The Logic of It | AdventAI

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · May 1887

FromThe American Sentinel, Vol. 2, No. 5.

The Logic of It.

THE National Reformers insist that the law must give the people the rest of the Sabbath. And not only give it to them, but compel them to take it. By the authority of civil law they must take the Sabbath rest whether or not they wish it. But in commenting on the meeting of locomotive engineers, held on a Sunday, the Statesman said:—

“Have they yet to learn that the Sabbath cannot be had for rest, unless we keep it sacred for worship?”

By putting “this and that together,” we shall learn that it is the intention of our model Reformers to give us a legal or compulsory Sabbath

rest, “sacred for worship.” This is the plain evident meaning of the language. They will compel all classes to take a Sabbath rest, but they cannot have it for rest “unless they keep it sacred for worship.” Hence, they will compel all to keep a day “sacred for worship.” This is the inevitable logic of their position. They may, indeed, make a law to compel all classes to rest from labor on a certain day, and they may make a law that all shall attend places of worship on that day. But, alas, they cannot make them worship. They may enforce some “form of godliness,” but “the power thereof” is beyond human legislation. They may compel men to act the hypocrite, but they cannot compel them to be devotional or worshipful. But we are fully aware that nothing is too wild for such theorists to attempt.