SOME REASONS CONCERNING SUNDAY LAWS.
IF Sunday were a divine institution, and its observance were a duty which man owed to God, there are two reasons against compelling its observance by civil law. 1. While not so intended, it is an insult to God. It virtually declares that the Lord's ways are not sufficient to meet the requirements of the case without man's supplementation or interference. And yet man's efforts, at the very best, fall infinitely short of what God demands; for the only service acceptable to God must be loving heart-work, free service freely given, with the source of all good motives—a pure heart—behind the deeds. Anything less than this is not acceptable to Him, and law and penalties can never compel love. The most that human law could do in such a case is to compel a man to act as tho the heart were behind his act; in other words, enforce hypocrisy. All of God's institutions which He commands man to observe are able to stand in their own native strength and divine purity. They may be trampled upon by man; they may seemingly be destroyed; but— "Truth, crushed to earth, will rise again,
The eternal years of God are hers." Macaulay truly says that the ark of God was never taken captive till it was surrounded by the arms of its earthly defenders; and that in captivity its sanctity was sufficient to protect it from insult and ignominy. The greatest weakness and reproach comes to God's cause when a spiritually-weak, backslidden people appeal to earthly powers to enforce a divine institution. Therefore, if Sunday be divine, she needs no human help. 2. Sunday enforcement is oppressive to those who may not agree with the law-makers, tho, in every other respect, both parties are equal before the law. The violator or opposer of a Sunday law may be just as conscientious, just as good a father, husband, brother, friend, neighbor, citizen, as the Sunday-law supporter. In passing a law which discriminates between men in every other respect equal, the distinction is purely arbitrary, drawn by the arbitrary will of a majority, who fall back on the brute maxim that "might makes right." The maker of religious law puts himself in the place of God by dictating to men religious duty. He says to others, "You must show regard for this church dogma, because I think you ought to do it." Unrestrained selfishness in political matters always means tyranny. In the first place, it is putting man in the place of God, arrogating to himself powers and responsibilities which belong only to God. In the second place, it is a transgression of the Golden Rule—"Whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them." No Christian would have an infidel seek to compel him to be an infidel. Why should the professed Christian seek to compel the infidel to observe a religious institution repugnant to his conscience, or condemn him if he did not? Jesus Christ said: "If any man hear My words, and believe not, I judge him not; for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world." John 12:47. Surely, it would be well for Christians to learn this lesson, "The servant is not greater than his Lord." 3. If Sunday is not a divine institution, it is equally unjust to enforce it. Under the Golden Rule man has no right to compel his brother to observe any religious institution which he would not be willing his brother should compel him to observe, if circumstances and positions were reversed. 4. In the case of an observer of the seventh day, a Sunday law demands of him a tax of sixteen and two-thirds per cent. of his income in pure deference to the first-day man's religion. To illustrate: A is a Sabbath-keeper, and does no work on the seventh day. B observes Sunday, as he has a perfect right to do, so far as man is concerned. Both stand equal. Each man gives one-seventh of his time for religion's sake. Now B demands that A shall observe another day in deference to his—B's—religion, or deduct from his working time one-sixth, from his income sixteen and two-thirds per cent. Christian brother, of whatsoever name, in the light of these reasons, are Sunday laws scriptural, honorable, equitable, just? Are they American? Are they Christian? Ought they not to be repudiated forever by Christian people?