The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-05-13
MINISTERIAL UNION on !.
SUNDAY OBSERVANCE

'% -
subject. the Ministerial union yester-
day morning AT its meeting at the Y.
NJ. G.. A. adopted the following pre-
amhie and resolution. on the ohser-
vane Of Sunday:
Among the many subjects connected
with these days of reconstruction
there is nonc greater than the obscr-
vance of the Lords Day.
We feel sure that IL an a~ntc-bellum
resident Of Richmond were 10 return
or even a person who had lived here
twenty years g he would be i'm
pressed with man changes and non
would impress him more ~forceably
than the way in which Sunday is be
ing ohservcd-possihly we should
rather say the way in which Il is not
being observed.
There can be no question that great
progress has been made and we feel
sure that many OF the changes have
been for The better and not for the
worse. But in all periods Of recon
structlon the pendulum - art to swing
from extreme to the other and in
the casting of Of the bal we are spt
sometimes 10 lose much that Is good.
Few institutions have contributed
more 80 The We'll being OF society at
large than the observance OF one day
in seven as "A 3ay OF rest and worship,
but no institution has had a more
varied history
Such Il day GENES down 70 us. hal
lowed with age. from tina; time FL
the history Of The world when o.
rested from the work which he had
fourth commandment and sometimes
done.
Although Va associate IL with the
fourth commandment and sometimes
think Of the present Lords Day as a
{ EtYhEfffNAta fnr tkAs s@a - 49, t,--
given by Moses. we ind upon closer
examination that il even dates
that n We trace It back to that
period in history which is spoken ~ in
Genesis where ii says: And on the
seventh day God ended His work
which He had made. and He rested
on the seventh dav from all His work
which He had made And God blessed
TIE seventh day and sanctihed It be-
cause that IN II Re had rested from all
HIS work which God created and
made
We arc aging particular emphasis
uron the time when such a day was
inaugurated because the truth under
lying its observance is one OF those
eternal truths which is the same yes
terday, today. and forever.
There are some truths which moth
ing can change. We cannot change
~ Aifd wv liitifH iNo III = lhui =
Someone may SAY that il is true be-
cause" II is in the multiplication table.
But that Is only a superficial explana-
tion. II is not true because il il in
the MULTIPLICATION table, but It is in
the multiplication table because il is
true.
Some people would like TO dc away
with the law of gravitation because
1t interferes with their personal liberty
and fpan1or. Dat fha fnNr ~ ~-o x,to
ton cannot be DESTROYED II
stands just as true today as in the be-
ginning OF creation.
The thing hat we want to lay EN- =
phasis especially upon is the fact that
the fourth commandment does not
make the idea underlying the observ-
ance of one day IN seven binding-it i.
, In the fourth commandment because it
is binding from eternity.
The Hebrew observed the seventh
day az carrying out the spirit of this
eternal law.
The Christian observes the first day
and in observing the first day OF the
week, he Is bearing witness not only
to the truth Of his Lords resurrection
= but TO the eternal truth underlying
\ the day of rest.
But let us go just one step further
, We speak constantly OF certain laws
z being broken But II we consider the
q subject carefully. we will come to
I the conclusion hat we do not really
break the Jaw but the law breaks us.
q No n has ever broken the law of
, Eravitation. A man falls and dies.
He has not broken the law Of gravi-
, tation. Thai law Is AS true today as
q In the beginning. But his non-ob-
servance of tho law has resulted In his
untimely death.
This is rue with reference to the
observance tf the Rest Day law. Nc
one has ever broken it. 1t stands
there more im%pregnable than Gibral.
tar. But II would be idle to try and
speculate how many lives that law has
% broker through its non-observance
g We have emphasized this part OF the
/, subject to bring out as clearly as pos
= sible h law underlying such a day
and the effect OF it's observance OIL
non ohservance.
! Considered SINH ply from the view
= point OF the conservation and preser-
= walton OF the physical part of our life
q II would seem to need no great amount
n OF persuasion to show us the bene
fetal results OF its observance.
We are persuaded that by WORKING
365 days in a year that we can dc
more work than If we eliminate 81 OF
a these days. But at the end OF tn
second year we would see that W.
were not approaching our work in the
. same way and it would not be Ions
before not only the work, but GU
. health would begin TO show the effect.
Of taking 40 rest.
There is though something more
!. connected with this law OF the Res,
- Day. It has always been associated
/. with the worship of Almighty God
= And even the youngest of us see A
, great difference between the way ir
, which the day is observed in this re-
spect at the present time and the wa,
in which II was formerly observed.
There is 10 question that the hoy
or girl Of fifteen or twenty wears has
u a very different idea OF Sunday than
: the parent.
( Now in the discussion of such a
question we must act wisely. The
young boys and girls growing UP in
l this new environment must be con-
sidered II we would be of genuine and
= real help.
I In the first place we must remem-
I Der that those who are growing up
at the present time are going to find
1 ii much more difficult to observe the
spirit of the rest day than their pa
n SN ~