To Correspondents

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Nov 14, 1878

To Correspondents.

WHERE do we learn that heathen nations practiced circumcision before God gave the rite to Abraham? M. J. H.

Ans. Among the various authorities that might be cited, we refer to M’Clintock and Strong’s Biblical Cyclopedia. They refer, for early authorities, to Celsus, Julian, Bauer, Jahn, etc.

1. Does the second commandment forbid keeping pictures or photographs of our friends? 2. Does not Lev. 3:17 forbid the eating of the fat of animals now? I. B. S.

Ans. 1. No. 2. No.

What history records the naming of the days of the week as they are now named? and when were they named? Webster tells why, but not when. S. J. H.

Ans. In Philip Smith’s History of the World, vol. 1, p. 211, he speaks of the ancient Chaldeans as follows:—

“There is reason to believe that they mapped out the Zodiac, invented the nomenclature which we still use for the seven days of the week, divided the days into equinoctial hours, as distinguished from the hours of variable length which depend on sunrise and sunset, and measured time by the water-clock.”

A foot note explains that Sunday was sacred to the sun, Monday to the moon, Tuesday to Mars, Wednesday to Mercury, Thursday to Jupiter, Friday to Venus, and Saturday to Saturn. The date of this arrangement was between the years 2234 and 1976 before Christ.

Is it right for Christians to attend circuses, or to have and use croquet grounds? J. M.

Ans. We think the latter is a wicked waste of time, and the former a wicked waste of both time and money.

1. Has 1 Tim. 4:8 been fulfilled? If so, by what people? 2. How do you harmonize 1 John 1:8 and 3:9? M. B. P.

Ans. 1. Paul’s testimony in 1 Tim. 4:1, 2, has been so strikingly fulfilled by modern spiritualists, that we look for them to fulfill verse 3 also. If they fail us in this, it will remain something of a mystery. 2. We understand 1 John 1:8 to apply before conversion, and hence to be no contradiction of 1 John 3:9, which applies after conversion.

ANSWERED BY LETTER. M. Haynor, P. E. Gros, O. M. Olds, Mrs. Mary Cady, H. T. Gosselin, M. J. Bahler, A. Gleason, L. F. Davis, M. F. H. Goodale, Mrs. P. T. Maynard.