The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1893-01-23
WORLDS FAIR AND SUNDAY
Rev. DR.. Christensen, of st. Paul's, Fa-
yorS Keeping Ii Open on That Day.
1.-The Sabbath Was Made for Man, Not Man for
the Sabbath"-Extreme Sabbatarian Ideas
Of the Early Days Discussed.

Ats Pauls Church. yesterday morning.
Dr. G. A. Christensen preached in favor Of
keeping the worlds fair open on Sunday.
As nc Is one of the very few ministers in
the country to take this view of the matter
what he had to say is of interest. He took
for his text ST. Mark ii, %: 1.-The Sabbath
was made for man, and not man for the
Sabbath" He spoke as follows:
1T Is not an easy matter to preach from
this text. The dividing line between what
was transient and what is permanent in the
fourth commandment is not easily defined.
Moreover. there are such wide divergences
among Christians as to the proper observ-
ance of the Lords day that no preacher can
hope TO present the subject In light which
will commend Itself to ell his hearers.
Furthermore, it Is often urged with no lit
tie force that the clergy are apt to regard
such questions as mere theorists incapable
of approaching the practical difficulties
which are involved. From the very nature
of their calling ministers often do fail to
see what is manifest to men engaged In the
everyday affairs of common life Admit
ting all this, yet venture to claim the at
tenti0n of men Of affairs to what shall say
nonce that the words proceed from clerical
lips, and to Judge them upon their own
merits Wherever am wrong l shall be
glad If you will set me right; wherever
am right may not claim that you should
uphold me.
SABBATH IN EARLY DAYS.
Let US briefly review first the history
of the Sabbath. The claim of some his
torIans that it was ordained from the
very beginning. as an institution for the
whole human race cannot be established.
The most that we can fairly do for this
claim is to apply the Scoth verdict Not
proven The word Sabbath is nowhere
mentioned In the Book of Genesis: aud un-
the world was created In six days of
twenty-fOur hours each, we can base no
argument upon the words in Gen. IL 2, 3.
God blessed the seventh day and sanctihed
it, because that in il He bad rested from
oil His work which God created and made
1t is quite likely that some sort of tradition
of the Sabbath came down to the Jews OF
Moses time from the remotest antiquity;
but there is no evidence that the institu.
tion had any binding force as law until
after the exodus from Egypt From that
time the Institution was firmly estab-
lished. The method OF its observance was
prescribed to the mlnutest detail. Never
before had there been any command to
abstain from work on the seventh day.
The seven precepts of Noah knew no such
rule; but now, under the Mosaic code. we
find that a man was stoned to death II he
gathered sticks to light tlro on the Sab
bath day. AS time went on, the law was
obscured by traditions. The PharIsees went
so far as to say that to carry any article In
the pocket " as burden bearing, which was
work, and consequently wrong. 1t was
not lawful even TO heal on the Sabbath
day. and the disciples who plucked the ears
of corn as they passed through the fields
on the seventh Gay, were accused OF Sab
bath-breaking. Our Lord himself was
charged with inconsistency because on
that day He restored the withered hand of
o man who had enlisted His sympathy.
One could take but brief journey on the
Sabbath-day. and if. in the course of his walk
he should see an animal in pit, he might
throw 1t some fodder, but it was not law
full to help the poor creature out until the
next day.
"Such was the perverslon of beneticent
law. ordained for the good Of Gods people,
which Christ found when He came. 1t was
high time that He should fulfill the law;
not by abrogating it. but by vindioating it;
and so He taught that the Sabbath was
made for man, and not man for the Sab
bath; in other words. that God did not
make the Sabbath for men to observe for
its own sake but after He had made man,
He instituted the Sabbath as a means of
good for all his creatures. The Sabbath
system of Israel was good as long as the
Jewish nation lasted and was confined to
the narrow boundaries of Palestine and
limited to pastoral occupations But the
world has outgrOwn that condition. Gods
people are no longer huddled together on a
and their number is increased
by millions upon millions. Our
geogr aphical knowledge shows US that we
could not, If we would, keep the identical
hours holy which were sanctitied in Pal
estine. for when it Is Saturday here the day
has passed ut the antrpOdes If the Bible
had made point of this how eagerly the
it as evidence of popular ignorance In the
Book, The principle. then, TO be insisted
upon is not the seventh day, but o seventh
part of ones time. as holy, separate to the
Lord. In like manner the prohibition OF
all manner of work was only temporary.
Work, in itself. was no moro wrong on the
Sabbath day than on any other, but mas
much as it in terfered with tie rest to whIch
God proclaimed that ell creatures had
right. 1T WAS absolutely orbidden. There
was no need of fire in the genial climate of
Palestine. but who can think that God
would punish Christian man at the north
pole Tor gathering sticks and striking
flint to them on the Sabbath dayf In the
primitive state of the worlds civilization
there was no call for such work as is neces-
sary in our day. They needed no policemen
then to work day and night, year in and
year out; there were no large cities TO be
lighted lest murder and robbery should
hold high carnival In their streets; no
large factories requiring at least modicum
OF labor on the Sabbath; no railway
trains or steamboats,, to stop the
running OF WnlOQ eQtlr6ly WOulQ
entail loss and suffering for thousands.
What was good for Palestine two Thousand
years before Christ NAV be very bad for the
whole world two thousand years after
Christ.
NECESSITY OF DAY OF REST.
And SO we find here that the law
is changed, but the spirit remains. Works
of necessity and mercy must be done on
the Lords day. but all other business must
be suspended. And whyF Because the
good of man requires it. have not time to
prove this point; but if you care for legal
testimony read Blackstone. If you seek
the authority of q statesman who was not
Christian, read PrOudhOn. If You need
medical testimony, ask any physician II
man, any more than beasts can do more
work in seven days without rest than in
Six days with rest day at the end. God
had regard for all His creatures when He
ordained the Sabbath, That thy man serv-
ant and thy maid servant may rest as well
as thou He said to the Jews. and, extend
ing the benefits of the rest-day even to the
beasts of the field, He forbade that even
they should be taxed with their usual
labor. After the resurrection of Christ
from the dead. the first dag of the week
came to be haliowed instead of the seventh.
l wish that time permitted me to show how
naturally and reasonably the change came
abont, but. perhaps. it is not necessary. 1
do not need TO defend the institution of
the Lords day. for there is probably no
one here who would be willing to
have it either changed or abolished. We
are all interested In it's conservation, how
ever we may differ in Its observance.