Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-01-07

| that IT was the well-nfgh universal prac-
tice to rest on the seventh day, and many
OF the primitive peoples also observed the
day with ceremonies, more or less eiab-
crate of a religious nature. AS every one
knows the seventh day is expressly named
in the Decalogue as the Jewish Sabbath,
and the chosen people are commanded not
only to rest on that day, but also to keep
1t holy" Archaeologists have discovered
that the Babylonians rested on the seventh
day. when they endeavored to propitiate
their idol deities. This day they called
Sapattu which has been translated day
of rest for the heart and from 1t the word
Sabbath is held by many scholars TO be
derived. The Delphic oracle's utterances
are said to have been delivered on the
seventh day, and on that day the Greeks
refrained from ordinary labors. as did the
Romans and Hindus; while even to this
day the Arabs Of the desert persist in max
ing their sacrifices on the seventh day.
Thus, long before Christ's time. the sew
enth day of the week was at least rest
day and frequently q holy one with by
far the greater number of the peoples who
hemmed in the Israelites on all sides
Christ Himself being a Jew, observed the
Jewish Sabbath, but not in the manner OF
the PhariseeS. His was q Sabbath for hui
mainly. and not time set apart for the OBJ
servance of theological hair-splitting for
mulas as He Himself stated time and
again. But He arose on the first day Of
the week. His second appearance was on
the first day OF the week. Small wonder
that Jews though the disciples were, the
first day of the week Immediately came to
have deep religious significance in their
eyes hitherto not accorded to 1t by the an
cient world. Not later than twenty-six years
after the resurrection, 1t had become the
custom for many Of the disciples to meet
on the first day of the week for worship
and encouragement of one another. Here is
Biblical testimony to this effect:
And upon the first day of the week, when
the disciples came together to break bread.
Paul preached unto them" This happened
in in ASja Minor On the ~
But the disciples and the first converts to
the new religion were Jews, almost wholly
The Jews, as a people. have always been
marked for their tenacious hold OF old Gus
toms, especially those bearing the stamp of
divine origin or authorization. what more
NATURALLY than that the first followers OF the
Christ should worship not only on the first
day Of the week but worship and rest on
the seventh day-the Scrfptural Sabbath-as
well? In this way the memory OF their be-
loved Lord was honored and the fourth
mandment observed both In letter and
In spirit Also, there was fasting on the
Lords day, as the first day of the week
soon came TO be called. and obviously 30.
This secondary observance or the Sabbath
was then strongly insisted ON by several
Jewish sects.
So particular were those Christians known
as Ebioni4es to observe both days that they
have come down 10 US as among the cnlci
examples of the followers of the dual OBJ
servance Long after Christian observance
of the Sabbath was obsolete elsewhere. the
churches In Constantinople held public serv-
ices on both days. though the law prohibit
ed SafJbatizing. But as the GENTLE influence
waxed stronger in the church and the jew
ish less there grew up decided prejudice
against paying the slightest attention to the
Sabbath and one after another OF the
churches took to worshipping on the Lords
day only. Ignatius. one of the fathers who
preached In the first decade Of the second
century and was beheaded as result,
wrote that those Christians to whom he
preached were mo longer Sabbatizing, but
living in the observance OF the Lords day."
Not all the churches. however. were east
ly persuaded to give UP holding the seventh
day as holy. as is proved by the fact that
at least one church council felt itself called
upon to prohibit worship and resting on the
Sabbath and to pronounce in favor OF these
observances on the Lords day exclusively.
BY the time Of tho flrst civil legislation re-
lating to Sunday. as the day had then come
to be called by many Christians, prepon-
derating Gentle influence had definitely
won tho day in favor Of Sunday observance
only.