moses and one as the followers of Christ,
Sunday commemorating the resurrection
of Christ from the dead.
The time has passed when we can COM
pei men to attend church; there will be
muititudes in Chicago who do not believe
in the resurrection nor in the divinity OF
Christ; they will not go to church, and
yet they come to the fair for education, for
improvement. for recreation; the open fair
will take away nobody from the open
church nor the open aeon; men will go
where they prefer 10 So, and TO slam the
gates of the fair in their faces will not send
them to church nor to the saloon. There
is no Generalization in looking at works
of art, finished products. flowers and fishes
on Sunday. Mr.. Clifford agrees with
Bishops Potter and Spalding; with Rev.
Dr.. Vincent; with Cardinal Gibbons; the
vast majority of the clergy of the Protest
ant Episcopal, the Roman Catholic and
Unitarian churches. that the fair ought to
be open, but he agrees with them that the
running of the machinery would necessi-
tate too much labor, and he would let the
wheels be still.
Opening the gates obliges no man to
enter the fair, and it robs no man of
wished-tor opportunity TO view lis works
Of art and finished products. Men who
do not agree with the perpetuatlon of the
Puritan Sabbath ought TO have the right
of spending the day as they please. so long
as their pleasure does not work injury to
the state. American law does not attempt
to prescribe how an American citizen or
an alien shall employ his Sunday. The
Rev. DR.. Thomas, of Chicago. holds that
the matter of going to the Worlds fair on
Sunday should be left to each PERSONS
conscience; that the fair was not BUSH
ness project or vast show; the fair was
a school and church for the exhibition
of nature and mans progress. and ap-
pealed TO the intellectual and moral side
of the nation.
Rev. John ". Chadwick, of Brooklyn, y.
Y, makes it clear that the Identification
OF the Christian Sunday with the Jewish
Sabbath is a popular misconception Of the
truth of history, and on this m!sconcep-
ton the whole Sabbataran movement is
based. For long time after Christ's
death the Christians observed both days.
and had no more idea of confounding
them than we of confOundlng Christmas
and the Fourth of July. The Jewish SAT-
bath was not merely holy day. but ho!i-
day--a day of rest and social jolity. And
SO, with the decline of Jewish Christianity
AMI when the Sabbath vas gwen up for
Sunday, the latter day did not become a
rest day any more than it became day
for social enjoyment Ii was q feast day.
not fast day as late as the sixteenth
century, says Mr.. Chadwick.
large majority OF the most eminent
and influential cergymen of the country
are opVo>ei 10 shutting the gates on Sun
lay. The Roman Catholic church holds
that Sunday was made by the apostles
III virtue of their Divine authority as
teachers commissioned by Christ. and ac-
cepted on that authority by the first Chris
tians and succeeding generations. The
reasons We're that on the frst day of the
week our Blessed Redeemer made his tr;
umphant entry into Jerusalem; on that
day He rose from the dead. and on that
day the Holy Ghost descended on The
apostles. making IL the birthday Of the
Christian church. Il IS Obligatory upon
Catholics 10 hear mass OIL that dav. ana
they are recommended to sanc,3ty Il other
wise according 10 their opportunity; but
innocent amusement, So much needed bv
the laborjng Classes for relaxation, 3 not
forbidden. nor even labor II of street neces-
sitg and unavoidable. The Jewish sab
hath dates from Moses; the Christian
Sunday dates from the apostles. ana
therefore the Christian Sunday has no
identity with the Sabbath.
The president Of the American Fedora.
zion Of Labor and the president otthe Cen.
ira. Labor Union. Of Chicago. are IN favor
. Of Sunday opening Of the fair, and have
officially testified that the working people
are N favor oi Sunday opening. Taev
we're opposed 10 seven days work IN tie
week. bu; the fair was obligated not 70
work IFS employees more than SIX days
week, aud sunday was the hes, day for
the iahoring man - seek the enlichtcn-
nout Which the we..-to-do could get every
day ID tAs seek- Tas nottingham aa.sly