Is Twentieth Century Civilization to See It?—Numerically Strong Religious Combines Are Dangerous—The Principles Involved in Sunday Laws
ONE of the measures to be voted on at the election in California this fall is a one-day-of-rest-in-seven law. Regular weekly rest days, without any question, have their basis in religion, and one of the principal factors in the history of this world has been religious despotisms.
But the people of this age have been assuring us that history will not repeat itself in this thing, for our civilization, we are told, has advanced beyond the point of permitting it. But we have also been assured that our civilization has reached the place where we would have no more wars; yet the great war of this present year, 1914, in the Old World, with its inhuman, barbarous butcheries, ought to be sufficient to dispel that delusion. And it ought to lead us to an intelligent realization of the fact that we can not depend upon mere civilization to prevent anything. Hence our civilization may not be a sufficient bulwark against any future religious despotism.
THE MOST CRUEL AND TYRANNICAL
Of all the despotisms that may curse humanity, religious despotisms have ever been the worst, the most cruel, and the most tyrannical. In fact, some form of religion—either idolatrous heathenism or else perverted Bible religion—has been the foundation of the tyrannies and the cruelties that have cursed and tortured humanity.
Looking about us to-day, are there any indications that history might repeat itself by giving us a twentieth century religious autocracy? The world is full of moral, political, and social problems that are staggering the best of men as they seek to cope with them. The sentiment is growing stronger every day that the only power that can meet the situation, that can give us peace among the nations, that can still the strife between capital and labor, that can deal with the political bosses who are corrupting cities and states and nation, that can cope with the white slave traffic—in a word, the only power that can successfully handle all the problems that are confronting us—is the power of the combined church. Hence well-meaning men in every nation of the world are seeking for a combination that will concentrate the great influence of the church, both Protestant and Catholic, upon evils that are threatening our civilization and existence.
BASED ON MERE FORCE OF NUMBERS
But while these men have high hopes for their success, yet these hopes are based upon the mere force of their numbers. Their plans are of a political order rather than the gospel plan of depending upon the Spirit and power of God regardless of numbers. "Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts." Zech. 4:6.
ALWAYS RESULT IN TYRANNY
Such church combines in all the history of the world have invariably resulted in tyrannies. It matters not whether these combines have been in the form of the polytheism that threw the Hebrew children into the fiery furnace, or in the form of the Jewish religion that crucified the Christ Himself, or in the form of the avowed followers of the Crucified One who have cruelly put millions of people to death in His name.
In passing upon the question of Sunday mails in 1829, our United States Senate, among many other important things, had the following to say:
"Extensive religious combinations to effect a political object are, in the opinion of the committee, always dangerous. . . . If admitted, it may be justly apprehended that the future measures of the government will be strongly marked, if not eventually controlled, by the same influence. All religious despotism commences by combination and influence; and when that influence begins to operate upon the political institutions of a country, the civil power soon bends under it; and the catastrophe of other nations furnishes an awful warning of the consequence."
Lord Macaulay said:
"The experience of many ages proves that men may be ready to fight to the death, and to persecute without pity, for a religion whose creed they do not understand, and whose precepts they habitually disobey."
ONE OF THE MOST GRAPHIC PROPHECIES
One of the most graphic prophecies in the Bible, without question, foreshadows a religious despotism that will yet arise and be world dominant. That prophecy reads:
"And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, and deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name." Rev. 13: 11-17.617
INVARIABLY A RELIGIOUS DESPOTISM
The symbolic beast power spoken of in such prophecies as this, invariably refers to religious despotisms. Sometimes it is the despotism of a heathen religion; sometimes it is the despotism of the professed but apostate followers of the God of the Bible. Observe that this beast power that is to arise, and which forms an image to the preceding beast spoken of in the first part of this thirteenth chapter of Revelation, demands worship, and enforces its worship by miracles. That this is a religious power goes without question, for outside of religion men mock at the idea of miracles. This power demands worship else it will inflict the death penalty. This is an invariable characteristic of religious tyrannies.
This power appeals to the people by "saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live." This shows that it will be a popular movement, and that the great masses, through influential leadership, will be called to decide upon the question.
There will also be power actually to give life to the beast mentioned in the first part of the chapter, and it will have the power granted to it to demand worship. In civil society such power resides in the state itself. This shows that this ecclesiastical despotism will actually get control of the state.
MAKES USE OF THE BOYCOTT
Furthermore, it uses the boycott in its method, because it utters the decree that no man might buy or sell unless he would receive the mark and authority of this man-made church organization.
These times in which we live are characterized most strongly by the development of that sentiment known as the boycott, which will destroy a man's business, his trade, or whatever may be his occupation, unless he subscribes to the ideas and views of those who are in authority. The boycott is not confined by any manner of means to labor organizations, although in the main they get the blame for it. The men of wealth operate the boycott in principle, and the laboring men have learned it from them. And the church herself is even taking it up in some of her lines of work.
ALIVE AT THE CLOSE OF TIME
That the great power of which this prophecy speaks is a living, active agency at the close of time is certain, for we read:
"And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshiped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone." Rev. 19: 20.
Photograph of men working in the chain-gang in our free and liberty-loving America. Some are Seventh-day Adventists, and their only crime was that of working on Sunday after they had conscientiously kept Saturday, the seventh-day Sabbath of the Bible. Nos. 1-7 are Sabbath-keeping Christians; 8, teamster; 9-11, common criminals; 12, guard with gun.
This verse unmistakably refers to the power under consideration, as noted in the thirteenth chapter, and shows that it will be on the stage of action, living and active, when Christ comes, and that it is thereby destroyed.
A FEARFUL WARNING
Against this power of apostasy and despotism that will seek to coerce the consciences of men, there is the following warning:
"And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Rev. 14: 9-12.
One of the planks that is put in the forefront by all these federated bodies of Christian workers, is that we must have a universal Sunday law. They tell us that our civilization depends upon it; that in overthrowing the evils of the time, it is essential that we have a law in favor of Sunday, not only that men may have time to worship, but that the laboring man may have rest with his family at home.
There can be no objection to any man's observing Sunday or any other day that he may choose; but when it comes to enforcing the day by a state law, the state is asked by the church to take sides in a religious controversy, and to enforce a day that is essentially a church affair.
It is well for the men of this time to remember that the great religious despotism of the Dark Ages was prefaced by the universal Sunday law of Constantine. And is not history struggling to repeat itself through a religious despotism that is now coming to the forefront in its vigorous efforts to compel every individual to keep Sunday? The prophetic utterances quoted in these paragraphs concerning a religious despotism that is to be formed, are from the infallible words of Jehovah. It is well for each individual to study carefully what God has so definitely said.
