Milner on the Sabbath by D. A. Robinson

Pacific Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Oakland, California · Apr 20, 1876

Milner on the Sabbath.

By D. A. Robinson

John Milner, a Catholic divine, and author of “Milner’s End of Controversy,” has made some very cutting remarks for Protestants on the Sabbath question. Reader, weigh his words well and step out of the way of such shots. In his XLIII letter, addressed to the Rev. Robert Clayton, he says:— “Rev. Sir: In the natural order of our controversies, this is the proper place to treat of purgatory and prayer for the dead.

On this subject Bishop Porteus begins with saying, “There is no Scripture proof of the existence of purgatory. Heaven and hell we read of perpetually in the Bible; but Purgatory we never meet with; though surely, if there be such a place, Christ and his apostles would not have concealed it from us.”

In answer to these words Milner remarks:— “I might expose the inconclusiveness of this argument by the following parallel one: The Scriptures nowhere command us to keep the first day of the week holy; we perpetually read of sanctifying the Sabbath, or Saturday; but never meet with Sunday as a day of obligation; though if there be such an obligation Christ and his apostles would not have concealed it from us.” This does not, as he says, “expose the inconclusiveness of the argument” withal, but it does come with strong force against those who regard Sunday as the Sabbath. The way that Milner makes his course appear consistent is by saying that the Bible is not a sufficient rule of faith and practice; but that we need tradition with it. The Protestants, however, deny this, believing the Bible to be sufficient. Consequently the following words from Milner make the position of many Protestants appear very inconsistent. Thus he says again:— “The first precept in the Bible is that of sanctifying the seventh day: ‘God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it.’ Gen. 2 : 3. This precept was confirmed by God in the ten commandments: ‘Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.’ ‘The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God.’ Ex. 20. On the other hand Christ declares that he is not come to destroy the law but to fulfill. Matt. 5 : 17. He himself observed the Sabbath; and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day. Luke 4 : 16. His disciples likewise observed it after his death. They rested on the Sabbath day according to the commandment. Luke 23 : 56.

“Yet, with all this weight of Scripture authority for keeping the Sabbath, or seventh day, holy, Protestants of all denominations, make this a profane day, and transfer the obligation of it to the first day of the week or the Sunday. Now what authority have they for doing this? None at all but the unwritten word of tradition of the Catholic church, which declares that the apostles made the change in honor of Christ’s resurrection, and the descent of the Holy Ghost on that day of the week.”

If Mr. Milner was living to-day we might inform him that not all Protestants admit the authority of tradition even on this point, but believe the Bible to be a sufficient rule in the matter. It does, as he says, perpetually speak of the seventh day as the Sabbath, and we simply believe it. Reader, where do you stand, on the Word of God? or on tradition?

D. A. ROBINSON.