The Lord’s Day Alliance of Ontario
By G. B. Thompson
The Lord’s Day Alliance, though somewhat disconcerted by the decision of the privy council concerning the Sunday laws of this province, have issued a manifesto stating that while the “whole Lord’s Day act as it is found in R. S. O., 1897, Cap. 246, has been declared ultra vires, that, happily, does not mean that we have not left any legal protective against the inroads upon the integrity of the Lord’s day that greed and selfishness and ungodliness are ever ready and eager to make.” They go on to state that the upper Canada Sunday law, enacted in 1845, remains in force, and can not be shaken by the privy council. This law, they claim, makes it “unlawful for any merchant, tradesman, artificer, mechanic, workman, laborer, or other person whatsoever, to sell or to publicly show forth or expose or offer for sale, or to purchase any wares, merchandise, goods, chattels, or personal property, or any real estate whatsoever on the Lord’s day, or to do or exercise any worldly labor, business or work of their respective callings upon that day.” Other prohibitions are also given concerning barbers, bathing, playing ball, etc. Then they say:— “It is now ‘on to Ottawa’ for legislation in defense of the priceless heritage of our Canadian and Christian sabbath. There can be no doubt that all11the churches—Roman Catholic and Protestant—and all labor organizations will stand with the Lord’s Day Alliance in seeking such legislation as is needed.” It is seen that in this work they are seeking a union with the papacy, and truly Sunday being a child of this great organization of apostasy, help will no doubt be granted to lift this sign of papal authority to the front. The manifesto of the Alliance calls forth from the Hamilton (Ontario) Spectator the following remarks, editorially:— “In its manifesto . . . the Lord’s Day Alliance makes a mistake when it speaks of protecting Sunday against the inroad that greed and selfishness and ungodliness are ever ready to make. That is simply saying that those who do not look upon the first day of the week through the spectacles of the Alliance are ungodly. Had the Christians kept to the observance of the Sabbath established by the Lord,—Saturday,—there might have been reason to charge those who failed to obey the Mosaic law with being ungodly. And aside from the fact that Sunday is not the Sabbath appointed by the Lord, good men differ in their views of how the Sabbath ought to be observed. The Lord’s Day Alliance people arrogate to themselves the privilege of deciding not only how they shall observe the so-called Sabbath themselves, but they insist upon the government compelling all people—no matter what their honest views may be—to observe the Sunday according to the instruction of the Lord’s Day Alliance.” The Sunday movement is making its way. The foes of the Lord’s Sabbath are not asleep, and while they are “on to Ottawa,” seeking for laws to fetter the conscience of men, we should not lose a single opportunity to enlighten them concerning the wickedness of the whole movement, and the manifest destiny of those who persist in forming an image to the beast, and receiving the mark of its authority and power. We have a mighty work to do. It is high time to awake out of sleep. While the Alliance is “on to Ottawa,” will not all our people in Canada awake to the opportunity, and circulate our literature throughout the country? Let churches and individuals do aggressive missionary work everywhere. It is a terrible thing to sleep or be inactive now.