To Correspondents by Uriah Smith

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Dec 15, 1874

To Correspondents.

By Uriah Smith

Has Sunday always been considered the first day of the week? If so, why? By answering the above, you will set at rest the minds of several who contemplate adopting the seventh day as the Sabbath.

ANXIOUS.

Ans. In replying to this query, we suggest that the idea of the question would be better expressed by transposing the terms of the proposition, thus: Has the first day of the week always been called Sunday? The question can be answered only in this form, because the numerical order of the days of the week was first established, even from the creation, and it was not till subsequent times that names or titles were applied to them. Our reply then is, that the name Sunday, from a period anterior to the records of profane history, has been applied by pagans to the first day of the week. When apostate men became established in paganism, they took the seven days of the week and dedicated them to the seven principal deities of their idolatrous worship, calling the first day after their chief deity, the sun, dies solis, the day of the sun, now Sunday, the second day, dies lunæ, the day of the moon, now Monday, and so on. This is the origin of the names now used to designate the days of the week. In Scripture usage, the days are distinguished solely by their numerical order, as first, second, third, day of the week, and so on, except the seventh, which is the Sabbath, and is thus the only one which has a specific title attached to it.

U. S.