The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-04-13


The multitude and variety OF
knives. forks and spoons alongside o.
his plate at formal city dinner pO 30,
ers the plain man, and II ne ~ ~ -
sensitive to the fOrmalitles ne VIII NJ
get much joy out of the meal 49,,
ertheIess he would be a small man
indeed who would go hungry peca IS =
he did not know the rules conc -
the newest fashioned table uteIi9ils
Esafore ever men ate with cutlery or
from tables, they managed 10 uisPo9S
of their food; to the present Gay go
scores of millions of persons eau VIZ. .;,,,
IN with their fingers The lllusti 'l1-
nortravs the type of persons VINO are
missing the nourishment OF r els loil
and it's institutions because they a.
perplexed by the many regulations anu
TroDrieties and uSageS. In partlcuidI'
here is the Sunda y-obserVance quesuoH'
brought again to the fore by the pres
ent Sunday School lesson. and 1t nIlus
a multitude of persons sorely prePleAeu
because they want to CONFORM u SOiiie
man-made rules.
let If be confessed. frankly, that a
great multitude of Christians are be-
wfldered and uncertain in the lace OF
the new aspects Of the sunday sun
ject. Bound by precedents and prac-
tices. eager to do right, they find them
selves helpless in the face OF the real
Sunday question. Many of the old posi-
tions of the churches with respect TO
details of Sunday observance have oeen
utterly ana lIIeNOCdOAS AOSN- Iii
ity cannot maintain today the kind OF
Sunday that was kept hundred years
ago The new times, with their general
diffusion of knowledge, which mas ROB-
bed the preacher and the Sunday ser
vice of the function of principal intel
lectuaI leadership; and the many new
inventions, as of steam and electricity,
which have changed altogether man
conception of neighborhood, nave
created conditions for which there is
no solution in the detailed arguments
of the church fathers.
A Live Issue.
Both state and church are involved
in the present uncertainty If the
Christian Sabbath is to go, the entire
character of the civilization of North
America will be affected Sunday has
been a vital factor in the creation of
this unique western life. The Lords
day, as Canada and the United
States know it, has been one of the
greatest forces differentiating them
from Europe. In all the continent of
Europe there is nothing like Toronto
or Boston, or Philadelphia, or Southern
Sabbath. Travellers from abroad COM
ment upon the peace and restfulness of
the American Sunday. Has the Sab
bath been outgrown? Are we ready 20
discard it?
The point is persistent. He is blind
to the drift of the day who does not
see that the institution of the Chris
Great influences are at work to make
Sunday a mere holiday. The opening
of all places of amusement, the popu- /
larity of athletics, and the drift OF |
men away from the churches, all J
show the tendency to use this day as
a secular day. That Sunday may not +,
lose its sacred character, and become |
u mere holiday, without eventually
becoming work day, is a proposition |
which many thoughtful men under !
take to maintain. I pass it by, to |
ent interest that the church, general |
ly speaking, is today in a dazed con- !
dition. seeking desperately to hold on
to shreds of the Puritan Sabbath
In spite of ecclesiastical resolutions, |
of countless sermons, and of special
organizations, the undeniable drift OF /
our time is away from the sacred Cd
servance of the Lords Day. This loss
means the disappearance of our MS
torical rest day, the day of peace, OF
worship and of ideaIism. The best in |
our AmericNl life is inseparably bound |
I'D with this institution OF the Sabbath, |
which has nourished alike our patriot I
ism. our domestic ideals, and our re-
lgion.
can the Church Afford to Lose the
sabbath?
The time has arrived when we may
consider fearlessly what will happen
to the church if Sunday becomes like
other days. Then we shall find out
whether the Sabbath is merely an
advantageous prop, sustaining the
church or whether it is a vital in
stitution. essential to the existence
of Christianity. Certainly our sun
day makes church going easy and ma
tural and affords time and leisure
and sanction for specific Christian
work 1t gives the right of way to
religion.
In open competition with all the
devices of modern amusement, can
the church hold her own? If Sun
dav is not different from other days.
NAV we not expect the stated worship
of God in public assembly to survive
It Enthusiastically would, even as II
survives in heather lands. but the
experience would be costly to both the
church and the world. Such an event
would be calamity of the first order.
All historical considerations aside, the
Lords Day is monument to the place
of the church among men; it is an ex-
preston of the present life and actlV-
ity of the church. 1t STANDS 1or the
power of religion among men.
This being so, the best way to IN
sure the permanence of the Lord S
Dav is to vitalize the church. so that
the Sabbath may take its character
from the up-welling life of the CHRIS
tan community Let the Saooath De
the consequence of the spiritual mind
of the people, and there will be no
question about it's observance.
The Picture or the Frame?
Sometimes a picture is so elabor-
ately framed, and surrounded with
such overwhelming detail that the
picture itself is lost sight of. In
somewhat of this fashion. the don is
Of the churches have often shut out
Lords Day. Men have sought to make
the Sabbath to prevail by prohibitions.
The persistence of the Jewish and
Puritan ideals of the day have sing
despite her emancipation from the old
d1sDenSatiOn in other respects The