The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1924-07-18
THE USE OF SUNDAY

the attitude of parents, and other!
in loco PARENTS. toward younl
people who wish for larger liber
ty in matters of Sunday amusements
than their elders have been accus
toned to regard as right.
1t is quite useless, and worse
than useless, to force our owr
standards on young people merely
by authority. Such use of authority
does more harm than good. Sounc
reasons alone are not Of any use.
Can we think out any principles
which are likely to be accepted BY
thoughtful and sincere young peo
pie?
One thing is clear. The matter
at least here, must be argued from
| the Christian standpoint. And
therefore, we may at once deal with
one argument with which one is
often confronted.
Our Sunday, we are often remind.
ed, is not the Sabbath.
OF course it is not. It is some.
thing much more. It is the Dies
Dominica-the Lords day. To sup
pose that the obligations of Sun.
day are less than those of the Sab.
bath is surely completely to mis-.
understand Christ's saying that He
came not to destroy the law, but
to fulfill it. No doubt the obliga.
tions of Sunday are profoundly diff
ferent from those of the Jewish
Sabbath. but to suppose that they
are necessarily less is to miss the
whole significance of Christ's teach.
ing.
Here, as in so many other things,
we get passage from a mere neg
ative prohibition to positive COM
mand. A day of rest to give place
to the Lords day.
l had the pleasure the other day
Of hearing c. G. Ammon, secretary
to the admiralty, speaking at Bris-
toll on Sunday; the Workers Char
ter" and he said that when speak
ing to representatives of continent
tai trade unionism he had often
been struck by their envy of our
Sunday.
Indeed, he declared that there
was movement on the continent
for the adoption of something like
the English Sunday.
l do not wonder. For it can not
be gainsaid that a great increase
of Sunday amusements for the up
per and middle classes must result
in a great increase of work for the
poorer sections of society.
Even if one day in seven is Sc
cured to all workers it will not, as
Mr.. Ammon pointed out, compen safe
for the loss of Sunday. Half the
pleasure, and more than half the
refreshments, of day of rest is
, lost to working man if the other
members of his family are at work
A second important point is the
need which all men have for some
time of quiet and rest.
DR.. Inge has said that he believes
| most civilizations break down, so to
| speak, by their own weight. As
flywheel, if spun at too great q
pace, flies to pieces, so when the
rush of civilization becomes toe
great human nature can not stand
it.
| A third argument is supplied by
what we so often hear from those
who object to the English Sunday
1t is such dull day, We are told.
Surely that in itself is merely an
admission on the part of those who
make it of the possession of dull
minds.
People who can not amuse them
selves for one day in seven unless
they either have some professionals
to act, sing, play, dance, or in some
other way perform for them, or un-
less they are permitted to play with
some form of ball must be so utter
ly devoid of mental resources that
! they should be excluded from all
places of amusement till they have
cultivated their own internal pow
ers sufficiently to be able to avoid
| boredom.
And, to come at last to the first
and chief argument, there is surely
the need for one, day :on which re-
ligion will be the chief interest
The attitude of mind of many
good Europeans" before the wal
was that religion was an extinct
superstition which cultured people
could only smile at.
Does any one take that view to-
day? But it is no good saying that
the world needs spiritual forces for
its regeneration if we are unwilling
to pay the price for them.
These. it will be objected, are
general arguments, not an answer
to my proper problem-namely, how
to deal with young people. But the
answer there is surely plain. Sum
day and Sundays chief concern
namely. religion-must be made 50
real and vital that young people
shall welcome it and not shirk it.
If young people are denied amuse-
ment by parents who themselves
take no interest in religion, what
wonder if they regard the whole
things as q quote from the mouth
of YOUTH "stuffy nonsense"
If religion is reality in the
home, Sunday will be a well-loved
day. And, where it is so loved
young people will not desire to spoil
its flavor with secular amusements.
NOTHING LEFT
I ALICE hear Jack has broken of
his engagement with Gladys
Al.