Year: 1879

people, These propositions call for Increased labor
without compensation; tor 1T is not intended by the
adoption OF either method or both to do away with
the saturday synagogue services.


- NOTIFICATIONS ALREADY MADE.


Ihe radical proposition on the other hand does
not lessen increase the labors of the minister
but transfers his work from one day to another.
Ana besides the business that have been
urged again and again tor the change there social
anu moral reasons which are sometimes brought
FORWARD. AS already stated, Jews do business either
openly or syly on their sabbath. And when
they cannot spend that day in business many OF
them spend 1t IN pleasure and pastime. They do
little or no secular business the Christian Sab
BATH and that day spent pretty much like pred
and for several the rabbis have been almost at
their wits end to know what do to bring back to
the ancient faith their scattered focks. One innO-
vaon after another has been introduced into ortho.
dox synagogues. Magnificent organs and female
singers have been substituted for the cantors .sTe
Deum and the male chor's response. The wearing
Of the hat in the house Of God is not SO srenuousy
insisted on as 1t used to be- The changes in the
reading desk in very many synagogues these are
but expressions OF desire on tn part Of rabies ana
trustees to win back the young blood of Judaism
which has strayed away from the fold. But these
efforts have failed, and. as last resort the Sabbath
change is suggested 1t will come by and by: unless
indeed. places of worship of every name Christian
and Jewish. Protestant and Roman Catholic shall be
hour in the day, as they should be. so that
troubled souls may be able to retire and
quenty need. But as it is now the churches and the
synagogues make the same complaint. The people
have no desire to attend either. 1t is not that the





please them. For the thousands who know nothing
about eloquence we as the hundreds who do,
stay away. 1t is not that the music is defective
unatractive for better music both vocal and nstru-
mental. can rarely be furnished than that which
1t is not that the temples are not ornate and costly
enough because the million or half million dollar
church on Fifth avenue and the $10O church In .
down town street raise similar lamentation


UNREST JEWISH MINDS.


The cause of this religious church declension.
whether in Jewish or Christian societies. lies deeper
SteepleS
pulpits. And it affects the social life Of all tho
people, not merely Saturday and Sunday but on
Friday and Monday and every other day also
Whether the proposers of this change Israalites
have struck on the true cause or not in their case
they may be certain that it enters large and i'm
portant element into that cause. There are very
few Protestant churches in New York in whose
membership or congregation there cannot be
found one or more Israelites. They rarely attend
Christian worship with the intention Of becoming
Christians. But the Sunday is long and weartsome
day tor those who stay i'll the city doing nothing
for recreation in some sense many Jews look in upon
the churches nearest to them, or set purpose 90
to hear some OF the more prominent preachers. And
this practice repeated until it becomes q practice
weakens the bond that united them to their old
faith. and they almost insensibly neglect synagogue
worship altogether and go very irregularly to any
one Protestant church. until. by the presentation Of
some Old or New Testament truth in u forcibe
to their minds. they become thorough Chris.
tians. But there are thousands of Jews
their ancestors were in the days Of Elijah
the Tishbite--halting between two opinions. Not,
and their duty toward Him but in respect to dsys
and ordinances which may or may not now serve
very important purposes. Love is the best law be.
is the fulhlment OF all law. And il will
not go to Gods house because they love both it and
Him, they won't very long continue to attend syna-
gogue church because their exterior interior
attractions and ornamentation.


CAN DIVINE INSTITUTIONS CHANGED?


To be sure, the Jewish Sabbath is divine nstitu.
ton as the Messenger claims and therefore should
not be changed But the Jewish ceremonial law
was also given by God. The patterns Of the
tabernacle in the wilderness and of the temple
in Jerusalem given by God, and tbs
peculiar worship performed in both Of divine
institution And yet these have been changed or
abolished not by Christian arms laws but by
Jewish indifference inability to observe and main
tain them. But "the Sabbath is historical. 1t IS
above the sphere of the modern revolutonist and
communist" says the Jetctsh Messenger and there
fore it should not be disturbed But one greater
than the editor Of that journal declared that 'the
Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the
Sabbath" And il so then man is above and greater
than institutions, and can change and modify them
provided only that their spirit be observed. And
hence it is that the jew OF to-day worship God
in the synagogue as in the Temple. albeit
tho pomp and ceremony OF the latter is un-
known IN the former. Men have modified and
changed these things, and yet no pretends that
wrong has been done though they were divinely
instituted Nor can any one pretend that the Chris
tian does not offer as acceptable service to God on
Sunday the Jew does Saturday. No one is
silly enough to believe that God has any special
gard for day above another He is affected
by the diurnal motions of the earth. II He we're
affected He would not be worthy Of our worship
God, either Saturday Sunday. 1t is the uses
unholy And the Jew who spends Saturday in
pleasure and amusement Is as guilty before God az
the Christian who spends Sunday in like manner,
and no more Worship is what God asks of us for
Himself on that day or either day Rest from labor
asks of for ourselves But the adoption
of Sunday as the worship day by one or two syna-
gogue congregations would not abolish the Jewish
sabbath. 1t would however, have its influence
upon other congregations, and might lead even
tually to entire substitution OF days in large
cities and in commercial centres like New York.
Time would necessarily be required to make any
such change universal or very general. And yet the
manifested in orthodox Jewish circles
shows that such change Is not regarded as the
chmera OF disordered Imagination. but an i'm.
portant possibility, IL not probability. There
eighteen synagogues Jewish places Of worship in
this city. II the substitution OF Sunday for Satur
day we're made in tha Temple Emanu- Ell, for IN.
stance and should prove successful it would not be
great while before another and another congrega-
ton would try the experiment, and as New York
would go so probably would go the Union. with
out trial there's no denial


SIGNIFICANCE OF THE CONVENTIONS ACTION.


It must be quite apparent, from the discussion OF
this question of the Sabbath by the Hebrew Conven-
ton in this city last week. that it is not bugbear
set to frghten timid Israeites. but that there
much more fact than fiction in it, What else should
make several voices in that Convention say that the
day had already been changed in Chicago and other
places when the proposition made to specify
the seventh day as the Sabbath meant by them? And
the that they left the day open question and
rather inclined toward the experiment of Sunday
services, is significant. They have Sunday schools
attached to most IL not all their synagogues. and
it is than likely that little difficulty would
be experienced in obtaining adult congregations for
regular services No essential doctrine OF Judaism
need be disturbed by such a change. Indeed the
probability is that impulse would be given to
the ancient faith by the change suggested. In
sermon or series OF sermons preached some time
ago Judaism DIR. Gotthiel maintained that
Judaism did not consist in styles of dress.
in the observance of days and in longings to re-
turn to Palestine, but in belief in aud obedience
TO one living and true God that the Judaism OF to-
day is a development of Old Testament religion. the
growth of the seed that planted in Palestine and
thai has come down from Abrahams time; and that.
having wrestlod with the world for the preservation
of its grand life, Judaism is full of hope and vigor
to-day IL was. Judaism Is . living thing
doubtcdly the Doctor lntimates in its spirit but
there is very little vitality in its ceremonies and the
forms OF faith that will best suit the coming genera
tions will be simpler and less ceremonious than any
thing Ia religion that has ever existed.


TELEGRAPH WAR In NEWARK.