Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1911-02-14
A World Without a Sabbath
By Bishop w. 4. Gambler

1 1neTe Is more OF less pTSNdlShI III bhS
land a spirit of liberalism which chafes
under the restraints of both the doctrines
and morals of christianity. With a zeal
worthy of better cause it seeks to modi-
| fy, if not to overthrow, the christian
Sabbath 1t denounces the sacred insti-.
tuition as an unjustifable requirement OF
| an austere and Anticipated Puritanism
quite out of keeping with an age of free
dom and enlightenment 1t berates those
| who would have the Sabbath preserved
as we have been accustomed to observe
1t, charging them with seeking to inn
pose on men a Judaistic law wholly In
consistent with the spirit and methods of
true religion. 1t dotes upon certain aca-
demic questions concerning 1.-The Sabbath
law of the Decalogue,' the change OF
the day from the seventh to the first day
of the week. and other like matters.
| 1t would be we'll for those who indulge
this Iiberalistic spirit to ask themselves
what sort of world would result from
the universal acceptance of their views
/ by all christian teachers and churches A
well-known writer brings in sight this
view of the subject in a recent article of
great force He says Of a world without
Sabbath, "It would become sort OF
slave plantation, with the vast majority
Of mankind working continuously, with
out hope of rest or respite, week in and
week out, without pause. The man or
woman who secularizes the Sabbath has
only to ask the question, What would the
world be like If everybody used the Sab
bath as use itT
This question is one which certain
classes of wage-earners should ask them
selves. There are certain labour organ
izations which seem to resent the Sab
bath day, but If their views and habits
4 L. ~ ws1l all hn
wage earners would soon find that they
would be forced to give seven days Of
toll for the wages of six days. The sacred
| institution should be especially dear to all
wage earners, for it is a break-water
which protects their lives from being sub
merged beneath the waves of a greedy
and oppressive commercialism. They can
not AFFORD to pick away it's foundations
1 Nor can preachers and religious teach
ers afford to weaken the hold which the
sacred day has upon men. 1t is already
difficult enough to induce the masses to
attend upon the services of the churches
and the preaching of Gods word, and IT
would be a thousand-fold more difficult
| If the Sabbath were less scrupulously OBJ
served among us This is made evident
by the statistical facts of the churches OF
the north. where continentalism has made
| serious encroachments on the sanctity of
1
South, where the holy day is better OBJ
served. "A preacher in the South is twice
as successful as preacher in the North.
The Northern Methodist Church. accord
| ing to the figures given in the New York
Christian Advocate of recent date, has
| 1880 preachers, and its net increase last
year was 26949 members, while the South
ern Methodist Church, with only 7179
! preachers, had a net increase of $4,000
! The regular Baptists North with S,156
ministers had net increase of only BIS
while the regular Baptists South with
! 1898 ministers showed an increase OF
1871 The Baptist pastors of the North
did not add upon an average as much as
one member year to the growth of their
churches, while the Baptist ministers OF
the South won a net increase Of nearly
flour members to each pastor. And 1t
must be remembered that the population
of the South is far more sparse than
that of the North. Southern preachers
win more souls In thinly peopled states
than Northern preachers in populous COM
monwealths. sF
Many causes beside the relative OBJ
servance OF the Sabbath doubtless enter
| IN these unequal results of ministerial
/ labour North and South but it can not
be denied that the matter of the Sab
bath observance Is a prime factor in
the case. In the South there are more
| church members in proportion to popu-
lation than in any other section of our
| country, and 1t is certain that the gem
eral observance OF the Sabbath upon
the part of our people has much to do
with 1t.
This conclusion is further confirmed by
the relative success of christianity in
the English-speaking nations of chris
tendon and the power of the gospel in
the lands where the continental Sab
bath" prevails. The churches of the
United States, Canada, and the British
Isles do most of the foreign mission
work of the world, and they influence
more vitality and more nearly universally
| all classes in their home-Iands They
might justly be called the Sabbatarian
nations, the preaching nations, and the
evangelical nations of the world. If the
! civilization prevalent in them were ex-
| tended to all lands, 1t can not be doubted
| that all the other nations would thereby
be lifted to higher level Of moral and
rel gious life, and it is equally clear that
! II their civilization were exchanged for
that of any of the Sabbathless nations
they would suffer distinct moral dete-
| rioration.
In the light of these ind'sputable and
conspicuous facts it is worse than idle
for men to talk of liberalizing our Sab
bath. To raise a lot of side issues about
the perpetual authority of the Jewish
| Sabbath, and such like matters, is but
the puerile prattle of men who have
more desire to seem liberal than they
have to be useful. 1t is perfectly plain
| that we must have day of worship and
rest severely hedged about against the
| intrusion of secularity, IL we are to
have any religion at all. If it could be
proved that God had not ordained such
an institution as the Sabbath, the first
duty of the churches would be to under
| take to secure the observance of some
such day.
Many years ago the lamented ]. G.
| Holland said in Scribner's Magazine,
of which he was then the editor. that
| which is just as true today concerning
the Sabbath question. He said, The
prevalence and permanence of pure
christianity In this country depend main
ly on what can be done for them on
Sunday. If the enemies Of Christianity