The Washington herald., 1914-05-20
The 0PES FORUM.
Prsideus q sseulss Lssgse D;se.s.e'
Question Of Sandayl Amusemepts

Question of SGndsy Anusemeats.
To the Editor: In report respecting
the Sunday baseball case. The Herald
states: From RELIGIOUS standpoint the
decision Of the court b eagerly awaftea.
The churches are In sympathy with the
order OF the Commissioners" -
Another Newspaper quotes number of
ciersymen in opposition to Sunday ball
playing and in favor Of its suppression
by the Commissioners and the police.
one Of them declaring that baseball on
Sunday tends to interference with ths
proper observance Of the Sabbath" and
that zone OF the crying needs Of the
day Is the neglect Of church-goins on
the Lords day" Another is opposed to
Sunday baseball because attendance at
divine service cannot be properly OBJ
served" Another thinks that baseball
/ should be confined TO SIX days in the
week in order ito enhance attendance
at service on Sunday Another de-
ciares that The National Capital should
lead all otHTr cities in the country in
respect to strict Sunday Observance.
In view Of all this. and the notorious
I fact that laws and regulations relating
! to what shall and shall not be done on
Sunday. and the enforcement of the
| same. are expressions OF religious and
theological sentiment and belief, permit
me to suggest that Il lie high time that
in this matter we were living up to our
vital political principle of complete sepa-
ration Of church and State and were
abandoning the notion and practice of
using the law and the police to compel
Difference to the religious Sunday or to
promote church attendance. as our local
clergy gravely and naively assume
should be done. The prototypes Of these
gentlemen century and more ago went
step further in promoting church at
tendance on Sunday by means of Sun
day laws-they not only prohibited peo-
Pile from going elsewhere. but they COM
PEELED them to go to church And in
doing this they did no more in principle
than our clergy right here In Washing
ton in this fourteenth year of the twen-
tieth century propose shall be done
The law. the Commissioners, and the
police can properly and constitutionaily
have no concern whatever with the re-
ligious character Of or regard for Sun
day, or interfere with the actions Of
people on any such consideration They
have exactly the same power and au-
thority. and no more, with respect 10
ball playing or anything else on Sunday
that they have on Monday. or Saturday.
u,
ball playing or anything else on Sunday.
to take into consideration anything that
they would not take into consideration
and give equal weight to in regard to
the same matter on Monday or Satur-
day. And when people are prevented BY
them from doing on Sunday what they
would not be interfered with for doing
under the same circumstances on Mon
day or Saturday. such persons are op-
in inf NJ
and theological sentiment and belief. II
Is a clear invasion of and denial to them
Of their constitutional guaranty OF free
dom from constraint with respect to re-
ligion and theology.
In holding invalid a few years ago an
old statute in the interest of Sunday OBJ
servance the Court of Appeals of the
District of Columbia observed that 'it
is not the policy of the law to enforce
the observance of the Sabbath day be-
cause of its general observance by the
Christian world" and well declared that
IL is beyond the power of the legislative
authority ito impose the observance OF
Sunday as a religious duty. and that an
act intended to enforce the observance
Of the Sabbath as q religious obligation
cannot be legally enforced under
our present constitutional form of gov
eminent The Constitution of the United
States guarantees to the citizen absolute
religious freedom, in that it forbids the
enactment of any law respecting an es-
tablishment of religion. or that will pro-
hibit the free exercise thereof. App.
d. c. 2Ss.)
And of course. any interference with
the actions Of people on Sunday which in
like circumstances does not obtain on
Monday or Saturday is an interference
which. in the light of common expert
ence and knowledge, must be assumed to
be dictated by the religious and theologi-
cal sentiment and belief which alone dis
tinguishes Sunday from these other days,
no matter what the pretense for such in
reference may be.
So competent and eminent an authority
as James Bryce has pointed out in his
able study of our institutions, The Amer
lean Commonwealth" that our SUNDAY
laws are a decided qualification on our
automatic principle of the complete neU-
traIity of the state with respect to re-
Iigion. and that they. as well as other
things. show that the national govern
ment and the State governments do give
to Christianity species of recognition
inconsistent with the view that civil gov
ernment should be absolutely neutfal in
religious matters"
Is il not time. at least at the CAPITAL
Of the nation. that We were ceasing from
this Inconsistency ana were setting the
rest of the country a proper example In
the NATTER
JOHN d. BRADLEY.
President Washington Secular League
MARINE CORPS