Rotherham Emph. OT Scriptures on 'Ashtoreth',
pertaining to Sun Worship.
Judges 10:6; And the sons of Israel again did the thing that was wicked in the sight of Yahweh, and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the sons of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines,--and forsook Yahweh, and served Him not.
1 Samuel 7:3; And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying, If, with all your heart, ye are returning unto Yahweh, then put away the gods of the foreigner out of your midst, and the Ashtoreths--and firmly set your heart towards Yahweh, and serve Him, alone, that He may deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.
1 Samuel 7:4; So the sons of Israel put away the Baals, and the Ashtoreths,--and served Yahweh, alone.
1 Samuel 12:10; But, when they made outcry unto Yahweh and said--We have sinned, in that we have forsaken Yahweh, and have served the Baals and the Ashtoreths,--now, therefore, deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, that we may serve Thee,
1 Samuel 31:10; And they put his armour in a house of Ashtoreths, --and, his dead body, fastened they on the wall of Beth-shan. (here "Ashtoreths" are objects significant of this fertility deitress-ed).
1 Kings 11:5; And Solomon went after Ashtoreth, goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom, the abomination of the Ammonites.
1 Kings 11:33; Because they have forsaken me, and bowed themselves down to Ashtoreth, goddess of the Zidonians, to Chemosh, god of the Moabites, and to Milcom, god of the sons of Ammon,--and have not walked in my ways, by doing what is right in mine eyes, even my statutes and my regulations, like David his father.
2 Kings 23:13; and, the high places that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the mount of destruction, which Solomon king of Israel had built unto Ashtoreth--the abomination of the Zidonians, and unto Chemosh--the abomination of the Moabites, and unto Milcom--the disgusting thing of the sons of Ammon, did the king defile;
pertaining to Sun Worship.
Judges 10:6; And the sons of Israel again did the thing that was wicked in the sight of Yahweh, and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the sons of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines,--and forsook Yahweh, and served Him not.
1 Samuel 7:3; And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying, If, with all your heart, ye are returning unto Yahweh, then put away the gods of the foreigner out of your midst, and the Ashtoreths--and firmly set your heart towards Yahweh, and serve Him, alone, that He may deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.
1 Samuel 7:4; So the sons of Israel put away the Baals, and the Ashtoreths,--and served Yahweh, alone.
1 Samuel 12:10; But, when they made outcry unto Yahweh and said--We have sinned, in that we have forsaken Yahweh, and have served the Baals and the Ashtoreths,--now, therefore, deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, that we may serve Thee,
1 Samuel 31:10; And they put his armour in a house of Ashtoreths, --and, his dead body, fastened they on the wall of Beth-shan. (here "Ashtoreths" are objects significant of this fertility deitress-ed).
1 Kings 11:5; And Solomon went after Ashtoreth, goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom, the abomination of the Ammonites.
1 Kings 11:33; Because they have forsaken me, and bowed themselves down to Ashtoreth, goddess of the Zidonians, to Chemosh, god of the Moabites, and to Milcom, god of the sons of Ammon,--and have not walked in my ways, by doing what is right in mine eyes, even my statutes and my regulations, like David his father.
2 Kings 23:13; and, the high places that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the mount of destruction, which Solomon king of Israel had built unto Ashtoreth--the abomination of the Zidonians, and unto Chemosh--the abomination of the Moabites, and unto Milcom--the disgusting thing of the sons of Ammon, did the king defile;
OT. Rotherham Emph. Scriptures on "high places" i.e.
place of ritual worship and, typically human, sacrifice pertaining to Sun/Nature Worship.
Leviticus 26:30; And I will destroy your high places And cut down your sun-pillars, And cast your carcasses* upon the carcasses* of your manufactured gods,--Thus shall my soul abhor you. (ed: using the Rotherham '76 Revised)
Numbers 21:28; For a fire hath come forth out of Heshbon, A flame out of the stronghold of Sihon; It hath consumed Ar of Moab, The lords of the high places of Arnon.
Numbers 22:41; And it came to pass in the morning, that Balak took Balaam, and brought him up the high places of Baal,--and he saw from thence the utmost part of the people.
Numbers 33:52; then shall ye dispossess all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and shall destroy all their figured stones,--all their molten images, also shall ye destroy, and all their high places, shall ye lay waste. (Idols/Sun Temples-ed)
1 Kings 3:2; Save only, that the people were sacrificing in the high places (here/temples-ed),--because there had not been built a House unto the Name of Yahweh, until those days,
1 Kings 3:3; Solomon loved Yahweh, by walking in the statutes of David his father,--save only, that, in the high places, he, himself, was sacrificing and offering incense.
1 Kings 3:4; So then the king went to Gibeon, to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place,--a thousand ascending-sacrifices, did Solomon offer up on that altar.
1 Kings 11:7; Then, did Solomon build a high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem,--and for Molech, the abomination of the sons of Ammon;
1 Kings 13:32; For the message which he proclaimed, by the word of Yahweh, against the altar which is in Bethel,--and against all the houses of the high places which are in the cities of Samaria, shall surely come to pass.
1 Kings 13:33; After this thing, Jeroboam turned not from his wicked way,--but again made, from the whole compass of the people, priests of high places, whomsoever he would, he installed, and he became priest of high places.
1 Kings 14:23; And, they also, built for themselves high places and pillars, and Sacred Stems,--upon every high hill, and under every green tree.
1 Kings 15:14; But, the high places, removed he not, --nevertheless, the heart of Asa was blameless with Yahweh, all his days.
1 Kings 22:43; And he walked in all the way of Asa his father, he turned not aside therefrom,--doing that which was right in the eyes of Yahweh: nevertheless, the high places, were not taken away,--still were the people offering sacrifices and burning incense in the high places.
2 Kings 15:35; Only, the high places, took they not away, still were the people offering sacrifice and burning incense in the high places,--he, built the upper gate of the house of Yahweh.
2 Kings 16:4; and he offered sacrifice and burned incense in the high places, and on the hills,--and under every green tree.
2 Kings 17:9; And the sons of Israel did, secretly, things which were not right, against Yahweh their God,--and built for them- selves high places in all their cities, from the watchmen's tower, to the fortified city.
2 Kings 17:11; and burned incense there, in all the high places, like the nations whom Yahweh drave out from before them,--and did things that were wicked, so as to provoke Yahweh to anger;
2 Kings 17:29; Howbeit the nations severally were making their own gods,-and did put them in the houses of the high places, which, the Samaritans, had made, each several nation, in their cities wherein, they, were dwelling.
2 Kings 17:32; Thus became they reverers of Yahweh,--and yet made for themselves, from the whole compass of them, priests of high places, who became offerers for them in the house of the high places.
2 Kings 18:4; He, removed the high places, and brake in pieces the pillars, and cut down the Sacred Stem,--and beat in pieces the serpent of bronze that Moses had made, because, until those days, had the sons of Israel been burning incense thereunto, so he called it Nehushtan.
2 Kings 18:22; But, if ye should say unto me, In Yahweh our God, do we trust, Then is that not he whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah hath removed, and said unto Judah, and unto Jerusalem--Before this altar, shall ye bow down, in Jerusalem?
2 Kings 21:3; He again built the high places, which Hezekiah his father had destroyed,--and reared altars to Baal, and made a Sacred Stem, as did Ahab, king of Israel, and bowed down to all the army of the heavens, and served them.
2 Kings 23:5; and he put down the idol-priests, whom the kings of Judah had appointed, so that incense might be burned in the high places, in the cities of Judah, and round about Jerusalem,--them also that burned incense to Baal, *to the sun, and to the moon, and to the constellations, and to all the army of the heavens*;(ed: *deities/*astrology associated)
2 Kings 23:8; and be brought in all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where, the priests, had burned incense, from Geba unto Beer-sheba,--and brake down the high places of the gates, that were at the entrance of the gate of Joshua, the governor of the city, which were on one's left hand, in the gate of the city;
2 Kings 23:9; howbeit, the priests of the high places came not up unto the altar of Yahweh, in Jerusalem, save only that they did eat unleavened bread in the midst of their brethren;
2 Kings 23:13; and, the high places that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the mount of destruction, which Solomon king of Israel had built unto Ashtoreth--the abomination of the Zidonians, and unto Chemosh--the abomination of the Moabites, and unto Milcom--the disgusting thing of the sons of Ammon, did the king defile;
2 Kings 23:15; moreover also, the altar that was in Bethel, the high place which Jeroboam son of Nebat made, wherewith he caused Israel to sin,--even that altar, and the high place, brake he down,--and burned the high place, crushing it to powder, and burned a Sacred Stem*. (*green tree branch/ or crucifix-- read Fraser's Golden Bough: the tradition is to hang the Grove King/man on a perpetually green tree, who impersonated the deity 'of the Corn', in an annual ritual or high mass-a sort of 'atonement' for Sun Worshipers: in modern Babylon this would be the Corn King, Jesus of Rome*: as the modern day Cross represents Jesus of Rome, likewise the Sacred Stem of antiquity represented Tammuz of Babylon, a fertility deity-ed)
2 Kings 23:19; Moreover also, all the houses of the high places which were in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made, so as to provoke Yahweh to anger, did Josiah remove,--and he did to them according to all the doings which he had done in Bethel;
2 Kings 23:20; and he sacrificed all the priests of the high places, who were there, by the altars, and burned human bones thereupon,--and returned to Jerusalem.
2 Chron 11:15; and appointed for himself priests for the high places, and for the demons--and for the calves which he had made.
2 Chron 14:3; and took away the foreign altars, and the high places,--and brake in pieces the pillars, and cut in twain the Sacred Stems;
2 Chron 14:5; and removed from all the cities of Judah, the high places, and the sun-images,--and the kingdom became quiet before him.
2 Chron 15:17; But the high places were not taken away out of Israel,--only, the heart of Asa was perfect, all his days.
2 Chron 17:6; And his heart was encouraged, in the ways of Yahweh,--and he, yet further, took away the high places and the Sacred Stems, out of Judah.
2 Chron 20:33; Howbeit, the high places, were not taken away,--for as yet, the people, had not fixed their heart unto the God of their fathers.
2 Chron 21:11; He too, (had) made high places among the mountains of Judah,--and caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem to be unchaste, and seduced Judah. (when he was young/below*)
2 Chron 28:4; And he sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places, and upon the hills,--and under every green tree.(ed: green trees in the sacred oak groves, which represent perpetuity)
2 Chron 28:25; and, in every several city of Judah, made he high places, for burning incense unto other gods,--and provoked Yahweh, God of his fathers.
2 Chron 31:1; Now, when all this was finished, all Israel who were present went forth unto the cities of Judah, and brake in pieces the pillars--and cut down the Sacred Stems--and threw down the high places and the altars, out of all Judah and Benjamin--and throughout Ephraim and Manasseh, until they had made an end,--then all the sons of Israel returned every man to his own possession, unto their own cities.
2 Chron 32:12; Is it not, the same Hezekiah, who hath removed his high places, and his altars,--and hath given word to Judah and Jerusalem, saying, Before one altar, shall ye bow yourselves down, and, thereupon, shall ye burn incense?
2 Chron 33:3; And he again built the high places, which Hezekiah his father had thrown down,--and set up altars to the Baalim, and made Sacred Stems, and bowed in prostration unto all the army of the heavens*, and served them; (ed: *these would be false deities or "baalim"/astrological deities)
2 Chron 33:17; Howbeit, still were the people sacrificing in the high places, --only unto Yahweh their God.
2 Chron 33:19; both his prayer and how {God} was entreated of him--and all his sin and his treacherous act, and the sites whereon he built high places, and set up the Sacred Stems and the images, before he humbled himself, there they are, written in the story of the Seers.
2 Chron 34:3; And, in the eighth year of his reign, he, being yet a boy*, he began to seek unto the God of David his father,-and, in the twelfth year, he began to purify Judah and Jerusalem, from the high places and the Sacred Stems, and the carved images and the molten images.
Psalms 78:58; And provoked Him to anger with their high places, And, with their images, used to move Him to jealousy.
Isaiah 15:2; He hath gone up to Bayith and Dibon, to the high places, to weep*,--On Nebo and on Medeba, Moab is howling, On all their heads, a baldness, Every beard, clipped.(*here, "weeping" in this case--on a "high place"-- is significant of "weeping for Tammuz" which is a springtime sun worship ritual* which in modern times is called "Lent"-ed)
Isaiah 16:12; And it shall be--When it is seen that Moab hath laboured in vain on the high place, he shall enter into his holy place to pray, and shall not prevail,
Jeremiah 7:31; And they have built the high places of Topheth, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, To burn up their sons and their daughters in the fire,--Which I commanded not, Neither came it up on my heart, (ed: "tophet," where "innocents/children" are superstitiously sacrificed to Molech by fire as if to purify them and thus prepare them for immortality*, another abominable sun worship ritual of human sacrifice in these High Places)
Jeremiah 17:3; O' my mountain in the field Thy substance all thy treasures, for a prey, will I give: Thy high places for sin, within all thy bounds.
Jeremiah 19:5; And have built the high places of Baal for burning up their sons* in the fire as ascending-sacrifices to Baal,--Which I commanded not, nor spake, neither came it up on My heart,
Jeremiah 32:35; And have built the high places of Baal, which are in the valley of Ben-hinnom, To cause their sons and their daughters to pass through (the fire*) unto Molech, Which I commanded them not Neither came it up on My heart, That they should do this horrible thing,--Causing Judah to sin!
Ezekiel 6:3; and say, Ye mountains of Israel, hear ye the word of My Lord Yahweh,-- Thus saith My Lord, Yahweh- To the mountains and to the hills to the hollows and to the valleys,- Behold Me! I, am bringing upon you a sword, And I will destroy your high places;
Ezekiel 6:6; In all your dwelling-places, the cities shall be laid waste, and the high places shall be made desolate, To the end your altar may be laid waste and become desolate. And your manufactured gods be broken in pieces and cease, And your sun-pillars be cut* down, And your handiworks be abolished.(*cut=wood)
Ezekiel 16:16; Yea thou didst take of thy raiment and madest thee high places of hangings, And didst commit unchastity thereon,- Which ought not to have befallen, and not to have come to pass. ("unchastity" is "fornication" with false deities)
Ezekiel 36:2; Thus saith My Lord, Yahweh, Because the enemy hath said concerning you, Aha! Even the high places of age-past times, for a possession have become ours!
Ezekiel 43:7; Then said he unto me, Son of man This is the place of my Throne and the place of the soles of My feet where I would dwell in the midst of the sons of Israel to times age-abiding,- But the house of Israel must no more defile my holy Name. They, nor their kings, by their unchastity, and by the carcasses of their kings in their high places,
Hosea 10:8; So shall the high places of Aven, be destroyed, the sin of Israel, Thorn and prickle, shall come upon their altars,--Therefore shall they say to the mountains, Cover us, and to the hills, Fall on us! (NT. prophesy: Rev. )
(ed's note: as the Vatican represents, in it's modern day Sun Worship, a modern "HIGH PLACE" of greatest significance in the rituals of Sun Worship, even the "Seat of the Beast", thus it shall be brought down, "consumed with fire" as the Prophesies indicate: considering it is infiltrated nowadays with the seediest of persons, even a criminal collective of Masons and Mafioso* with their eye on our Soc Security Pension Fund at least even as such Professional Naughties are typically inclined, it's ultimate firey demise by the hand of the "10 Kings" or European heads of state, is not difficult to figure. *will try to evidence these things later, but read "In God's Name" by ???, for a start)
~finis~StarNet~
Sun Pillars:
Sacred Stems/sun pillars
Deut. 16:21; "What is right, thou shalt not plant thee, as a Sacred Stem (Asherah*), any TREE, near unto the altar of YHWH thy Elohim, which thou shalt make for thyself...;
(22) Neither shalt thou set thee up a Pillar which YHWH thy Elohim HATES."(above/sun pillar*=asherah/sacred stem/cross)
Deut. 18:9; "When thou art coming into the land which YHWH thy Elohim is giving unto thee, thou shalt not learn to do according to the abominable doings of those nations."
OT scriptures Pertaining to Sun "pillars" (Rotherham Emph.)
Genesis 19:26; But his wife looked from behind him,--and became--a pillar of salt. (ed: they still make "pillars of salt" in that area/thereabouts/very remote: these are about three feet long and a foot and a half thick/thereabouts, and cylindrical, greyish color; transported still, on camels).
There are many references to different types of pillars in the OT, I am mostly focusing this search on Sun Pillars, below. But the above I left in, because of the peculiarity and historical significance of the tradition. And the quote below, to illustrate that "pillars" were occassionally boundary stones:
Genesis 31:52; A witness, be this heap, and, a witness, the pillar,--That, I am not to pass, unto thee, over this heap, And, thou art not to pass, unto me, over this heap and this pillar, for harm. (ed: this would have to be some sort of "stele" or boundary stone--like the Rosetta Stone)
Exodus 23:24; Thou shalt not bow thyself down to their gods neither shalt thou be led to serve them, neither shalt thou do according to their works,--but thou shalt verily overthrow them, and completely break in pieces, their pillars.(ed: obviously made of bronze!/stone?, "breaking" them)
Exodus 34:13; For their altars, shall ye smash, And their pillars, shall ye shiver,--And their sacred-stems, shall ye fell*. (ed: made of wood, evidently trees/crosses)
Leviticus 26:1; Ye shall not make unto you idols,--neither image nor pillar, shall ye set up for yourselves, nor sculptured stone, shall ye place in your land, to bow yourselves down thereunto,-For I, Yahweh, am your God.
Leviticus 26:30; And I will destroy your high places And cut down your sun-pillars, And cast your caresses upon the calluses of your manufactured gods,--Thus shall my soul abhor you.
Deuteronomy 7:5; Verily, thus, shall ye do unto them: Their altars, shall ye tear down; And their pillars, shall ye break in pieces,--And their sacred stems, shall ye hew down*, And their carved images*, a shall ye burn up in the fire.
Deuteronomy 12:3; And ye must tear down their altars And break in pieces their pillars, And, their sacred stems, must ye consume with fire, And the carved images of their gods, must ye fell to the ground,--And destroy their name out of that place.
Deuteronomy 16:22; neither shalt thou set thee up a pillar,--which Yahweh thy God, doth hate.(ed: there are lots of types of pillars, this would be a sun pillar, i.e. an obelisk of sorts/sacred to sun deities/made from wood/stone/bronze, see below*).
Judges 9:6; Then were gathered together all the owners of Shechem, and all the house of Millo, and they went and made Abimelech king,--by the oak* of the pillar, that was in Shechem.(ed: the sacred groves were oak in that area of the globe; but they could be ANY "green" tree, which was a tree that was green all year long/even in winter, representing perpetuity, thus they used "evergreen" pine trees elsewhere; Tammuz, around the globe, was an agriculturally related "tree spirit" and fertility "king of the sacred groves"; Ashtoreth a fertility deitress, was his mother-goddess/supposedly)
1 Kings 14:23; And, they also built for themselves high places and pillars, and Sacred Stems,--upon every high hill, and under every green tree. (read the Golden Bough/Fraser!)
2 Kings 3:2; And he did the thing that was wicked in the eyes of Yahweh, only, not like his father, nor like his mother,--but he put away the pillars of Baal which, his father, had made;
2 Kings 10:26; and brought forth the idolatrous pillars that were in the house of Baal, and then burned it;
2 Kings 10:27; and they brake down the pillars of Baal,--and brake down the house of Baal, and appointed it for a sewer-house--until this day.
2 Kings 17:10; And they set up for themselves pillars and Sacred Stems, upon every high hill, and under every green tree;
2 Kings 18:4; He, removed the high places, and brake in pieces the pillars, and cut down the Sacred Stem,--and beat in pieces the serpent of bronze that, Moses, had made, because, until those days, had the sons of Israel been burning incense thereunto, so he called it Nehushtan.
2 Kings 23:14; and he brake in pieces the pillars, and cut down the Sacred Stems,--and filled their place with human bones:
2 Chron 14:3; and took away the foreign altars, and the high places,--and brake in pieces the pillars, and cut in twain the Sacred Stems;
2 Chron 31:1; Now, when all this was finished, all Israel who were present went forth unto the cities of Judah, and brake in pieces the pillars--and cut down the Sacred Stems--and threw down the high places and the altars, out of all Judah and Benjamin--and throughout Ephraim and Manasseh, until they had made an end,--then all the sons of Israel returned every man to his own possession, unto their own cities.
2 Chron 34:4; And they threw down before him, the altars of the Baalim, and, the sun-pillars which were on high above them, he hewed down,--and, the Sacred Stems and the carved images and the molten images, brake he in pieces and ground to dust, and tossed over the face of the graves, of them who had been sacrificing unto them.
2 Chron 34:7; And, when he had thrown down the altars and the Sacred Stems, and, the images, he had beaten to powder, and, the sun-pillars, he had hewn down throughout all the land of Israel, then returned he to Jerusalem.
Psalms 11:3; When the pillars are overthrown, What, could a righteous man do?
Isaiah 17:8; And he shall not look unto the altars the work of his own hands,--Nor to what his own fingers have made, shall his eye be turned, Whether Sacred Stems or Sun-pillars.
Isaiah 19:10; Then shall her pillars be crushed,--All who make wages, be bowed down in soul.
Jeremiah 27:19; For Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts--Concerning the pillars, and concerning the sea, and concerning the stands,--and concerning the residue of the vessels that remain in this city
Jeremiah 43:13; And he shall break in pieces the pillars of Beth-shemesh, which is in the land of Egypt,--And the houses of the gods of Egypt, shall he burn with fire.
Ezekiel 6:4; And your altars shall be laid waste, And your sun-pillars shall be broken in pieces,-- And I will cause your slain to fall before your manufactured gods;
Ezekiel 6:6; In all your dwelling-places, the cities shall be laid waste, and the high places, shall be made desolate, To the end your altar may be laid waste and become desolate. And your manufactured gods be broken in pieces and cease, And your sun-pillars be cut down, And your handiworks be abolished.
Ezekiel 26:11; With the hoofs of his horses, shall he tread down all thy streets,-- Thy people-with the sword, shall he slay, And thy pillars of strength, to the earth, shall go down.
Hosea 3:4; For, many days, shall the sons of Israel tarry, without king, and without ruler, and without sacrifice, and without pillar; and without ephod, or household gods.
Micah 5:13; And I will cut off thine images and thy pillars out of thy midst,--and thou shalt not bow thyself down, any more, to the work of thine own hands;
Conclusion: SUN pillars were pagan objects of antiquity, peculiar to Sun Worship, even "obelisks" which were used in the practice of Sun Worship even as a sun-dial with which they could ascertain agricultural planting & harvest seasons and related festivals (pertaining to sun worship). The word "pillar" is used for many items in the OT, including "steles" or boundary stones; also for temple support posts: can be made of wood/stone/bronze (in biblical times, it was both the "stone" and the "bronze age"). This word "pillar" even in reference to Sun Worship, might be viewed as being significant of the "cross" upon which Messias was crucified, nevertheless, the "sacred stem" is significant of any pagan cross made of evergreen tree wood, which item is significant of the "tree spirit" Tammuz. (Sometimes Sacred Stem/Ashtoreths, seem to be confused, to me, with Pillars, still trying to figure it all out...).
Now the "high places" are significant of pagan temples or mounds which were used for Sun Worship rites (including the fertility rites of Ashtoreth or Ishtar=Easter), even such as the Tower of Babel, which yet remains as a ruin in that old city: the more sophisticated are a sort of step-pyramid, reaching to the sky where the Sun deity supposedly lived; many of these remain as ruins throughout the planet, some even in the Americas, made by the sun worshipers there, such as the "high places" of the Mayans/etc: these were traditionally used for pagan human sacrifice rituals even where they cut out the pulsating heart of a live human victim, which heart the high priest ate ("cannibal" is related etymologically to "baal"). This is why Yahweh refers to Sun Worship as the "Abomination," and why StarNet attempts to expose the traditional rites and concepts of Sun Worship even as the abomination that they are, which Abomination "Yahweh HATES." The Roman Temple has a significant tall ancient Egyptian Sun-obelisk right in front of it, in it's plaza, in the very center of a circle cross, another significant symbol of sun worship, also the number 13. As is Yahweh, so likewise is StarNet concerned about any innocent Nazarene beguiled by Romanism, who imagines any rites and superstitions of Sun Worship are of the Faith of the Nazarene, as Romanism postures.
~finis~StarNet~
Sacred Stems/sun pillars
Deut. 16:21; "What is right, thou shalt not plant thee, as a Sacred Stem (Asherah*), any TREE, near unto the altar of YHWH thy Elohim, which thou shalt make for thyself...;
(22) Neither shalt thou set thee up a Pillar which YHWH thy Elohim HATES."(above/sun pillar*=asherah/sacred stem/cross)
Deut. 18:9; "When thou art coming into the land which YHWH thy Elohim is giving unto thee, thou shalt not learn to do according to the abominable doings of those nations."
OT scriptures Pertaining to Sun "pillars" (Rotherham Emph.)
Genesis 19:26; But his wife looked from behind him,--and became--a pillar of salt. (ed: they still make "pillars of salt" in that area/thereabouts/very remote: these are about three feet long and a foot and a half thick/thereabouts, and cylindrical, greyish color; transported still, on camels).
There are many references to different types of pillars in the OT, I am mostly focusing this search on Sun Pillars, below. But the above I left in, because of the peculiarity and historical significance of the tradition. And the quote below, to illustrate that "pillars" were occassionally boundary stones:
Genesis 31:52; A witness, be this heap, and, a witness, the pillar,--That, I am not to pass, unto thee, over this heap, And, thou art not to pass, unto me, over this heap and this pillar, for harm. (ed: this would have to be some sort of "stele" or boundary stone--like the Rosetta Stone)
Exodus 23:24; Thou shalt not bow thyself down to their gods neither shalt thou be led to serve them, neither shalt thou do according to their works,--but thou shalt verily overthrow them, and completely break in pieces, their pillars.(ed: obviously made of bronze!/stone?, "breaking" them)
Exodus 34:13; For their altars, shall ye smash, And their pillars, shall ye shiver,--And their sacred-stems, shall ye fell*. (ed: made of wood, evidently trees/crosses)
Leviticus 26:1; Ye shall not make unto you idols,--neither image nor pillar, shall ye set up for yourselves, nor sculptured stone, shall ye place in your land, to bow yourselves down thereunto,-For I, Yahweh, am your God.
Leviticus 26:30; And I will destroy your high places And cut down your sun-pillars, And cast your caresses upon the calluses of your manufactured gods,--Thus shall my soul abhor you.
Deuteronomy 7:5; Verily, thus, shall ye do unto them: Their altars, shall ye tear down; And their pillars, shall ye break in pieces,--And their sacred stems, shall ye hew down*, And their carved images*, a shall ye burn up in the fire.
Deuteronomy 12:3; And ye must tear down their altars And break in pieces their pillars, And, their sacred stems, must ye consume with fire, And the carved images of their gods, must ye fell to the ground,--And destroy their name out of that place.
Deuteronomy 16:22; neither shalt thou set thee up a pillar,--which Yahweh thy God, doth hate.(ed: there are lots of types of pillars, this would be a sun pillar, i.e. an obelisk of sorts/sacred to sun deities/made from wood/stone/bronze, see below*).
Judges 9:6; Then were gathered together all the owners of Shechem, and all the house of Millo, and they went and made Abimelech king,--by the oak* of the pillar, that was in Shechem.(ed: the sacred groves were oak in that area of the globe; but they could be ANY "green" tree, which was a tree that was green all year long/even in winter, representing perpetuity, thus they used "evergreen" pine trees elsewhere; Tammuz, around the globe, was an agriculturally related "tree spirit" and fertility "king of the sacred groves"; Ashtoreth a fertility deitress, was his mother-goddess/supposedly)
1 Kings 14:23; And, they also built for themselves high places and pillars, and Sacred Stems,--upon every high hill, and under every green tree. (read the Golden Bough/Fraser!)
2 Kings 3:2; And he did the thing that was wicked in the eyes of Yahweh, only, not like his father, nor like his mother,--but he put away the pillars of Baal which, his father, had made;
2 Kings 10:26; and brought forth the idolatrous pillars that were in the house of Baal, and then burned it;
2 Kings 10:27; and they brake down the pillars of Baal,--and brake down the house of Baal, and appointed it for a sewer-house--until this day.
2 Kings 17:10; And they set up for themselves pillars and Sacred Stems, upon every high hill, and under every green tree;
2 Kings 18:4; He, removed the high places, and brake in pieces the pillars, and cut down the Sacred Stem,--and beat in pieces the serpent of bronze that, Moses, had made, because, until those days, had the sons of Israel been burning incense thereunto, so he called it Nehushtan.
2 Kings 23:14; and he brake in pieces the pillars, and cut down the Sacred Stems,--and filled their place with human bones:
2 Chron 14:3; and took away the foreign altars, and the high places,--and brake in pieces the pillars, and cut in twain the Sacred Stems;
2 Chron 31:1; Now, when all this was finished, all Israel who were present went forth unto the cities of Judah, and brake in pieces the pillars--and cut down the Sacred Stems--and threw down the high places and the altars, out of all Judah and Benjamin--and throughout Ephraim and Manasseh, until they had made an end,--then all the sons of Israel returned every man to his own possession, unto their own cities.
2 Chron 34:4; And they threw down before him, the altars of the Baalim, and, the sun-pillars which were on high above them, he hewed down,--and, the Sacred Stems and the carved images and the molten images, brake he in pieces and ground to dust, and tossed over the face of the graves, of them who had been sacrificing unto them.
2 Chron 34:7; And, when he had thrown down the altars and the Sacred Stems, and, the images, he had beaten to powder, and, the sun-pillars, he had hewn down throughout all the land of Israel, then returned he to Jerusalem.
Psalms 11:3; When the pillars are overthrown, What, could a righteous man do?
Isaiah 17:8; And he shall not look unto the altars the work of his own hands,--Nor to what his own fingers have made, shall his eye be turned, Whether Sacred Stems or Sun-pillars.
Isaiah 19:10; Then shall her pillars be crushed,--All who make wages, be bowed down in soul.
Jeremiah 27:19; For Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts--Concerning the pillars, and concerning the sea, and concerning the stands,--and concerning the residue of the vessels that remain in this city
Jeremiah 43:13; And he shall break in pieces the pillars of Beth-shemesh, which is in the land of Egypt,--And the houses of the gods of Egypt, shall he burn with fire.
Ezekiel 6:4; And your altars shall be laid waste, And your sun-pillars shall be broken in pieces,-- And I will cause your slain to fall before your manufactured gods;
Ezekiel 6:6; In all your dwelling-places, the cities shall be laid waste, and the high places, shall be made desolate, To the end your altar may be laid waste and become desolate. And your manufactured gods be broken in pieces and cease, And your sun-pillars be cut down, And your handiworks be abolished.
Ezekiel 26:11; With the hoofs of his horses, shall he tread down all thy streets,-- Thy people-with the sword, shall he slay, And thy pillars of strength, to the earth, shall go down.
Hosea 3:4; For, many days, shall the sons of Israel tarry, without king, and without ruler, and without sacrifice, and without pillar; and without ephod, or household gods.
Micah 5:13; And I will cut off thine images and thy pillars out of thy midst,--and thou shalt not bow thyself down, any more, to the work of thine own hands;
Conclusion: SUN pillars were pagan objects of antiquity, peculiar to Sun Worship, even "obelisks" which were used in the practice of Sun Worship even as a sun-dial with which they could ascertain agricultural planting & harvest seasons and related festivals (pertaining to sun worship). The word "pillar" is used for many items in the OT, including "steles" or boundary stones; also for temple support posts: can be made of wood/stone/bronze (in biblical times, it was both the "stone" and the "bronze age"). This word "pillar" even in reference to Sun Worship, might be viewed as being significant of the "cross" upon which Messias was crucified, nevertheless, the "sacred stem" is significant of any pagan cross made of evergreen tree wood, which item is significant of the "tree spirit" Tammuz. (Sometimes Sacred Stem/Ashtoreths, seem to be confused, to me, with Pillars, still trying to figure it all out...).
Now the "high places" are significant of pagan temples or mounds which were used for Sun Worship rites (including the fertility rites of Ashtoreth or Ishtar=Easter), even such as the Tower of Babel, which yet remains as a ruin in that old city: the more sophisticated are a sort of step-pyramid, reaching to the sky where the Sun deity supposedly lived; many of these remain as ruins throughout the planet, some even in the Americas, made by the sun worshipers there, such as the "high places" of the Mayans/etc: these were traditionally used for pagan human sacrifice rituals even where they cut out the pulsating heart of a live human victim, which heart the high priest ate ("cannibal" is related etymologically to "baal"). This is why Yahweh refers to Sun Worship as the "Abomination," and why StarNet attempts to expose the traditional rites and concepts of Sun Worship even as the abomination that they are, which Abomination "Yahweh HATES." The Roman Temple has a significant tall ancient Egyptian Sun-obelisk right in front of it, in it's plaza, in the very center of a circle cross, another significant symbol of sun worship, also the number 13. As is Yahweh, so likewise is StarNet concerned about any innocent Nazarene beguiled by Romanism, who imagines any rites and superstitions of Sun Worship are of the Faith of the Nazarene, as Romanism postures.
~finis~StarNet~
Rotherham Emph. OT Scriptures for 'sacred stem'
pertaining to Sun Worship (the Asherahs???, would make sense, to make a "monstrous thing" unto it/the asherahs/deitress fertility symbols with a male fertility symbol )
Deuteronomy 7:5;Verily, thus, shall ye do unto them: Their altars, shall ye tear down, And their pillars, shall ye break in pieces,--And their sacred stems, shall ye hew down, And their carved images, a shall ye burn up in the fire.
Deuteronomy 12:3; And ye must tear down their altars And break in pieces their pillars, And, their sacred stems, must ye consume with fire, And the carved images of their gods, must ye fell to the ground,--And destroy their name out of that place.
Deuteronomy 16:21; Thou shalt not plant thee, as a sacred stem, any tree,--near unto the altar of Yahweh thy God which thou shalt make for thyself;
Judges 6:25; And it came to pass, on that night, that Yahweh said unto him--Take the young bullock that belongeth to thy father, even the second bullock of seven years,--and throw thou down the altar of Baal, that belongeth to thy father, and, the sacred stem that is by it, shalt thou cut down.
Judges 6:26; Then shalt thou build an altar unto Yahweh thy God, on the top of this fort, with the pile,--and shalt take the second bullock, and cause it to go up as an ascending-sacrifice, with the wood of the sacred stem which thou shalt cut down.
Judges 6:28; And the men of the city rose up early in the morning, and lo! the altar of Baal, had been overthrown, and, the sacred stem that was by it, had been cut down, and the second bullock had been caused to ascend upon the altar that had been built.
Judges 6:30; So the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring forth thy son, that he may die,--because he hath overthrown the altar of Baal, and because he hath cut down the sacred stem that was by it.
1 Kings 14:15; Therefore will Yahweh smite Israel, as a reed shaketh in water, and will root out Israel, from off this goodly soil, which he gave unto their fathers, and will scatter them beyond the River (Euphrates),--because they have made their Sacred Stems, provoking Yahweh to anger:
1 Kings 14:23; And, they also, built for themselves high places and pillars, and Sacred Stems,--upon every high hill, and under every green tree.
1 Kings 15:13; Moreover also, even Maachah his mother, he removed from being queen, because she had made a monstrous thing to the Sacred Stem,--and Asa cut down her monstrous thing* and burned it in the Kidron ravine. (probably a phallic symbol*/like "May Poles", which are those pillars-ed)
1 Kings 16:33; And Ahab made the Sacred Stem,--and Ahab did yet more to provoke to anger Yahweh God of Israel than all the kings of Israel who were before him.
1 Kings 18:19; Now, therefore, send, gather unto me all Israel, unto Mount Carmel,--and the prophets of Baal, four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the Sacred Stem, four hundred, who do eat at the table of Jezebel.
2 Kings 13:6; Howbeit they departed not from the sins of the house of Jeroboam which he caused, Israel, to commit, therein, they walked,--moreover also, the Sacred Stem, still stood in Samaria.
2 Kings 17:10; And they set up for themselves pillars and Sacred Stems, upon every high hill, and under every green tree;
2 Kings 17:16; But they forsook all the commandments of Yahweh their God, and made for themselves something molten--two calves, and made a Sacred Stem, and bowed themselves down to all the army of the heavens, and served Baal;
2 Kings 18:4; He, removed the high places, and brake in pieces the pillars, and cut down the Sacred Stem,--and beat in pieces the serpent of bronze that Moses had made, because, until those days, had the sons of Israel been burning incense thereunto, so he called it Nehushtan.
2 Kings 21:3; He again built the high places, which Hezekiah his father had destroyed,--and reared altars to Baal, and made a Sacred Stem, as did Ahab, king of Israel, and bowed down to all the army of the heavens, and served them.
2 Kings 21:7; and he set the image of the Sacred Stem which he had made,--in the house, of which Yahweh had said unto David, and unto Solomon his son, "In this house, and in Jerusalem which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, will I put My Name, unto times age-abiding";
2 Kings 23:4; Then the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the entrance-hall, to bring forth, out of the Temple of Yahweh, all the vessels that had been made for Baal and for the Sacred Stem, and for all the army of the heavens,--and he burned them up outside Jerusalem, in the fields of Kidron, and carried the ashes of them to Bethel; (ed; this Sacred Stem pertains to and is a symbol of Tammuz the "tree spirit"/spirit of the corn/fertility spirit deity, as in Romanism: the Cross of Iesus/I do believe this is the ancient vestage of the modern crucifix)
2 Kings 23:6; and he brought forth the Sacred Stem out of the house of Yahweh, outside Jerusalem, into the Kidron ravine, and burned it in the Kidron ravine, and crushed it to powder,--and cast the powder upon the graves of the sons of the people;
2 Kings 23:7; and he brake down the houses of the male devotees, which were in the house of Yahweh,--where the women did weave houses to the Sacred Stem;
2 Kings 23:14; and he brake in pieces the pillars, and cut down the Sacred Stems,--and filled their place with human bones:
2 Kings 23:15; moreover also, the altar that was in Bethel, the high place which Jeroboam son of Nebat made, wherewith he caused Israel to sin,--even that altar, and the high place, brake he down,--and burned the high place, crushing it to powder, and burned a Sacred Stem.
2 Chron 14:3; and took away the foreign altars, and the high places,--and brake in pieces the pillars, and cut in twain the Sacred Stems;
2 Chron 15:16; Moreover also, as touching Maacah mother of Asa the king, he removed her from being queen, because she had made, unto theSacred Stem, a monstrous thing,--so Asa cut down her monstrous thing and reduced it to dust, and burnt it up in the Kidron ravine.(ed: I don't know this for sure, but considering these statements, a real human being very likely may have been hung up on that sacred stem: the modern Roman "cross" must be it's equivalent nowadays; to make a "monstrous thing" unto a sacred stem, is probably making a phallic symbol unto that fertility deity of the corn, to promote fertility in crops and births, a form of sympathetic magic)
2 Chron 17:6; And his heart was encouraged, in the ways of Yahweh,--and he, yet further, took away the high places and the Sacred Stems, out of Judah.
2 Chron 19:3; howbeit, good things, are found with thee,-for that thou hast consumed the Sacred Stems out of the land, and hast fixed thy heart to seek God.
2 Chron 24:18; And they forsook the house of Yahweh, God of their fathers, and served the Sacred Stems, and the images, --so there was wrath against Judah and Jerusalem, for this their guilt.
2 Chron 31:1; Now, when all this was finished, all Israel who were present went forth unto the cities of Judah, and brake in pieces the pillars--and cut down the Sacred Stems--and threw down the high places and the altars, out of all Judah and Benjamin--and throughout Ephraim and Manasseh, until they had made an end,--then all the sons of Israel returned every man to his own possession, unto their own cities.
2 Chron 33:3; And he again built the high places, which Hezekiah his father had thrown down,--and set up altars to the Baalim, and made Sacred Stems, and bowed in prostration unto all the army of the heavens, and served them (Zodiak, in antiquity with Baal the Lord of the Zodiak, and in modern day Babylon would be the LORD of the Circle of the Heavens/or the Zodiak with 666 being it's identifying number: the Circle of the Heavens, the Zodiak: has 12 houses with three divisions would be 3x12=the sacred number 36 of the 36 houses of the Zodiak: take 1+2+3+4+5+6+7+8+9+10+11+12+13+14+15+16+
17+18+19+20+21+22+23+24+25+26+27+28+29+30+31+
32+33+34+35+36=666, same in antiquity as in modern times, same old Zodiak Beast with Tammuz(Iesus of Rome)+Baal(the LORD God+Ashtoreth(Mary) at the Top of the Hierarchy, ruling all the stars of heaven or DAEMONS/nature spirits);
2 Chron 33:19; both his prayer and how [God] was entreated of him--and all his sin and his treacherous act, and the sites whereon he built high places, and set up the Sacred Stems and the images, before he humbled himself, there they are, written in the story of the Seers.
2 Chron 34:3; And, in the eighth year of his reign, he, being yet a boy, he began to seek unto the God of David his father,-and, in the twelfth year, he began to purify Judah and Jerusalem, from the high places and the Sacred Stems, and the carved images and the molten images.
2 Chron 34:4; And they threw down before him, the altars of the Baalim, and, the sun-pillars which were on high above them, he hewed down,--and, the Sacred Stems and the carved images and the molten images, brake he in pieces and ground to dust, and tossed over the face of the graves, of them who had been sacrificing unto them. (and so it is written, Modern Babylon will likewise be cast down and burnt with fire, that Mankind may finally be free of the Great Whore, and her autocratic 'reincarnated deity' usurping Yah's authority as policy and procedure, ruling from Satan's Dias, he is a goner "with none to help"!, and her Markets whom she made so wealthy, will moan and groan over the loss of their benefactor -------)
2 Chron 34:7; And, when he had thrown down the altars and the Sacred Stems, and, the images, he had beaten to powder, and, the sun-pillars, he had hewn down throughout all the land of Israel, then returned he to Jerusalem.
Isaiah 17:8; And he shall not look unto the altars the work of his own hands,--Nor to what his own fingers have made, shall his eye be turned, Whether Sacred Stems or Sun-pillars.
Isaiah 27:9; Therefore hereby, shall a propitiatory--covering be put over the iniquity of Jacob, And all, this, is the fruit of taking away his sin,--When he maketh all the stones of an altar like chalk-stones that soon crumble, Sacred Stems and Sun Images, shall not arise.
Jeremiah 17:2; So long as their sons remember their altars, and their Sacred Stems, By the green tree,--Upon the high hills,
Micah 5:14; And I will uproot thy Sacred Stems out of thy midst,--and will destroy thy cities:
~finis~StarNet~
I wonder, was a Pope ever really SAVED? Makes me think of Pope John Paul the First who died at the hand of the men with the Mark of Cain, before he could relieve Vatican State of it's Masons. The next pope who was so popular, was a Mason himself, they say...
A Song I sing for a Witness to All, About a Man, his name was John Paul, a faithful soul his works portrayed, works that made the Wicked Afraid!
A Song I sing for a Witness to All, About a Man, his name was John Paul, a faithful soul his works portrayed, works that made the Wicked Afraid!
A Nazarene inclines to worship Yahweh "in Spirit & in Truth" every day, but the Sabbath is Sanctified as a Memorial of Yah's Creation, and is set aside and "hallowed," to be honored as such, even as an ensign of our loyalty to and sympathy for our Maker.
On the Question of Observance of the Sabbath Memorial of Creation, as opposed to the Sunday Observance of paganized Catholicism.
Sunday is NOT the Sabbath!
anon...
Sacred Names restored and Abomination Removed
(i.e. upgraded with due respect to unadulterated Saving Truth, by StarNet)
This article is intended for those who may think that Sunday is the Seventh or Sabbath Day. It is quite surprising how many people actually think this is the situation! Many may generally assume that since Saturday and Sunday are the "weekend", that Monday must be the first day of the week because it is their first work day of the week. This may then incline some to imagine that Sunday is indeed the Seventh Day...
Reading the following papal encyclical,
you may even think that Sunday is the Sabbath?...
Romanism's Attempt to Render Sunday to be as if Holy(quote)
248. Allied to what We have said so far is the Question of the Sunday Rest:
249. To safeguard man's dignity as a creature of God endowed with a soul in the image and likeness of God, the Church has always demanded a diligent observance of the Third Commandment: "Remember that thou keep holy the sabbath day." (52) God certainly has the right and power to command man to devote one day a week to his duty of worshipping the eternal Majesty. Free from mundane cares, he should lift up his mind to the things of heaven, and look into the depths of his conscience, to see how he stands with God in respect of those necessary and inviolable relationships which must exist between the creature and his Creator.
250. In addition, man has a right to rest a while from work, and indeed a need to do so if he is to renew his bodily strength and to refresh his spirit by suitable recreation. He has also to think of his family, the unity of which depends so much on frequent contact and the peaceful living together of all its members.
251. Thus, religion and moral and physical well-being are one in demanding this periodic rest, and for many centuries now the Church has set aside Sunday as a special day of rest for the faithful, on which they participate in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the memorial and application of Christ's redemptive work for souls.
252. Heavy in heart, We cannot but deplore the growing tendency in certain quarters to disregard this sacred law, if not to reject it outright. This attitude must inevitably impair the bodily and spiritual health of the workers, whose welfare We have so much at heart.
253. In the name of God, therefore, and for the sake of the material and spiritual interests of men, We call upon all, public authorities, employers and workers, to observe the precepts of God and His Church and to remember their grave responsibilities before God and society. (end quote)
Source: Pope John XXIII, encyclical MATER ET MAGISTRA, ON CHRISTIANITY AND SOCIAL PROGRESS, MAY 15, 1961.
Some Catholic Catechisms will even give one the impression that Sunday is the Sabbath. The following quotation is from the Catholic Baltimore Catechism 1, popular in the United States for the last century or so, intended for the instruction of children. It blurs the distinction between the Sabbath and Sunday: (StarNet ed, notice below, the RCC made the second commandment against idolatry disappear, conveniently making the fourth commandment into the third)
(quote)
Q. What is the third Commandment?
A. The third Commandment is: Remember thou keep holy the Sabbath day.
Q. How are we to worship God on Sundays and holydays of obligation?
A. We are to worship God on Sundays and holydays of obligation by hearing Mass, by prayer, and by other good works. (end quote)
Source: A Catechism of Christian Doctrine (No. 1), prepared and enjoined by order of the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore, bearing the Imprimatur of the Catholic Church, Copyright 1885, by J. L. Spalding, published by P. J. Kenedy & Sons, printers to the Holy Apostolic See, 44 Barclay St., New York, page 36.
The following Catholic catechisms also boldly state that Sunday is the day commanded to sanctify:
(quote)
Q. Say the Third Commandment.
A. Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath day.
Q. What is commanded by the Third Commandment?
A. To sanctify the Sunday.
Q. Which is the chief duty by which we are commanded to sanctify the Sunday?
A. Assisting at the holy sacrifice of the Mass. (end quote)
Source: The Most Rev. Dr. James Butler's Catechism, revised, enlarged, improved, and recommended by the four R. C. Archbishops of Ireland, published in New York by P. J. Kenedy, 1886, page 34.
(quote)
[pg. 276]...
II. THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD
Q. Why are the Ten Commandments called the commandments of God?
A. Because they were given to us by God himself on Mount Sinai.
[pg. 277]
Q. Which are these Ten Commandments?
A. They are contained, in substance, in the following verses, which may easily be committed to memory:
1. One God alone, for evermore
By faith, and hope, and love, adore.
2. Thou shalt not take his name in vain.
3. The Lord's day thou shalt not profane.
4. Honor thy father, and thy mother.
5. Thou shalt not hurt nor hate thy brother.
6. Thou shalt do no adultery.
7. Thou shalt not steal.
8. Thou shalt not lie.
9. Thou shalt have no impure desire,
10. Nor to thy neighbor's goods aspire.
[pg. 278]...
Q. What does the Third Commandment require?
A. It requires us to attend divine service on Sundays and Holydays, and to spend those days in devotion and good works.
Q. What does it forbid?
A. It forbids all servile labor done without strong reasons of necessity, charity or devotion. (end quote)
Source: The Mission Book, A Manual of Instructions and Prayers, drawn chiefly from the works of St. Alphonsus Liguori, published circa 1861 by the Missionary Fathers of St. Paul, James B. Kirker, New York, pages 276-278.
[pg. 112]...(quote)
THE THIRD COMMANDMENT
Remember thou keep holy the Sabbath Day.
Q. When was the Sabbath instituted?
A. From the creation of the world; for then God blessed the seventh day, and on it rested from all his works.
Q. When was this commandment renewed?
A. In the old law, when God gave the commandments of Moses on Mount Sinai.
Q. Why was the Jewish Sabbath changed into the Sunday?
A. Because Christ rose from the dead, and the Holy Ghost descended on a Sunday.
Q. By whom was it changed?
A. By the church in the Apostle's time.
[pg. 113] ...
O Christian soul, God, as Lord and Creator of all things has a sovereign right to demand our service at what time, and in what place he shall ordain, remember, that as your God and Creator, he has appointed one day in the week to his service, and this day is Sunday, or the Sabbath day. (end quote)
Source: The Poor Man's Catechism: or The Christian Doctrine Explained, with short admonitions by John Mannock, O.S.B. Published in 1859 by Edward Dunigan & Brother, James B. Kirker, 371 Broadway, New York, pages 112, 113.
Note the abbreviation of the Sabbath commandment in each of the above catechisms which declare that Sunday is the day to sanctify. But the commandment declares the seventh day of the week (Saturday) to be the Sabbath day, not Sunday the first day (See below Exo. 20:8-11). Rather than explain how the Roman church has changed a commandment of Yah, some Catholic catechisms simply abbreviate the commandment, and then teach erroneously that Sunday is the Sabbath day ordained by the commandment. Others attribute the change to the Apostles; or, in the case of The Poor Man's Catechism cited above, boldly state that God has Himself appointed Sunday to be the Sabbath day.
And then there are also some people who will suggest that somehow we have lost track of the days of the week, and that today, no one can be sure just what day is the seventh day of the week. Those who embrace this erroneous notion have never actually researched the issue to discover the facts. So then, when was the Sabbath begun? When was the first Sabbath observed, on which day, and who was it intended for?
Who were the First Sabbath Keepers?
Gen 2:2; And on the Seventh day El ended his work which he had made; and He rested on the Seventh day from all His work which He had made.
Gen 2:3; And El blessed the Seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested.
The very first Sabbath was the Seventh day of Creation: look up Saturday in most any dictionary and it will tell you that it is the Seventh day of the week. So who observed the first Sabbath day?
Gen 1:27; So El created man in his own image, in the image of Elohim created he him; male and female created He them.
Gen 1:31; And El saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.
And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
Both Adam and Eve were created on the sixth day, before the Sabbath day, and so were present to observe the day of rest Yah created for them. Some will try to claim that the Sabbath was a Jewish festival, even part of the Mosaic law that was "done away with" at the cross. Since Sabbath was established at Creation as a memorial of that event, would that notion then make Adam and Eve Jews? Actually not a single Jew existed until the covenant made with Abraham, thousands of years later. The Sabbath predates Jews!
Mark 2:27; And [Yahshua] said unto them, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath:
Mark 2:28; "Therefore the Son of man is Master also of the Sabbath."
So the seventh day Sabbath was created for Adam and Eve, and all of humanity, and not singularly for the Hebrew nation. Adam lived for 930 years (Gen 5:5), and probably was a Sabbath observer his entire life. Adam was not the only one of the first millennium to keep the Sabbath. The same can be said for Enoch, who was born within the lifetime of Adam.
Butler's Catechism, previously cited, gives the following information about the Sabbath later in a different section:
(quote)
Q. What divine traditions existed before Moses wrote the first books of the Old Testament?
A. The duty of sanctifying the Sabbath (Gen. ii. 3); the prohibition of eating the blood of animals (Gen. ix. 4); the rite of circumcision (Gen. xvi. 10); and generally, the whole history of religion before the time of Moses, during twenty-five hundred years.
Q. What traditions of the Christian religion existed before the several books of the New Testament were promulgated or written?
A. The substitution of the Sunday, as a holy day, for the Sabbath, or Saturday; the abrogation of the necessity of circumcision, and generally, the whole system of the Christian religion.(end quote)
Source: The Most Rev. Dr. James Butler's Catechism, revised, enlarged, improved, and recommended by the four R. C. Archbishops of Ireland, published in New York by P. J. Kenedy, 1886, page 58.
So in this instance, a Catholic catechism not only admits the change from the Sabbath to Sunday, but it even claims that it was the duty of mankind to keep the Saturday Sabbath beginning with the seventh day of Creation!
Sabbath Keeping After the Flood
The Patriarch Abraham, who was born some 1000 years after the death of Adam, and 300 years after the flood, can also be shown to have kept the seventh day Sabbath:
Gen 26:5; Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.
Clearly since Abraham kept Yah's laws he must also have faithfully kept the seventh day Sabbath of Yahweh.
Moses and Israel Before Mount Sinai.
Before the Commandments of Yah were inscribed on Stone Tablets atop mount Sinai, Yah had already shown Israel precisely which day was His Sabbath:
Exo 16:23; And [Moses] said unto them, This is that which Yahweh hath said, "To morrow is the rest of the holy Sabbath unto Yahweh":
Some may think that any old day will honor El, but Yahweh left no doubt about the day He wanted observed, even telling Moses and the Israelites exactly which day was the Sabbath. For 40 years a double portion of manna fell on Friday, and NO manna fell on Sabbath! Note that this began BEFORE the Ten Commandments were given to Moses on Sinai. The manna continued until the Israelites entered the promised land (Exodus 16:35, Joshua 5:12). With 52 weeks a year, that means Yah made the seventh day Sabbath plain to them for over 2000 weeks. It is a day that evidently does matter to Yah.
Mount Sinai.
Note that at Sinai the following was said with regard to the Sabbath:
Exo 20:8; Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Exo 20:9; Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
Exo 20:10; But the seventh day is the Sabbath of Yahweh thy El: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
Exo 20:11; For in six days Yahweh made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore Yahweh blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.
When Moses came up on Sinai, Yah commanded that the Hebrews were to "REMEMBER the Sabbath day." The Sabbath was not first revealed to Israel on Sinai, they were told to remember what they already knew in no uncertain terms.
Will Just Any Seven Day Cycle of Rest Satisfy Yah?
Some may ask, "one day in seven? Well, why can't I pick my own seventh day? Sunday is more convenient for me, or perhaps Monday, etc., so that will be my day of Sabbath rest to Yahweh. I will keep every seventh day holy, but that day will be a day of my own choosing."
But the notion that Yah allows one to pick their own seventh day has been insinuated into mainstream Christian thought, by Catholicism's teachings:
(quote)
1157...
Q. Did not God command us to observe Saturday, and not Sunday at all?
A. No. The command as given by Moses in the Name of God to the Jews was that the Sabbath, and not Saturday, should be kept holy. The word Sabbath means rest. The law includes two elements; one essential, that one day in seven should be dedicated to God; the other ceremonial, that the particular day should be chosen. The Jews selected Saturday. ...
1159. ...
... The Jews decided to observe Saturday, while Christians decided to observe Sunday. The seventh day as God's day was not changed. The Sabbath, God's rest day, was transferred from Saturday to Sunday. (end quote)
Source: Radio Replies, First Volume, by Rev. Dr. Leslie Rumble, M.S.C. and Rev. Charles Mortimer Carty, Copyright 1938, printed by Radio Replies Press, St. Paul 1, Minn., U.S.A., 1157 & 1159, page 235.
The problem with the 'Choosing-One-Day-in-Seven Theory' is that it has no foundation in Scripture. As we noted above with the 40 years in the wilderness, Yah clearly designated a specific day as His Sabbath. Israel was never given a choice in what day they wanted to keep holy as the Sabbath day. The entire community was to keep Yah's designated day in unison as a memorial to Creation week. No one had the prerogative or authority to decide to start keeping some other day as their Sabbath. Note the reaction when some of Israel decided to look for manna on the seventh day Sabbath:
Exo 16:27; And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none.
Exo 16:28; And Yahweh said unto Moses, "How long refuse ye to keep my Commandments and my laws?"
By not resting on Yah's designated Sabbath day, the law and Commandments of Yah had been broken!
Exo 16:29; See, for that Yahweh hath given you the Sabbath, therefore He giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.
Exo 16:30; So the people rested on the seventh day.
Note that it is emphasized that Yahweh had given the Sabbath. Neither Moses nor Israel had picked the day they wanted to observe, they were told specifically which day of the week to keep holy. Keeping it is a Sign of Allegiance to our Creator. Breaking it, is breaking the absolute Law of El. No one has the authority to choose the day they will observe as the seventh day. Yah did not just institute a seven day cycle, He blessed and sanctified a specific day as hallowed. But there is a choice involved: either we choose to keep El's seventh day Sabbath, or we choose to break His commandment by not observing it, (although this choice may indeed have been made by many in ignorance, having been indoctrinated into an UNsaving lie concerning this situation.)
So, just how do we know which day is the real Sabbath of Yahweh?
Has the Seventh Day Sabbath been Lost?
Ask most any Christian what day of the week Yahshua rose from the grave and they would answer that it was a Sunday, but when the issue of the seventh day Sabbath is raised, some Sundaykeepers will express doubt about which day is the Sabbath. The following is an excerpt from a sermon (Program C4029) given by Pastor Chuck Smith of Calvary Chapel - Costa Mesa, on Sunday, July 2nd, 2000, which attempts to maintain this uncertainty:
(quote)
"What is the Sabbath day? Well, in our calendar the Sabbath Day is Saturday. Sunday is the first day of the week, Saturday would be the seventh day, or the Sabbath day in our calendar. We cannot be certain, however, with all of the changes that have been made in the calendars through the years, that what we acknowledge today as Saturday, or the Sabbath day, is the same that they observed in the time of Moses, or thereafter. We're not certain, as far as what day of the week actually is the seventh day." - Pastor Chuck Smith. (end quote)
Excerpt: Doubt About The Sabbath - (Real Audio, © 2000 Chuck Smith)
Since this has come from a relatively well known pastor, the question has to be asked, just who is the "we" spoken of. What reputable authority can be cited that will confirm that "we" cannot be certain which is the Sabbath day? And exactly which calendar change is responsible for losing the seventh day of the week? When did this happen? On what verifiable information is this based? He does not say. No facts are offered, only an unsupported presumption. Just because Pastor Chuck Smith does not know which day is really the seventh day Sabbath, does not mean that "we", and he, cannot be absolutely certain about the day. If some effort to study the matter is at least attempted, the true seventh day can indeed be recognized.
Look at most calendars. Sunday is normally shown as the first day of the week, and Saturday as the last day of the week. (Recently some business calendars are being printed with Monday as the first day, confusing the issue somewhat.) Virtually any dictionary will also confirm Sunday is the FIRST day of the week, and Saturday is the seventh day of the week. If there is uncertainty about one day, are not all similarly in doubt, including Sunday? For nearly 20 centuries the resurrection of (the Latin Iesus) has been celebrated on Sunday. And how do we know Yahshua's resurrection day was on a Sunday? Can we be certain of that day?
Was Sunday the Resurrection Day?
Matt 28:1; In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre.
Mark 16:2; And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.
Luke 24:1; Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them.
Luke 24:2; And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre.
John 20:1; The first [day] of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre.
Yahshua lay in the tomb on the Sabbath, and the Sabbath ended at sundown, (as does every day according to the Bible). The women came to the tomb at dawn the following day (the first day of the week) and discovered that the tomb was already empty. Clearly then, the resurrection occurred after the close of the Sabbath at sundown, yet prior to sunrise on the first day of the Hebrew week.
Yahshua arose at the end of the seventh day, because of the prophesy which predicted he would be in the earth for exactly three days and three nights, which three day/night period concluded at the end of the Hebrew seventh day Sabbath; thus he would be up and about, immediately, at the close of the seventh day and not necessarily on the first day of the Hebrew week, but "between the evenings" (dusk); the first day of the week in the Hebrew calendar begins in the evening on Saturday night, at sundown; and this Hebrew first day would end Sunday evening at sundown: as Yahshua was out and about on Saturday night BEFORE the pagan Sunday sunrise which is the beginning of the first day of the pagan week, therefore this entirely excludes the pagan Sunday which BEGINS at Sunrise, as the "day of resurrection" (see StarNet's Jonas Chart)/ed.
Now, Sundaykeepers seem to have no doubts or problems when it comes to their keeping the first day of the week. However, when it comes to the previous day, the seventh day Sabbath, suddenly there is talk of calendar changes and doubt that we can really know the correct seventh day (many do that with the sacred names too-ed)?
Yahshua Knew & Kept the Sabbath Day
Since Yahshua "made the worlds," he knew exactly which day was the genuine seventh-day Sabbath:
Luke 4:16; And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
Yahshua himself was an observer of the seventh day Sabbath. Now, if the Jews had somehow lost track of the Sabbath day since the time of Moses, Yahshua would have certainly corrected them, but this was not necessary, since they were already observing the correct day, as they have always been a meticulous people. As this establishes a firm reference point in history, it remains for the skeptic to try and prove that the Jews, and the rest of the world, somehow had collectively lost track of the seventh day Sabbath in the 2000 years since the time of Messias, a period which is very well documented.
The Gregorian Calendar Reform
Sometimes people will say the calendar reform in the Middle Ages must have altered the weekdays as we know them, so we cannot be sure which day is the seventh day.
Again people that think this, have not researched the issue.
The calendar reform of 1582 was initiated by Pope Gregory XIII because the calendar established by Julius Caesar, was not accurate and stable. This was due to the fact that the Julian calendar added a "leap day" every 4 years, without exception, and this resulted in adding too many days than required for an accurate solar calendar. The Julian calendar had commenced the 1st of January of the 46th year before the birth of Messias (the 708th from the foundation of Rome). At that time the Spring equinox fell on March 25th, but because of the Julian calendar's inaccuracy, it had gradually drifted earlier over the years to March 10th or 11th by 1582. This error was important to the Catholic church, because under the solar Julian calendar, the date of Easter (a most important date to that church), was gradually creeping farther and farther (earlier and earlier) away from the time of year set by the Council of Nicea in 325 A.C.E. ("after common era"), when the equinox fell about March 21st. Easter was then to be observed by Roman Catholics on the first Sunday after the full moon occurring after the Spring equinox, except when that coincided with the Jewish Passover, in which case Easter was delayed to the following Sunday.
To correct this perceived Easter problem, Pope Gregory XIII (Inter Gravissimas) returned the Spring equinox to March 21st, by decreeing that Thursday, October 4th 1582 would be followed not by the 5th, but by (Friday) October 15th. He jumped the calendar 10 days numerically, but did not change the weekly cycle of days.
So that this correction would be maintained, the Pope then decreed that "leap years" would occur only when the year was divisible by four, and only the centennial years that were divisible by 400 would be leap years. During a leap year, one day is added to the month of February (the 29th), as a correction. This adjustment of the Calendar was gradually adopted across Europe, and the world, and is nearly universal today.
England did not adopt the Gregorian calendar until 1752. By that time, eleven days had been gained so (Wednesday) September 2, was followed by (Thursday) September 14. The eleven days were skipped, but the weekly cycle of days, Sunday through Saturday, remained unchanged throughout the Middle Ages. (The French Revolution was a notable exception, when for a period of 14 years (1792-1806) a ten day week was adopted, the tenth day being the day of rest; (ed's note-- this French adjustment created extreme Chaos and thus they were forced to change it back to the traditional seven day cycle: that 'experiment' indicated that the seven day cycle is evidently essential to humankind's collective cyclic equilibrium).
Inquiries made in 1932 to the United States Naval Observatory, in Washington D.C., and the Royal Greenwich Observatory in London, England, have also confirmed that the weekly cycle of 7 days as observed today has NOT been altered, and remains as it has been since before the time of Messias.
So both History and the Bible make it quite clear that Sunday is the first day of the week, and Saturday is indeed the seventh day which has been kept by the Jews for millennia even to the present day. The true seventh day Sabbath of Yah has not been lost. Our Saturday is the SAME day of the week today as the First/original seventh-day Sabbath of creation.
Who Authorized the Switch to Sunday Keeping?
So what rationale exists for observing Sunday, the first day of the week, instead of Saturday, the biblical seventh day?
(quote)
"It is presumed to be the day of Christ's resurrection and thus Christians have transferred the solemnity of Sabbath, to Sunday, to honor that event." (end quote)
That sounds terrific, but where exactly does the Bible authorize that change? You see, I really do adhere to the Protestant claim of "the Bible and the Bible only" as the authoritative Word of Yah, on the matter. The Sabbath was ordained by Yah as a Memorial to His Creation, and that Event was not supplanted by or "done away with" by either the crucifixion or the resurrection.
Gen 2:3; And El blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested from all His work which Elohim created and made.
Exo 20:11; For in six days Yahweh made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: therefore Yahweh blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.
Exo 31:16; Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations, for a Perpetual Covenant.
Exo 31:17; It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days Yahweh made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day He rested, and was refreshed.
The seventh day was sanctified forever as a day of rest from all work, as a Memorial to the completion of Creation.
If Yah himself declared the seventh day to be sanctified and thus holy forever, then where in his Word, the Bible, does He rescind the observance of the seventh day? Better yet, where in the Bible is the first day of the week (Sunday) declared to be a holy day to be honored in perpetuity, as a replacement for the Sabbath? So just WHO insinuated this change from Saturday to Sunday?
The Presumed Authority of the Church
(quote)
... They (those who assert church authority) also refer to the example of the Apostles, who commanded to abstain from blood and from things strangled, Acts 15, 29. They refer to the Sabbath day as having been changed into "the Lord's Day", contrary to the Decalog, as it seems. Neither is there any example whereof they make more than concerning the changing of the Sabbath day. Great, say they, is the power of the Church, since it has dispensed with one of the Ten Commandments! (end quote)
The Augsburg Confession, Philip Melanchthon (1530), Article 28: Of Ecclesiastical Power.
Pope Sylvester I (314-335 A.D.) Decrees the Transfer of Sabbath Rest to Sunday:
Rabanus Maurus (776-856), abbot of Fulda and later archbishop of Mainz, Germany, was rated one of the greatest theologians of his age and probably the most cultured man of his time, and exceptionally learned in patristics. Besides, he was a zealous defender of the papacy and its teachings. In one of his works, he says,
(quote)
Pope Sylvester instructed the clergy to keep the feriae. And, indeed, from an old custom he called the first day [of the week] the "Lord's [day]," on which the light was made in the beginning and also the resurrection of Christ is celebrated.6(end quote)
Rabanus Maurus does not mean to say that Sylvester was the first man who referred to the days of the week as feriae or who first started the observance of Sunday among Christians. He means that, according to the testimony of Roman Catholic writers, Sylvester confirmed those practices and made them official insofar as his church was concerned. Hence Rabanus says elsewhere in his writings:
(quote)
Pope Sylvester, first among the Romans, ordered that the names of the days [of the week], which they previously called after the name of their gods, that is, [the day] of the Sun, [the day] of the Moon, [the day] of Mars, [the day] of Mercury, [the day] of Jupiter, [the day] of Venus, [the day] of Saturn, they should call feriae thereafter, that is the first feria, the second feria, the third feria, the fourth feria, the fifth feria, the sixth feria, because that in the beginning of Genesis it is written that God said concerning each day: on the first, "Let there be light"; on the second, "Let there be a firmament"; on the third, "Let the earth bring forth verdure"; etc. But he [Sylvester] ordered [them] to call the Sabbath by the ancient term of the law, [to call] the first feria the "Lord's day," because on it "the Lord" rose [from the dead], Moreover, the same pope decreed that the rest of the Sabbath should be transferred rather to the Lord's day [Sunday], on order that on that day we should rest from worldly works for the praise of God.7
Note particularly, he says that "the same pope [Sylvester I] decreed that the rest of the Sabbath should be transferred rather to the Lord's day [Sunday]."8 According to this statement, he was the first bishop to introduce the idea that the divinely appointed rest of the Sabbath day should be transferred to the first day of the week. This is significant, especially in view of the fact that it was during Sylvester's pontificate that the emperor of Rome [Constantine] issued the first civil laws compelling men to rest from secular labor on Sunday, and that Eusebius, bishop of Caesarea, was the first theologian on record to present arguments, allegedly from the Scriptures, that Christ did transfer the rest of the Sabbath day to Sunday.
6 Rabanus Maurus, Liber de Computo (A book Concerning Computation), Chap. XXVII ("Concerning Festivals"), as translated by the writer from the Latin text in Migne's Patrologia Latina, Vol. CVII, col. 682.
7 ------------, De Clericorum Institutione (Concerning the Instruction of the Clergymen), Book II, Chap. XLVI, as translated by the writer from the Latin text in Migne's Patrologia Latina, Vol. CVII, col. 361.
8 The wording in the Latin text reads: "Statuit autem idem papa ut otium Sabbati magis in diem Dominicam transferretur, ut ea die a terrenis operibus ad laudandum Deum vacaremus."(end quote)
Source: Sabbath and Sunday in Early Christianity, by Robert L. Odom, © 1977 by the Review and Herald Publishing Association, pages 247-248.
Christians "felt" they had the authority.
(quote)
63. Christ came to accomplish a new "exodus", to restore freedom to the oppressed. He performed many healings on the Sabbath (cf. Mt 12:9-14 and parallels), certainly not to violate the Lord's Day, but to reveal its full meaning: "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath" (Mk 2:27). Opposing the excessively legalistic interpretation of some of his contemporaries, and developing the true meaning of the biblical Sabbath, Jesus, as "Lord of the Sabbath" (Mk 2:28), restores to the Sabbath observance its liberating character, carefully safeguarding the rights of God and the rights of man. This is why Christians, called as they are to proclaim the liberation won by the blood of Christ, felt that they had the authority to transfer the meaning of the Sabbath to the day of the Resurrection.(end quote)
Source: Pope John Paul II, Dies Domini.
Doctors of the Church Decreed the Change to Sunday
(quote)
... we find St. Cæsarius of Arles in the sixth century teaching that the holy Doctors of the Church had decreed that the whole glory of the Jewish Sabbath had been transferred to the Sunday, and that Christians must keep the Sunday holy in the same way as the Jews had been commanded to keep holy the Sabbath Day.
(end quote)
Source: The Catholic Encyclopedia, entry on Sunday, Volume XIV, Copyright © 1912 by Robert Appleton Company, Online Edition Copyright © 1999 by Kevin Knight, Nihil Obstat, July 1, 1912. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., Censor, Imprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York.
Cardinal Gibbons on Sunday
(quote)
"... is not every Christian obliged to sanctify Sunday and to abstain on that day from unnecessary servile work? Is not the observance of this law among the most prominent of our sacred duties? But, you may read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, and you will not find a single line authorizing the sanctification of Sunday. The Scriptures enforce the religious observance of Saturday, a day which we never sanctify." (end quote)
Source: The Faith of Our Fathers, by James Cardinal Gibbons, Archbishop of Baltimore, 88th edition, page 89. Originally published in 1876, republished and Copyright 1980 by TAN Books and Publishers, Inc., pages 72-73.
Baltimore Catechism 2
(quote)
10. Q. What are we commanded by the third Commandment?
A. By the third Commandment we are commanded to keep holy the Lord's day and the holy days of obligation, on which we are to give our time to the service and worship of God.
11. Q. How are we to worship God on Sundays and holydays of obligation?
A. We are to worship God on Sundays and holydays of obligation by hearing Mass, by prayer, and by other good works.
12. Q. Are the Sabbath day and the Sunday the same?
A. The Sabbath day and the Sunday are not the same. The Sabbath is the seventh day of the week, and is the day which was kept holy in the old law; the Sunday is the first day of the week, and is the day which is kept holy in the new law.
13. Q. Why does the Church command us to keep the Sunday holy instead of the Sabbath?
A. The Church commands us to keep the Sunday holy instead of the Sabbath because on Sunday Christ rose from the dead, and on Sunday He sent the Holy Ghost upon the Apostles.
14. Q. What is forbidden by the third Commandment?
A. The third Commandment forbids all unnecessary servile work and whatever else may hinder the due observance of the Lord's day. (end quote)
Source: A Catechism of Christian Doctrine, prepared and enjoined by the order of the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore, New Edition, No. 2, Imprimatur by John Cardinal McCloskey, Archbishop of New York, and approved by James Cardinal Gibbons, Archbishop of Baltimore, published in 1885 by Broadway Church Goods House, 719 N. Broadway, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, page 64.
Advanced Catechism
(quote)
354. What are we commanded by the third Commandment?
By the third Commandment we are commanded to keep holy the Lord's day and the holy days of obligation, on which we are to give our time to the service and worship of God.
Which is now the Lord's Day?
The Lord's day now is Sunday, in memory of the Resurrection of Christ and of the Descent of the Holy Ghost.
355. How are we to worship God on Sundays and holydays of obligation?
We are to worship God on Sundays and holydays of obligation by hearing Mass, by prayer, and by other good works. ...
356. Are the Sabbath day and the Sunday the same?
The Sabbath day and the Sunday are not the same. The Sabbath is the seventh day of the week, and is the day which was kept holy in the old law; the Sunday is the first day of the week, and is the day which is kept holy in the new law.
Who made the change from Saturday to Sunday?
The change from Saturday to Sunday was made by the Apostles, though the Bible does not clearly teach Sunday observance.
357. Why does the Church command us to keep the Sunday holy instead of the Sabbath?
The Church commands us to keep the Sunday holy instead of the Sabbath because on Sunday Christ rose from the dead, and on Sunday He sent the Holy Ghost upon the Apostles.
358. What is forbidden by the third Commandment?
The third Commandment forbids all unnecessary servile work and whatever else may hinder the due observance of the Lord's day. (end quote)
Source: Advanced Catechism Of Catholic Faith And Practice, based upon the Third Plenary Council Catechism for use in the higher grades of Catholic Schools, compiled by Rev. Thomas J. O'brien, inspector of Parochial Schools, Diocese of Brooklyn, published by John B. Oink, Chicago Ill., copyright 1929, pages 180-182.
Cardinal Gasparri's Catholic Catechism
(quote)
Article 3. The Third Commandment of the Decalogue.
(203) What does God command in the Third Commandment--"Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath Day"?
In the Third Commandment-"Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath Day"--God commands that festival days--that is, days dedicated to Him--should be kept with divine worship, business and bodily toil being laid aside. 190
(204) What were the festival days in the Old Testament?
In the Old Testament there were many festival days, but the chief one was the Sabbath, the very name of which signifies the rest needful for the worship of God, whence it is called "the day of rest."
(205) Why is the Sabbath day not observed under the New Testament?
The Sabbath day is not observed under the New Testament, because in its place the Church keeps Sunday in honor of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, and the coming...
[pg. 121]
...down of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost; the Church also adds other festival days. 191
(206) To what, then, are we bound nowadays as regards keeping festival days holy?
As regards keeping festival days holy we are to-day bound to sanctify, in the manner proscribed by the Church, the Sundays and other Feast Days appointed by her 192
190 Exod. xx, 8; xxxi, 13; Deut. v, 12-15.
191 The commandment about keeping the Sabbath holy was not, if we consider only the day actually stated, a fixed and constant one, but a variable one, nor was it so much a moral as a ceremonial precept. If, however, we consider the commandment itself, it will be evident that it has its moral aspect and forms part of the natural law. Moreover the date at which the keeping of the Sabbath was removed was precisely that at which the rest of the Hebrew cult and ceremonial was to cease?namely the day of Christ's death. See the Catechism of the Council of Trent, III, iv, 4ff. (end quote)
Source: The Catholic Catechism, by Peter Cardinal Gasparri, translated by the Rev. Hugh Pope, O.P., second printing, copyright 1932 and printed by P. J. Kenedy & Sons, Typographi Pontificii, 12 Barclay Street, New York, questions 203-206, pages 120-121
Great is the Authority of the Church
(quote)
You will have noticed, my dear children, that the day on which We keep the Sabbath is not the same as that on which it was observed by the Jews. They kept and still keep the Sabbath upon Saturday, we upon Sunday; they on the seventh day, we on the first day of the week. Hence the Jews close their shops and attend their synagogues upon Saturday, but Sunday is observed as the day of rest by all Christians, even by those sects who are separated from the Catholic Church. You will ask, what is the reason of this? It is because the Apostles, who were the first pastors of the Church, by the authority which [p. 107] they had received from our Blessed Lord to regulate all that regards his public worship, changed the day appointed for the keeping of the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday — from the seventh to the first day of the week. And why did they do so? To honour the glorious Resurrection of our Lord and the Descent of the Holy Ghost upon the Apostles, both of which mysteries were accomplished on the first day of the week. From this we may understand how great is the authority of the Church in interpreting or explaining to us the commandments of God, an authority which is acknowledged by the universal practice of the whole Christian world, even of those sects who profess to take the Holy Scriptures as their sole rule of faith, since they observe as the day of rest not the seventh day of the week commanded by the Bible, but the first day, which we know is to be kept holy, only from the tradition and teaching of the Catholic Church. (end quote)
Source: Catechism Made Easy, Being A Familiar Explanation Of The Catechism Of Christian Doctrine, by the Rev. Henry Gibson, Vol. II., Liverpool: printed by Rockliff Brothers, 44 Castle Street. London: R. Washbourne, 18, Paternoster Row, 1874, pgs. 106-107.
Summa Theologica
(quote)
In the New Law the observance of the Lord's day (Sunday) took the place of the observance of the Sabbath (Saturday), not by virtue of the precept (of God) but by the institution of the Church and the custom (Tradition) of Christian people. (end quote)
Source: St. Thomas Aquinas: Summa Theologica - SS Q[122] A[4] Reply to Objection 4.
Deharbe's Large Catechism
(quote)
THE THIRD COMMANDMENT OF GOD
"Remember that thou keep holy the sabbath day."
1. What does God command by this Third Commandment?
By this Third Commandment God Commands us to keep holy one day of the week, which is thence called the "Lord's Day."
Note. The Jews kept the Sabbath or the seventh day, Christians keep the Sunday or the first day of the week.
?2. Why do Christians keep the Sunday instead of the Sabbath?
Because the Apostles appointed it so in memory of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and the Descent of the Holy Ghost, which events took place on Sunday. (end quote)
Source: Deharbe's Large Catechism, translated by a father of the Society of Jesus from the German edition, prepared for the United States, copyright 1882 and published by Benzinger Brothers, New York, Cincinnati and Chicago, and blessed in writing by Pope Leo XIII on January 3rd, 1883, page 58.
A Convert's Catechism
(quote)<
Q. Which is the Sabbath day?
A. Saturday is the Sabbath day.
Q. Why do we observe Sunday instead of Saturday?
A. We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church, in the Council of Laodicea (A.D. 336), transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday.
Q. Why did the Catholic Church substitute Sunday for Saturday?
A. The Church substituted Sunday for Saturday by the plenitude of that divine power which Jesus Christ bestowed upon her.
Q. What does the Third Commandment command?
A. The Third Commandment commands us to sanctify Sunday as the Lord's Day. (end quote)
Source: The Convert's Catechism of Catholic Doctrine, by Reverend Peter Geiermann, C.S.R., Copyright 1910 by Joseph Gummersbach, blessed by Pope Pius X on the 25th of January 1910 via Cardinal Merry Del Val, published by B. Herder Book Co, 15 and 17 South Broadway, St. Louis, Mo., and London, W. C. 33 Queen Square, in 1937, Twelfth Edition, page 50.
(quote)
... in 336 A.D., the Catholic Church, at the Council of Laodicea, made the ecclesiastical law obliging the faithful to attend Mass and to abstain from servile works on Sundays. And all Christians accepted that law in virtue of the divine authority Christ gave to His Church when He said, "Whatsoever you bind upon earth shall be bound also in Heaven; and whatsoever you loose upon earth shall be loosed also in Heaven" (Matt., xviii, 18). (end quote)
Source: Seventh Day Adventists, by Rev. Dr. L. Rumble. M.S.C., published by The Australian Catholic Truth Society Record, February 10, 1950, pamphlet No. 446, printed by The Advocate Press, 143-151 o'Beckett St., Melbourne, pg. 24.
(quote)
The Council of Laodicea in Phrygia Pacatiana, was a local, Eastern, Greek-speaking synod, and the canons referring to the Sabbath or Sunday/Lord's day are listed here:
LAODICEA, CANON 16. - The Gospels are to be read on Sabbath, with the other Scriptures [apparently at Communion services; see canon 49, below].
LAODICEA, CANON 29. - Christians must not judaize by resting on the Sabbath, but must work on that day, rather honoring the Lord's Day; and, if they can, resting then as Christians. But if any shall be found to be judaizers, let them be anathema from Christ.
LAODICEA, CANON 49. - During Lent, the Bread must not be offered except on the Sabbath Day and on the Lord's Day only.
LAODICEA, CANON 51. - The nativities of Martyrs [actually, the death days, on which martyrs were considered to have been born to eternal life] are not to be celebrated in Lent, but commemorations of the holy Martyrs are to be made on the Sabbaths and Lord's days. (end quote)
A Catholic Catechism:
(quote)
THIRD COMMANDMENT OF GOD
"THOU SHALT NOT DO UNNECESSARY SERVILE WORK ON THELORD'S DAY, BUT PERFORM WORKS PLEASING TO GOD."
...
227. Which is the Lord's Day?
The Lord's Day is Sunday.
...
The LAW of keeping Sunday holy, instead of the Sabbath, was made by the Church, probably by the apostles. (end quote)
Source: A Catholic Catechism for the Parochial and Sunday Schools of the United States, Rev. James Groenings, Priest of the Society of Jesus, translated by Very Rev. James Rockliff, of the same Society, Benzinger Brothers, Printers to the Holy Apostolic See, copyright 1900, Nihil Obstat: Theodore Van Rossum, S.J., Censor Deputatus, Imprimatur: Michael Augustine, Archbishop of New York, page 65.
Faerber's Catechism
(quote)
THIRD COMMANDMENT OF GOD
Thou shalt keep holy the Lord's day.
209. Which is the Lord's day?
Sunday, the first day of the week, is the Lord's day.
On Sunday, God the Father began creation, God the Son arose from the dead, and the Holy Ghost descended from Heaven.--The Jews observed the last day of the week, the Sabbath, and the Apostles, commissioned by our Lord Jesus Christ, substituted for it the first day, the Sunday. (end quote)
Source: Catechism for the Catholic Parochial Schools of the United States, by Rev. W. Faerber, 36th edition, Revised, published by B. Herder Book Co., 17 South Broadway, St. Louis, Mo., and 33 Queen Square, London, W. C., copyright 1935, page 41.
The Sunday Sabbath flagrantly contradicts the Bible
(quote)
It is worth its while to remember that this observance of the [Sunday] Sabbath, in which, after all, the only Protestant worship consists, not only has no foundation in the Bible, but it is in flagrant contradiction with its letter, which commands rest on the [7th day] Sabbath, which is Saturday. It was the Catholic Church which, by the authority of Jesus Christ, has transferred this rest to the Sunday in remembrance of the resurrection of the Lord. Thus the observance of Sunday by the Protestants is an homage they pay, in spite of themselves, to the authority of the [Roman Catholic] Church. (end quote)
Source: Plain Talk About The Protestantism Of Today, from the French of Monsignor Louis Gaston de Segur, Boston: Patrick Donahoe, 1868, Imprimatur Joannes Josephus, Episcopus Boston, pg. 225.
CATECHISM OF POPE PIUS X
(quote)The Third Commandment
1 Q. What does the Third Commandment: Remember thou keep holy the Sabbath day, command us to do?
A. The Third Commandment: Remember thou keep holy the Sabbath day, commands us to honour God by acts of worship on festivals.
2 Q. What are festivals?
A. In the Old Law they were Saturdays and certain other days regarded as specially solemn by the Jews; in the New Law they are Sundays and other festivals instituted by the Church.
3 Q. Why is Sunday sanctified instead of Saturday in the New Law?
A. Sunday, which means the Lord's Day, was substituted for Saturday, because it was on that day that our Lord rose from the dead. (end quote)
St. Paul Family Catechism
[pg. 249](quote)
629. Which is the third commandment?
The third commandment is: Remember to keep holy the Lord's day (cf. Ex. 20:8).
[pg. 250]
630. What are we obliged to do by the third commandment?
By the third commandment we are obliged to worship God on Sundays and on holy days of obligation by participating in the holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
[pg. 253]...
640. Why was Sunday set aside as the Lord's day in place of the Sabbath of the Old Testament?
Sunday was set aside as the Lord's day in place of the Sabbath of the Old Testament because of an apostolic tradition which took its origin from the day of Christ's resurrection. (Acts 20:7) (end quote)
Source: St. Paul Family Catechism, Third Edition, Copyright 1992, by the Daughters of St. Paul, published by St. Paul Books & Media, 50 St. Paul's Ave., Boston MA 02130, pp 249, 251, 253.
A New Catechism
(quote)
What day was the Sabbath?
The seventh day, our Saturday.
Do you keep the Sabbath?
No: we keep the Lord's Day.
Which is that?
The first day: Sunday.
Who changed it?
The Catholic Church. (end quote)
Source: A New Catechism of Christian Doctrine and Practice for School and Home Use, American Edition, Authorized, by James Bellord, published in Notre Dame, Indiana, by The Ave Maria, 1902, pages 86-87. (Also published in London in 1901 by the Catholic Truth Society.)
Keenan's Catechism
[pg. 53](quote)
Q. When Protestants do profane work upon Saturday, or the seventh day of the week, do they follow the Scripture as their only rule of faith?
A. On the contrary, they have only the authority of tradition for this practice. In profaning Saturday, they violate one of God's commandments, which he has never clearly abrogated; "Remember thou keep holy the Sabbath day."
Q. Is the observance of Sunday, as the day of rest, a matter clearly laid down in Scripture?
A. It certainly is not; and yet all Protestants consider the observance of this particular day as essentially necessary to salvation. To say, we observe the Sunday, because Christ rose from the dead on that day, is to say, that we should rest on Thursday, because Christ ascended to heaven on that day, and rested in reality from the work of redemption.
[ pg. 54]
Q. What do you conclude from all this?
A. That Protestants have no Scripture for the measure of their day of rest; that they abolish the observance of Saturday without warrant of Scripture; that they substitute Sunday in its place without scriptural authority; consequently, that for all this, they have only traditional authority. Yet Protestants would look upon a man who would do profane work after five o'clock on Sunday, or keep the Saturday, and profane the first day, as a victim of perdition. Hence we must conclude, that the Scripture, which does not teach these things clearly, does not contain all necessary truths; and, consequently, cannot be the only rule of faith.
[ pg. 108]
Q. Have you any other way of proving that the church has power to institute festivals of precept?
A. Had she not such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religionists agree with her - she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday the seventh day, a change for which there is no Scriptural authority. (end quote)
Source: Controversial Catechism, by the Rev. Stephen Keenan, Second Edition revised and enlarged, published in 1849 by John Doyle, 22 Leith Street, Edinburgh, & J. Chalmers, Castle Street, Dundee, and in 1851 by C. Dolman, 13 South Hanover Street, Edinburgh; and 61, New Bond Street, London, pages 53, 54, and 108.
A Doctrinal Catechism, by Rev. Stephen Keenan, Imprimatur by John Cardinal McCloskey, Archbishop of New York, Third American Edition, Copyright 1876 by T. W. Strong, published by P. J. Kenedy, pages 352-355, 174.
Anglican Archbishop Declares Tradition as Sunday's Origin
(quote)
TORONTO, Oct. 27 (BUP).--Rev. Philip Carrington, Anglican Archbishop of Quebec, sent local clergymen into a huddle today by saying outright that there was nothing to support Sunday being kept holy. Carrington defiantly told a church meeting in this city of straight-laced protestantism that tradition, not the Bible, had made Sunday the day of worship. He quoted the biblical commandment which said the seventh day should be one of rest, and then stated: "That is Saturday." "Nowhere in the Bible is it laid down that worship should be done on Sunday," the Archbishop told a hushed, still audience. Local parsons read his comments today with set, determined looks. They refused comment. (end quote)
Source: News Item, Albertan (Calgary, Alberta, Canada), Oct. 28, 1949.
Sunday Holy By Habit Not By Scripture Says Anglican Leader
(quote)
TORONTO, Oct. 27 (BUP).--Rev. Philip Carrington, Anglican Archbishop of Quebec, sent local clergymen into a huddle Wednesday by saying outright that there was nothing to support Sunday being kept holy.
Archbishop Carrington defiantly told a church meeting in this city of straight-laced Protestantism that tradition, not the Bible, had made Sunday the day of worship.
He quoted the Biblical commandment which said the seventh day should be one of rest, and then stated: "That is Saturday."
"Nowhere in the Bible is it laid down that worship should be done on Sunday," the archbishop said. (end quote)
Source: News Item, Winnipeg Free Press, Manitoba, Thursday, October 27, 1949, page 16.
Sundaykeeping is not founded on Scripture
(quote)
"It is a matter of wonderment to us to see Catholic clergymen using the word ' Sabbath ' for ' Sunday. ' We protest energetically against the Protestant mode of speech. It does not look well for Catholics to knuckle to such Protestant fantastic notions. Sunday is founded, not on Scripture, but on tradition, and is distinctly a Catholic institution. As there is no Scripture for the transfer of the day of rest from the last to the first day of the week, Protestants ought to keep their Sabbath on Saturday, and thus leave Catholics in full possession of Sunday." (end quote)-- Catholic Record, Sept. 17, 1891.
The Catholic Christian Instructed
[p. 202](quote)
Q. What are the days which the Church commands to be kept holy?
A. 1st, The Sunday, or the Lord’s day, which we observe by apostolical tradition, instead of the Sabbath. …
Q. What warrant have you for keeping the Sunday, preferably to the ancient Sabbath, which was the Saturday?
A. We have for it the authority of the Catholic Church, and apostolical tradition.
Q. Does the scripture any where command the Sunday to be kept for the Sabbath?
A. The scripture commands us to hear the Church, St. Matt. xviii. 17. St. Luke x. 16, and to hold fast the traditions of the Apostles, 2 Thess. ii. 15, but the scripture does not in particular mention this change of the Sabbath. St. John speaks of the Lord's day, Rev. i. 10; but he does not tell us what day of the week this was, much less does he tell us that this day was to take the place of the Sabbath ordained in the commandments: St. Luke also speaks of the disciples meeting together to break bread on the first day of the week, Acts xx. 7. And St. Paul, I Cor. xvi 2, orders that on the first day of the week the Corinthians should lay by in store what they designed to bestow in charity on the faithful in Judea: but neither the one nor the other tells us, that this first day of...
[p. 203]
...the week was to be henceforward the day of worship, and the Christian Sabbath; so that truly, the best authority we have for this is the testimony and ordinance of the Church. And therefore, those who pretend to be so religious of the Sunday, whilst they take no notice of other festivals ordained by the same Church authority, show that they act by humor, and not by reason and religion; since Sundays and holydays all stand upon the same foundation, viz, the ordinance of the Church. ...
[p. 204]
Q. What was the reason why the weekly Sabbath was changed from the Saturday to the Sunday?
A. Because our Lord fully accomplished the work of our redemption by rising from the dead on a Sunday, and by sending down the Holy Ghost on a Sunday: as therefore the work of our redemption was a greater work than that of our creation, the primitive Church thought the day, in which this work was completely finished, was more worthy [of] her religious observation than that in which God rested from the creation, and should be properly called the Lord’s day.
Q. But has the Church a power to make any alterations in the commandments of God?
A. The commandments of God, as far as they contain his eternal law, are unalterable and indispensable; but as to whatever was only ceremonial, they cease to oblige, since the Mosaic law was abrogated by Christ's death. Hence, as far as the commandment obliges us to set aside some part of our time for the worship and service of our Creator, it is an unalterable and unchangeable precept of the eternal law, in which the Church cannot dispense: but for as much as it prescribes the seventh day in particular for this purpose, it is no more than a ceremonial precept of the old law, which obligeth not Christians. And therefore, instead of the seventh day, and other festivals appointed in the old law, the Church has prescribed the Sundays and holydays to be set apart for God's worship; and these we are now obliged to keep in consequence of God's commandment, instead of the ancient Sabbath. (end quote)
Source: The Catholic Christian Instructed in the Sacraments, Sacrifice, Ceremonies, and Observances of the Church, by the Right Rev. Dr. Richard Challoner, published in Baltimore in 1852 by John Murphy & Co., pp. 202 - 204.
No Scriptural Warrant for Baptizing Infants or Observing Sunday
(quote)
It is true, Catholics do not hold, as Protestants profess to do, that nothing can possibly be matter of divine revelation which is not contained in holy Scripture, nor do Protestants themselves in fact, though they do in words; for they believe the inspiration of holy Scripture to be matter of Divine revelation, yet this, from the very nature of the [pg 10] case, cannot rest on the testimony of Scripture itself. So, too, with the duty of baptizing infants, and of observing Sunday instead of Saturday as the Christian holiday, on which points Protestants believe and act as Catholics do, while yet they would be puzzled to find Scripture warrant for so doing. ... (end quote)
Source: Library of Controversy - The Clifton Tracts, by the Brotherhood of St. Vincent of Paul, Volume 1, How Do We Know What The Bible Means?, published about 1854 in New York by P. J. Kenedy, Excelsior Catholic Publishing House, 5 Barclay Street, pages 9, 10.
Rebuilding A Lost Faith
(quote)
Protestants often deride the authority of Church tradition, and claimed to be directed by the Bible only; yet they, too, have been guided by customs of the ancient Church, which find no warrant in the Bible, but rest on Church tradition only! A striking instance of this is the following:—The first positive command in the Decalogue is to “Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy,� and this precept was enforced by the Jews for thousands of years. But the Sabbath Day, the observance of which God commanded, was our Saturday. Yet who among either Catholics or Protestants, except a sect or two, like the “Seventh Day Baptists,� ever keep that commandment now? None. Why is this? The Bible, which Protestants claim to obey exclusively, gives no authorisation for the substitution of the first day of the week for the seventh. On what authority, therefore, have they done so? Plainly on the authority of that very Catholic Church which they abandoned, and whose traditions they condemn. (end quote)
Source: Rebuilding a Lost Faith By An American Agnostic, John L. Stoddard, published in New York by P. J. Kenedy and Sons, circa 1921, p. 80.
The Observance of Sunday and Civil Laws for its Enforcement
[pg. 139]...(quote)
Strange as it may seem, the State, in passing laws for the due sanctification of Sunday, is unwittingly acknowledging the authority of the Catholic Church, and carrying out more or less faithfully its prescriptions.
The Sunday, as a day of the week set apart for the obligatory public worship of Almighty God, to be sanctified by a suspension of all servile labor, trade, and worldly avocations and by exercises of devotion, is purely a creation of the Catholic Church.
It is not the Jewish Sabbath; it is, in fact, entirely distinct from it, and not governed by the enactments of the Mosaic law. It is part and parcel of the system of the Catholic Church, as absolutely as Christian marriage is or any other her sacraments, her festivals and fasts, her days of joy and mourning, her indulgences and her jubilees.
[pg. 149]
The Catholic Church created the Sunday and made the very regulations which have come down on the statute-books, and she still constantly, from her pulpits, her catechists' chairs, and the confessional, calls on her faithful to obey them, to sanctify the day, and refrain from all that desecrates it.
[pg. 152]
For ages all Christian nations looked to the Catholic Church, and, as we have seen, the various states enforced by law her ordinances as to worship and cessation of labor on Sunday. Protestantism, in discarding the authority of the Church, has no good reason for its Sunday theory, and ought logically, to keep Saturday as the Sabbath, with the Jews and the Seventh-Day Baptists. For their present practice Protestants in general have no authority but that of a Church which they disown, and there cannot be a greater inconsistency than theirs in asking the state to enforce the Sunday laws.
If it be a mere state holiday, most of the legislative provisions are a mere tyrannical interference with the liberty of a citizen; and it is a strange holiday on which people are forbidden to enjoy themselves, under penalty of fine and imprisonment. If it were merely this, it would be more sensible to punish the man who wore a long face on a public holiday than the man who laughed. (end quote)
StarNet Ed.:
Yahweh's Signature Law is Written
upon our hearts and in our heads, and we Love His great Law
because it is our Freedom from Tyranny of Men
who remain steadfast in their uninspired & unsympathetic Much Religiosity:
"Come out of her My People!"
~finis~
On the Question of Observance of the Sabbath Memorial of Creation, as opposed to the Sunday Observance of paganized Catholicism.
Sunday is NOT the Sabbath!
anon...
Sacred Names restored and Abomination Removed
(i.e. upgraded with due respect to unadulterated Saving Truth, by StarNet)
This article is intended for those who may think that Sunday is the Seventh or Sabbath Day. It is quite surprising how many people actually think this is the situation! Many may generally assume that since Saturday and Sunday are the "weekend", that Monday must be the first day of the week because it is their first work day of the week. This may then incline some to imagine that Sunday is indeed the Seventh Day...
Reading the following papal encyclical,
you may even think that Sunday is the Sabbath?...
Romanism's Attempt to Render Sunday to be as if Holy(quote)
248. Allied to what We have said so far is the Question of the Sunday Rest:
249. To safeguard man's dignity as a creature of God endowed with a soul in the image and likeness of God, the Church has always demanded a diligent observance of the Third Commandment: "Remember that thou keep holy the sabbath day." (52) God certainly has the right and power to command man to devote one day a week to his duty of worshipping the eternal Majesty. Free from mundane cares, he should lift up his mind to the things of heaven, and look into the depths of his conscience, to see how he stands with God in respect of those necessary and inviolable relationships which must exist between the creature and his Creator.
250. In addition, man has a right to rest a while from work, and indeed a need to do so if he is to renew his bodily strength and to refresh his spirit by suitable recreation. He has also to think of his family, the unity of which depends so much on frequent contact and the peaceful living together of all its members.
251. Thus, religion and moral and physical well-being are one in demanding this periodic rest, and for many centuries now the Church has set aside Sunday as a special day of rest for the faithful, on which they participate in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the memorial and application of Christ's redemptive work for souls.
252. Heavy in heart, We cannot but deplore the growing tendency in certain quarters to disregard this sacred law, if not to reject it outright. This attitude must inevitably impair the bodily and spiritual health of the workers, whose welfare We have so much at heart.
253. In the name of God, therefore, and for the sake of the material and spiritual interests of men, We call upon all, public authorities, employers and workers, to observe the precepts of God and His Church and to remember their grave responsibilities before God and society. (end quote)
Source: Pope John XXIII, encyclical MATER ET MAGISTRA, ON CHRISTIANITY AND SOCIAL PROGRESS, MAY 15, 1961.
Some Catholic Catechisms will even give one the impression that Sunday is the Sabbath. The following quotation is from the Catholic Baltimore Catechism 1, popular in the United States for the last century or so, intended for the instruction of children. It blurs the distinction between the Sabbath and Sunday: (StarNet ed, notice below, the RCC made the second commandment against idolatry disappear, conveniently making the fourth commandment into the third)
(quote)
Q. What is the third Commandment?
A. The third Commandment is: Remember thou keep holy the Sabbath day.
Q. How are we to worship God on Sundays and holydays of obligation?
A. We are to worship God on Sundays and holydays of obligation by hearing Mass, by prayer, and by other good works. (end quote)
Source: A Catechism of Christian Doctrine (No. 1), prepared and enjoined by order of the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore, bearing the Imprimatur of the Catholic Church, Copyright 1885, by J. L. Spalding, published by P. J. Kenedy & Sons, printers to the Holy Apostolic See, 44 Barclay St., New York, page 36.
The following Catholic catechisms also boldly state that Sunday is the day commanded to sanctify:
(quote)
Q. Say the Third Commandment.
A. Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath day.
Q. What is commanded by the Third Commandment?
A. To sanctify the Sunday.
Q. Which is the chief duty by which we are commanded to sanctify the Sunday?
A. Assisting at the holy sacrifice of the Mass. (end quote)
Source: The Most Rev. Dr. James Butler's Catechism, revised, enlarged, improved, and recommended by the four R. C. Archbishops of Ireland, published in New York by P. J. Kenedy, 1886, page 34.
(quote)
[pg. 276]...
II. THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD
Q. Why are the Ten Commandments called the commandments of God?
A. Because they were given to us by God himself on Mount Sinai.
[pg. 277]
Q. Which are these Ten Commandments?
A. They are contained, in substance, in the following verses, which may easily be committed to memory:
1. One God alone, for evermore
By faith, and hope, and love, adore.
2. Thou shalt not take his name in vain.
3. The Lord's day thou shalt not profane.
4. Honor thy father, and thy mother.
5. Thou shalt not hurt nor hate thy brother.
6. Thou shalt do no adultery.
7. Thou shalt not steal.
8. Thou shalt not lie.
9. Thou shalt have no impure desire,
10. Nor to thy neighbor's goods aspire.
[pg. 278]...
Q. What does the Third Commandment require?
A. It requires us to attend divine service on Sundays and Holydays, and to spend those days in devotion and good works.
Q. What does it forbid?
A. It forbids all servile labor done without strong reasons of necessity, charity or devotion. (end quote)
Source: The Mission Book, A Manual of Instructions and Prayers, drawn chiefly from the works of St. Alphonsus Liguori, published circa 1861 by the Missionary Fathers of St. Paul, James B. Kirker, New York, pages 276-278.
[pg. 112]...(quote)
THE THIRD COMMANDMENT
Remember thou keep holy the Sabbath Day.
Q. When was the Sabbath instituted?
A. From the creation of the world; for then God blessed the seventh day, and on it rested from all his works.
Q. When was this commandment renewed?
A. In the old law, when God gave the commandments of Moses on Mount Sinai.
Q. Why was the Jewish Sabbath changed into the Sunday?
A. Because Christ rose from the dead, and the Holy Ghost descended on a Sunday.
Q. By whom was it changed?
A. By the church in the Apostle's time.
[pg. 113] ...
O Christian soul, God, as Lord and Creator of all things has a sovereign right to demand our service at what time, and in what place he shall ordain, remember, that as your God and Creator, he has appointed one day in the week to his service, and this day is Sunday, or the Sabbath day. (end quote)
Source: The Poor Man's Catechism: or The Christian Doctrine Explained, with short admonitions by John Mannock, O.S.B. Published in 1859 by Edward Dunigan & Brother, James B. Kirker, 371 Broadway, New York, pages 112, 113.
Note the abbreviation of the Sabbath commandment in each of the above catechisms which declare that Sunday is the day to sanctify. But the commandment declares the seventh day of the week (Saturday) to be the Sabbath day, not Sunday the first day (See below Exo. 20:8-11). Rather than explain how the Roman church has changed a commandment of Yah, some Catholic catechisms simply abbreviate the commandment, and then teach erroneously that Sunday is the Sabbath day ordained by the commandment. Others attribute the change to the Apostles; or, in the case of The Poor Man's Catechism cited above, boldly state that God has Himself appointed Sunday to be the Sabbath day.
And then there are also some people who will suggest that somehow we have lost track of the days of the week, and that today, no one can be sure just what day is the seventh day of the week. Those who embrace this erroneous notion have never actually researched the issue to discover the facts. So then, when was the Sabbath begun? When was the first Sabbath observed, on which day, and who was it intended for?
Who were the First Sabbath Keepers?
Gen 2:2; And on the Seventh day El ended his work which he had made; and He rested on the Seventh day from all His work which He had made.
Gen 2:3; And El blessed the Seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested.
The very first Sabbath was the Seventh day of Creation: look up Saturday in most any dictionary and it will tell you that it is the Seventh day of the week. So who observed the first Sabbath day?
Gen 1:27; So El created man in his own image, in the image of Elohim created he him; male and female created He them.
Gen 1:31; And El saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.
And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
Both Adam and Eve were created on the sixth day, before the Sabbath day, and so were present to observe the day of rest Yah created for them. Some will try to claim that the Sabbath was a Jewish festival, even part of the Mosaic law that was "done away with" at the cross. Since Sabbath was established at Creation as a memorial of that event, would that notion then make Adam and Eve Jews? Actually not a single Jew existed until the covenant made with Abraham, thousands of years later. The Sabbath predates Jews!
Mark 2:27; And [Yahshua] said unto them, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath:
Mark 2:28; "Therefore the Son of man is Master also of the Sabbath."
So the seventh day Sabbath was created for Adam and Eve, and all of humanity, and not singularly for the Hebrew nation. Adam lived for 930 years (Gen 5:5), and probably was a Sabbath observer his entire life. Adam was not the only one of the first millennium to keep the Sabbath. The same can be said for Enoch, who was born within the lifetime of Adam.
Butler's Catechism, previously cited, gives the following information about the Sabbath later in a different section:
(quote)
Q. What divine traditions existed before Moses wrote the first books of the Old Testament?
A. The duty of sanctifying the Sabbath (Gen. ii. 3); the prohibition of eating the blood of animals (Gen. ix. 4); the rite of circumcision (Gen. xvi. 10); and generally, the whole history of religion before the time of Moses, during twenty-five hundred years.
Q. What traditions of the Christian religion existed before the several books of the New Testament were promulgated or written?
A. The substitution of the Sunday, as a holy day, for the Sabbath, or Saturday; the abrogation of the necessity of circumcision, and generally, the whole system of the Christian religion.(end quote)
Source: The Most Rev. Dr. James Butler's Catechism, revised, enlarged, improved, and recommended by the four R. C. Archbishops of Ireland, published in New York by P. J. Kenedy, 1886, page 58.
So in this instance, a Catholic catechism not only admits the change from the Sabbath to Sunday, but it even claims that it was the duty of mankind to keep the Saturday Sabbath beginning with the seventh day of Creation!
Sabbath Keeping After the Flood
The Patriarch Abraham, who was born some 1000 years after the death of Adam, and 300 years after the flood, can also be shown to have kept the seventh day Sabbath:
Gen 26:5; Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.
Clearly since Abraham kept Yah's laws he must also have faithfully kept the seventh day Sabbath of Yahweh.
Moses and Israel Before Mount Sinai.
Before the Commandments of Yah were inscribed on Stone Tablets atop mount Sinai, Yah had already shown Israel precisely which day was His Sabbath:
Exo 16:23; And [Moses] said unto them, This is that which Yahweh hath said, "To morrow is the rest of the holy Sabbath unto Yahweh":
Some may think that any old day will honor El, but Yahweh left no doubt about the day He wanted observed, even telling Moses and the Israelites exactly which day was the Sabbath. For 40 years a double portion of manna fell on Friday, and NO manna fell on Sabbath! Note that this began BEFORE the Ten Commandments were given to Moses on Sinai. The manna continued until the Israelites entered the promised land (Exodus 16:35, Joshua 5:12). With 52 weeks a year, that means Yah made the seventh day Sabbath plain to them for over 2000 weeks. It is a day that evidently does matter to Yah.
Mount Sinai.
Note that at Sinai the following was said with regard to the Sabbath:
Exo 20:8; Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Exo 20:9; Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
Exo 20:10; But the seventh day is the Sabbath of Yahweh thy El: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
Exo 20:11; For in six days Yahweh made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore Yahweh blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.
When Moses came up on Sinai, Yah commanded that the Hebrews were to "REMEMBER the Sabbath day." The Sabbath was not first revealed to Israel on Sinai, they were told to remember what they already knew in no uncertain terms.
Will Just Any Seven Day Cycle of Rest Satisfy Yah?
Some may ask, "one day in seven? Well, why can't I pick my own seventh day? Sunday is more convenient for me, or perhaps Monday, etc., so that will be my day of Sabbath rest to Yahweh. I will keep every seventh day holy, but that day will be a day of my own choosing."
But the notion that Yah allows one to pick their own seventh day has been insinuated into mainstream Christian thought, by Catholicism's teachings:
(quote)
1157...
Q. Did not God command us to observe Saturday, and not Sunday at all?
A. No. The command as given by Moses in the Name of God to the Jews was that the Sabbath, and not Saturday, should be kept holy. The word Sabbath means rest. The law includes two elements; one essential, that one day in seven should be dedicated to God; the other ceremonial, that the particular day should be chosen. The Jews selected Saturday. ...
1159. ...
... The Jews decided to observe Saturday, while Christians decided to observe Sunday. The seventh day as God's day was not changed. The Sabbath, God's rest day, was transferred from Saturday to Sunday. (end quote)
Source: Radio Replies, First Volume, by Rev. Dr. Leslie Rumble, M.S.C. and Rev. Charles Mortimer Carty, Copyright 1938, printed by Radio Replies Press, St. Paul 1, Minn., U.S.A., 1157 & 1159, page 235.
The problem with the 'Choosing-One-Day-in-Seven Theory' is that it has no foundation in Scripture. As we noted above with the 40 years in the wilderness, Yah clearly designated a specific day as His Sabbath. Israel was never given a choice in what day they wanted to keep holy as the Sabbath day. The entire community was to keep Yah's designated day in unison as a memorial to Creation week. No one had the prerogative or authority to decide to start keeping some other day as their Sabbath. Note the reaction when some of Israel decided to look for manna on the seventh day Sabbath:
Exo 16:27; And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none.
Exo 16:28; And Yahweh said unto Moses, "How long refuse ye to keep my Commandments and my laws?"
By not resting on Yah's designated Sabbath day, the law and Commandments of Yah had been broken!
Exo 16:29; See, for that Yahweh hath given you the Sabbath, therefore He giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.
Exo 16:30; So the people rested on the seventh day.
Note that it is emphasized that Yahweh had given the Sabbath. Neither Moses nor Israel had picked the day they wanted to observe, they were told specifically which day of the week to keep holy. Keeping it is a Sign of Allegiance to our Creator. Breaking it, is breaking the absolute Law of El. No one has the authority to choose the day they will observe as the seventh day. Yah did not just institute a seven day cycle, He blessed and sanctified a specific day as hallowed. But there is a choice involved: either we choose to keep El's seventh day Sabbath, or we choose to break His commandment by not observing it, (although this choice may indeed have been made by many in ignorance, having been indoctrinated into an UNsaving lie concerning this situation.)
So, just how do we know which day is the real Sabbath of Yahweh?
Has the Seventh Day Sabbath been Lost?
Ask most any Christian what day of the week Yahshua rose from the grave and they would answer that it was a Sunday, but when the issue of the seventh day Sabbath is raised, some Sundaykeepers will express doubt about which day is the Sabbath. The following is an excerpt from a sermon (Program C4029) given by Pastor Chuck Smith of Calvary Chapel - Costa Mesa, on Sunday, July 2nd, 2000, which attempts to maintain this uncertainty:
(quote)
"What is the Sabbath day? Well, in our calendar the Sabbath Day is Saturday. Sunday is the first day of the week, Saturday would be the seventh day, or the Sabbath day in our calendar. We cannot be certain, however, with all of the changes that have been made in the calendars through the years, that what we acknowledge today as Saturday, or the Sabbath day, is the same that they observed in the time of Moses, or thereafter. We're not certain, as far as what day of the week actually is the seventh day." - Pastor Chuck Smith. (end quote)
Excerpt: Doubt About The Sabbath - (Real Audio, © 2000 Chuck Smith)
Since this has come from a relatively well known pastor, the question has to be asked, just who is the "we" spoken of. What reputable authority can be cited that will confirm that "we" cannot be certain which is the Sabbath day? And exactly which calendar change is responsible for losing the seventh day of the week? When did this happen? On what verifiable information is this based? He does not say. No facts are offered, only an unsupported presumption. Just because Pastor Chuck Smith does not know which day is really the seventh day Sabbath, does not mean that "we", and he, cannot be absolutely certain about the day. If some effort to study the matter is at least attempted, the true seventh day can indeed be recognized.
Look at most calendars. Sunday is normally shown as the first day of the week, and Saturday as the last day of the week. (Recently some business calendars are being printed with Monday as the first day, confusing the issue somewhat.) Virtually any dictionary will also confirm Sunday is the FIRST day of the week, and Saturday is the seventh day of the week. If there is uncertainty about one day, are not all similarly in doubt, including Sunday? For nearly 20 centuries the resurrection of (the Latin Iesus) has been celebrated on Sunday. And how do we know Yahshua's resurrection day was on a Sunday? Can we be certain of that day?
Was Sunday the Resurrection Day?
Matt 28:1; In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre.
Mark 16:2; And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.
Luke 24:1; Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them.
Luke 24:2; And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre.
John 20:1; The first [day] of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre.
Yahshua lay in the tomb on the Sabbath, and the Sabbath ended at sundown, (as does every day according to the Bible). The women came to the tomb at dawn the following day (the first day of the week) and discovered that the tomb was already empty. Clearly then, the resurrection occurred after the close of the Sabbath at sundown, yet prior to sunrise on the first day of the Hebrew week.
Yahshua arose at the end of the seventh day, because of the prophesy which predicted he would be in the earth for exactly three days and three nights, which three day/night period concluded at the end of the Hebrew seventh day Sabbath; thus he would be up and about, immediately, at the close of the seventh day and not necessarily on the first day of the Hebrew week, but "between the evenings" (dusk); the first day of the week in the Hebrew calendar begins in the evening on Saturday night, at sundown; and this Hebrew first day would end Sunday evening at sundown: as Yahshua was out and about on Saturday night BEFORE the pagan Sunday sunrise which is the beginning of the first day of the pagan week, therefore this entirely excludes the pagan Sunday which BEGINS at Sunrise, as the "day of resurrection" (see StarNet's Jonas Chart)/ed.
Now, Sundaykeepers seem to have no doubts or problems when it comes to their keeping the first day of the week. However, when it comes to the previous day, the seventh day Sabbath, suddenly there is talk of calendar changes and doubt that we can really know the correct seventh day (many do that with the sacred names too-ed)?
Yahshua Knew & Kept the Sabbath Day
Since Yahshua "made the worlds," he knew exactly which day was the genuine seventh-day Sabbath:
Luke 4:16; And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
Yahshua himself was an observer of the seventh day Sabbath. Now, if the Jews had somehow lost track of the Sabbath day since the time of Moses, Yahshua would have certainly corrected them, but this was not necessary, since they were already observing the correct day, as they have always been a meticulous people. As this establishes a firm reference point in history, it remains for the skeptic to try and prove that the Jews, and the rest of the world, somehow had collectively lost track of the seventh day Sabbath in the 2000 years since the time of Messias, a period which is very well documented.
The Gregorian Calendar Reform
Sometimes people will say the calendar reform in the Middle Ages must have altered the weekdays as we know them, so we cannot be sure which day is the seventh day.
Again people that think this, have not researched the issue.
The calendar reform of 1582 was initiated by Pope Gregory XIII because the calendar established by Julius Caesar, was not accurate and stable. This was due to the fact that the Julian calendar added a "leap day" every 4 years, without exception, and this resulted in adding too many days than required for an accurate solar calendar. The Julian calendar had commenced the 1st of January of the 46th year before the birth of Messias (the 708th from the foundation of Rome). At that time the Spring equinox fell on March 25th, but because of the Julian calendar's inaccuracy, it had gradually drifted earlier over the years to March 10th or 11th by 1582. This error was important to the Catholic church, because under the solar Julian calendar, the date of Easter (a most important date to that church), was gradually creeping farther and farther (earlier and earlier) away from the time of year set by the Council of Nicea in 325 A.C.E. ("after common era"), when the equinox fell about March 21st. Easter was then to be observed by Roman Catholics on the first Sunday after the full moon occurring after the Spring equinox, except when that coincided with the Jewish Passover, in which case Easter was delayed to the following Sunday.
To correct this perceived Easter problem, Pope Gregory XIII (Inter Gravissimas) returned the Spring equinox to March 21st, by decreeing that Thursday, October 4th 1582 would be followed not by the 5th, but by (Friday) October 15th. He jumped the calendar 10 days numerically, but did not change the weekly cycle of days.
So that this correction would be maintained, the Pope then decreed that "leap years" would occur only when the year was divisible by four, and only the centennial years that were divisible by 400 would be leap years. During a leap year, one day is added to the month of February (the 29th), as a correction. This adjustment of the Calendar was gradually adopted across Europe, and the world, and is nearly universal today.
England did not adopt the Gregorian calendar until 1752. By that time, eleven days had been gained so (Wednesday) September 2, was followed by (Thursday) September 14. The eleven days were skipped, but the weekly cycle of days, Sunday through Saturday, remained unchanged throughout the Middle Ages. (The French Revolution was a notable exception, when for a period of 14 years (1792-1806) a ten day week was adopted, the tenth day being the day of rest; (ed's note-- this French adjustment created extreme Chaos and thus they were forced to change it back to the traditional seven day cycle: that 'experiment' indicated that the seven day cycle is evidently essential to humankind's collective cyclic equilibrium).
Inquiries made in 1932 to the United States Naval Observatory, in Washington D.C., and the Royal Greenwich Observatory in London, England, have also confirmed that the weekly cycle of 7 days as observed today has NOT been altered, and remains as it has been since before the time of Messias.
So both History and the Bible make it quite clear that Sunday is the first day of the week, and Saturday is indeed the seventh day which has been kept by the Jews for millennia even to the present day. The true seventh day Sabbath of Yah has not been lost. Our Saturday is the SAME day of the week today as the First/original seventh-day Sabbath of creation.
Who Authorized the Switch to Sunday Keeping?
So what rationale exists for observing Sunday, the first day of the week, instead of Saturday, the biblical seventh day?
(quote)
"It is presumed to be the day of Christ's resurrection and thus Christians have transferred the solemnity of Sabbath, to Sunday, to honor that event." (end quote)
That sounds terrific, but where exactly does the Bible authorize that change? You see, I really do adhere to the Protestant claim of "the Bible and the Bible only" as the authoritative Word of Yah, on the matter. The Sabbath was ordained by Yah as a Memorial to His Creation, and that Event was not supplanted by or "done away with" by either the crucifixion or the resurrection.
Gen 2:3; And El blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested from all His work which Elohim created and made.
Exo 20:11; For in six days Yahweh made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: therefore Yahweh blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.
Exo 31:16; Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations, for a Perpetual Covenant.
Exo 31:17; It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days Yahweh made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day He rested, and was refreshed.
The seventh day was sanctified forever as a day of rest from all work, as a Memorial to the completion of Creation.
If Yah himself declared the seventh day to be sanctified and thus holy forever, then where in his Word, the Bible, does He rescind the observance of the seventh day? Better yet, where in the Bible is the first day of the week (Sunday) declared to be a holy day to be honored in perpetuity, as a replacement for the Sabbath? So just WHO insinuated this change from Saturday to Sunday?
The Presumed Authority of the Church
(quote)
... They (those who assert church authority) also refer to the example of the Apostles, who commanded to abstain from blood and from things strangled, Acts 15, 29. They refer to the Sabbath day as having been changed into "the Lord's Day", contrary to the Decalog, as it seems. Neither is there any example whereof they make more than concerning the changing of the Sabbath day. Great, say they, is the power of the Church, since it has dispensed with one of the Ten Commandments! (end quote)
The Augsburg Confession, Philip Melanchthon (1530), Article 28: Of Ecclesiastical Power.
Pope Sylvester I (314-335 A.D.) Decrees the Transfer of Sabbath Rest to Sunday:
Rabanus Maurus (776-856), abbot of Fulda and later archbishop of Mainz, Germany, was rated one of the greatest theologians of his age and probably the most cultured man of his time, and exceptionally learned in patristics. Besides, he was a zealous defender of the papacy and its teachings. In one of his works, he says,
(quote)
Pope Sylvester instructed the clergy to keep the feriae. And, indeed, from an old custom he called the first day [of the week] the "Lord's [day]," on which the light was made in the beginning and also the resurrection of Christ is celebrated.6(end quote)
Rabanus Maurus does not mean to say that Sylvester was the first man who referred to the days of the week as feriae or who first started the observance of Sunday among Christians. He means that, according to the testimony of Roman Catholic writers, Sylvester confirmed those practices and made them official insofar as his church was concerned. Hence Rabanus says elsewhere in his writings:
(quote)
Pope Sylvester, first among the Romans, ordered that the names of the days [of the week], which they previously called after the name of their gods, that is, [the day] of the Sun, [the day] of the Moon, [the day] of Mars, [the day] of Mercury, [the day] of Jupiter, [the day] of Venus, [the day] of Saturn, they should call feriae thereafter, that is the first feria, the second feria, the third feria, the fourth feria, the fifth feria, the sixth feria, because that in the beginning of Genesis it is written that God said concerning each day: on the first, "Let there be light"; on the second, "Let there be a firmament"; on the third, "Let the earth bring forth verdure"; etc. But he [Sylvester] ordered [them] to call the Sabbath by the ancient term of the law, [to call] the first feria the "Lord's day," because on it "the Lord" rose [from the dead], Moreover, the same pope decreed that the rest of the Sabbath should be transferred rather to the Lord's day [Sunday], on order that on that day we should rest from worldly works for the praise of God.7
Note particularly, he says that "the same pope [Sylvester I] decreed that the rest of the Sabbath should be transferred rather to the Lord's day [Sunday]."8 According to this statement, he was the first bishop to introduce the idea that the divinely appointed rest of the Sabbath day should be transferred to the first day of the week. This is significant, especially in view of the fact that it was during Sylvester's pontificate that the emperor of Rome [Constantine] issued the first civil laws compelling men to rest from secular labor on Sunday, and that Eusebius, bishop of Caesarea, was the first theologian on record to present arguments, allegedly from the Scriptures, that Christ did transfer the rest of the Sabbath day to Sunday.
6 Rabanus Maurus, Liber de Computo (A book Concerning Computation), Chap. XXVII ("Concerning Festivals"), as translated by the writer from the Latin text in Migne's Patrologia Latina, Vol. CVII, col. 682.
7 ------------, De Clericorum Institutione (Concerning the Instruction of the Clergymen), Book II, Chap. XLVI, as translated by the writer from the Latin text in Migne's Patrologia Latina, Vol. CVII, col. 361.
8 The wording in the Latin text reads: "Statuit autem idem papa ut otium Sabbati magis in diem Dominicam transferretur, ut ea die a terrenis operibus ad laudandum Deum vacaremus."(end quote)
Source: Sabbath and Sunday in Early Christianity, by Robert L. Odom, © 1977 by the Review and Herald Publishing Association, pages 247-248.
Christians "felt" they had the authority.
(quote)
63. Christ came to accomplish a new "exodus", to restore freedom to the oppressed. He performed many healings on the Sabbath (cf. Mt 12:9-14 and parallels), certainly not to violate the Lord's Day, but to reveal its full meaning: "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath" (Mk 2:27). Opposing the excessively legalistic interpretation of some of his contemporaries, and developing the true meaning of the biblical Sabbath, Jesus, as "Lord of the Sabbath" (Mk 2:28), restores to the Sabbath observance its liberating character, carefully safeguarding the rights of God and the rights of man. This is why Christians, called as they are to proclaim the liberation won by the blood of Christ, felt that they had the authority to transfer the meaning of the Sabbath to the day of the Resurrection.(end quote)
Source: Pope John Paul II, Dies Domini.
Doctors of the Church Decreed the Change to Sunday
(quote)
... we find St. Cæsarius of Arles in the sixth century teaching that the holy Doctors of the Church had decreed that the whole glory of the Jewish Sabbath had been transferred to the Sunday, and that Christians must keep the Sunday holy in the same way as the Jews had been commanded to keep holy the Sabbath Day.
(end quote)
Source: The Catholic Encyclopedia, entry on Sunday, Volume XIV, Copyright © 1912 by Robert Appleton Company, Online Edition Copyright © 1999 by Kevin Knight, Nihil Obstat, July 1, 1912. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., Censor, Imprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York.
Cardinal Gibbons on Sunday
(quote)
"... is not every Christian obliged to sanctify Sunday and to abstain on that day from unnecessary servile work? Is not the observance of this law among the most prominent of our sacred duties? But, you may read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, and you will not find a single line authorizing the sanctification of Sunday. The Scriptures enforce the religious observance of Saturday, a day which we never sanctify." (end quote)
Source: The Faith of Our Fathers, by James Cardinal Gibbons, Archbishop of Baltimore, 88th edition, page 89. Originally published in 1876, republished and Copyright 1980 by TAN Books and Publishers, Inc., pages 72-73.
Baltimore Catechism 2
(quote)
10. Q. What are we commanded by the third Commandment?
A. By the third Commandment we are commanded to keep holy the Lord's day and the holy days of obligation, on which we are to give our time to the service and worship of God.
11. Q. How are we to worship God on Sundays and holydays of obligation?
A. We are to worship God on Sundays and holydays of obligation by hearing Mass, by prayer, and by other good works.
12. Q. Are the Sabbath day and the Sunday the same?
A. The Sabbath day and the Sunday are not the same. The Sabbath is the seventh day of the week, and is the day which was kept holy in the old law; the Sunday is the first day of the week, and is the day which is kept holy in the new law.
13. Q. Why does the Church command us to keep the Sunday holy instead of the Sabbath?
A. The Church commands us to keep the Sunday holy instead of the Sabbath because on Sunday Christ rose from the dead, and on Sunday He sent the Holy Ghost upon the Apostles.
14. Q. What is forbidden by the third Commandment?
A. The third Commandment forbids all unnecessary servile work and whatever else may hinder the due observance of the Lord's day. (end quote)
Source: A Catechism of Christian Doctrine, prepared and enjoined by the order of the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore, New Edition, No. 2, Imprimatur by John Cardinal McCloskey, Archbishop of New York, and approved by James Cardinal Gibbons, Archbishop of Baltimore, published in 1885 by Broadway Church Goods House, 719 N. Broadway, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, page 64.
Advanced Catechism
(quote)
354. What are we commanded by the third Commandment?
By the third Commandment we are commanded to keep holy the Lord's day and the holy days of obligation, on which we are to give our time to the service and worship of God.
Which is now the Lord's Day?
The Lord's day now is Sunday, in memory of the Resurrection of Christ and of the Descent of the Holy Ghost.
355. How are we to worship God on Sundays and holydays of obligation?
We are to worship God on Sundays and holydays of obligation by hearing Mass, by prayer, and by other good works. ...
356. Are the Sabbath day and the Sunday the same?
The Sabbath day and the Sunday are not the same. The Sabbath is the seventh day of the week, and is the day which was kept holy in the old law; the Sunday is the first day of the week, and is the day which is kept holy in the new law.
Who made the change from Saturday to Sunday?
The change from Saturday to Sunday was made by the Apostles, though the Bible does not clearly teach Sunday observance.
357. Why does the Church command us to keep the Sunday holy instead of the Sabbath?
The Church commands us to keep the Sunday holy instead of the Sabbath because on Sunday Christ rose from the dead, and on Sunday He sent the Holy Ghost upon the Apostles.
358. What is forbidden by the third Commandment?
The third Commandment forbids all unnecessary servile work and whatever else may hinder the due observance of the Lord's day. (end quote)
Source: Advanced Catechism Of Catholic Faith And Practice, based upon the Third Plenary Council Catechism for use in the higher grades of Catholic Schools, compiled by Rev. Thomas J. O'brien, inspector of Parochial Schools, Diocese of Brooklyn, published by John B. Oink, Chicago Ill., copyright 1929, pages 180-182.
Cardinal Gasparri's Catholic Catechism
(quote)
Article 3. The Third Commandment of the Decalogue.
(203) What does God command in the Third Commandment--"Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath Day"?
In the Third Commandment-"Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath Day"--God commands that festival days--that is, days dedicated to Him--should be kept with divine worship, business and bodily toil being laid aside. 190
(204) What were the festival days in the Old Testament?
In the Old Testament there were many festival days, but the chief one was the Sabbath, the very name of which signifies the rest needful for the worship of God, whence it is called "the day of rest."
(205) Why is the Sabbath day not observed under the New Testament?
The Sabbath day is not observed under the New Testament, because in its place the Church keeps Sunday in honor of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, and the coming...
[pg. 121]
...down of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost; the Church also adds other festival days. 191
(206) To what, then, are we bound nowadays as regards keeping festival days holy?
As regards keeping festival days holy we are to-day bound to sanctify, in the manner proscribed by the Church, the Sundays and other Feast Days appointed by her 192
190 Exod. xx, 8; xxxi, 13; Deut. v, 12-15.
191 The commandment about keeping the Sabbath holy was not, if we consider only the day actually stated, a fixed and constant one, but a variable one, nor was it so much a moral as a ceremonial precept. If, however, we consider the commandment itself, it will be evident that it has its moral aspect and forms part of the natural law. Moreover the date at which the keeping of the Sabbath was removed was precisely that at which the rest of the Hebrew cult and ceremonial was to cease?namely the day of Christ's death. See the Catechism of the Council of Trent, III, iv, 4ff. (end quote)
Source: The Catholic Catechism, by Peter Cardinal Gasparri, translated by the Rev. Hugh Pope, O.P., second printing, copyright 1932 and printed by P. J. Kenedy & Sons, Typographi Pontificii, 12 Barclay Street, New York, questions 203-206, pages 120-121
Great is the Authority of the Church
(quote)
You will have noticed, my dear children, that the day on which We keep the Sabbath is not the same as that on which it was observed by the Jews. They kept and still keep the Sabbath upon Saturday, we upon Sunday; they on the seventh day, we on the first day of the week. Hence the Jews close their shops and attend their synagogues upon Saturday, but Sunday is observed as the day of rest by all Christians, even by those sects who are separated from the Catholic Church. You will ask, what is the reason of this? It is because the Apostles, who were the first pastors of the Church, by the authority which [p. 107] they had received from our Blessed Lord to regulate all that regards his public worship, changed the day appointed for the keeping of the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday — from the seventh to the first day of the week. And why did they do so? To honour the glorious Resurrection of our Lord and the Descent of the Holy Ghost upon the Apostles, both of which mysteries were accomplished on the first day of the week. From this we may understand how great is the authority of the Church in interpreting or explaining to us the commandments of God, an authority which is acknowledged by the universal practice of the whole Christian world, even of those sects who profess to take the Holy Scriptures as their sole rule of faith, since they observe as the day of rest not the seventh day of the week commanded by the Bible, but the first day, which we know is to be kept holy, only from the tradition and teaching of the Catholic Church. (end quote)
Source: Catechism Made Easy, Being A Familiar Explanation Of The Catechism Of Christian Doctrine, by the Rev. Henry Gibson, Vol. II., Liverpool: printed by Rockliff Brothers, 44 Castle Street. London: R. Washbourne, 18, Paternoster Row, 1874, pgs. 106-107.
Summa Theologica
(quote)
In the New Law the observance of the Lord's day (Sunday) took the place of the observance of the Sabbath (Saturday), not by virtue of the precept (of God) but by the institution of the Church and the custom (Tradition) of Christian people. (end quote)
Source: St. Thomas Aquinas: Summa Theologica - SS Q[122] A[4] Reply to Objection 4.
Deharbe's Large Catechism
(quote)
THE THIRD COMMANDMENT OF GOD
"Remember that thou keep holy the sabbath day."
1. What does God command by this Third Commandment?
By this Third Commandment God Commands us to keep holy one day of the week, which is thence called the "Lord's Day."
Note. The Jews kept the Sabbath or the seventh day, Christians keep the Sunday or the first day of the week.
?2. Why do Christians keep the Sunday instead of the Sabbath?
Because the Apostles appointed it so in memory of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and the Descent of the Holy Ghost, which events took place on Sunday. (end quote)
Source: Deharbe's Large Catechism, translated by a father of the Society of Jesus from the German edition, prepared for the United States, copyright 1882 and published by Benzinger Brothers, New York, Cincinnati and Chicago, and blessed in writing by Pope Leo XIII on January 3rd, 1883, page 58.
A Convert's Catechism
(quote)<
Q. Which is the Sabbath day?
A. Saturday is the Sabbath day.
Q. Why do we observe Sunday instead of Saturday?
A. We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church, in the Council of Laodicea (A.D. 336), transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday.
Q. Why did the Catholic Church substitute Sunday for Saturday?
A. The Church substituted Sunday for Saturday by the plenitude of that divine power which Jesus Christ bestowed upon her.
Q. What does the Third Commandment command?
A. The Third Commandment commands us to sanctify Sunday as the Lord's Day. (end quote)
Source: The Convert's Catechism of Catholic Doctrine, by Reverend Peter Geiermann, C.S.R., Copyright 1910 by Joseph Gummersbach, blessed by Pope Pius X on the 25th of January 1910 via Cardinal Merry Del Val, published by B. Herder Book Co, 15 and 17 South Broadway, St. Louis, Mo., and London, W. C. 33 Queen Square, in 1937, Twelfth Edition, page 50.
(quote)
... in 336 A.D., the Catholic Church, at the Council of Laodicea, made the ecclesiastical law obliging the faithful to attend Mass and to abstain from servile works on Sundays. And all Christians accepted that law in virtue of the divine authority Christ gave to His Church when He said, "Whatsoever you bind upon earth shall be bound also in Heaven; and whatsoever you loose upon earth shall be loosed also in Heaven" (Matt., xviii, 18). (end quote)
Source: Seventh Day Adventists, by Rev. Dr. L. Rumble. M.S.C., published by The Australian Catholic Truth Society Record, February 10, 1950, pamphlet No. 446, printed by The Advocate Press, 143-151 o'Beckett St., Melbourne, pg. 24.
(quote)
The Council of Laodicea in Phrygia Pacatiana, was a local, Eastern, Greek-speaking synod, and the canons referring to the Sabbath or Sunday/Lord's day are listed here:
LAODICEA, CANON 16. - The Gospels are to be read on Sabbath, with the other Scriptures [apparently at Communion services; see canon 49, below].
LAODICEA, CANON 29. - Christians must not judaize by resting on the Sabbath, but must work on that day, rather honoring the Lord's Day; and, if they can, resting then as Christians. But if any shall be found to be judaizers, let them be anathema from Christ.
LAODICEA, CANON 49. - During Lent, the Bread must not be offered except on the Sabbath Day and on the Lord's Day only.
LAODICEA, CANON 51. - The nativities of Martyrs [actually, the death days, on which martyrs were considered to have been born to eternal life] are not to be celebrated in Lent, but commemorations of the holy Martyrs are to be made on the Sabbaths and Lord's days. (end quote)
A Catholic Catechism:
(quote)
THIRD COMMANDMENT OF GOD
"THOU SHALT NOT DO UNNECESSARY SERVILE WORK ON THELORD'S DAY, BUT PERFORM WORKS PLEASING TO GOD."
...
227. Which is the Lord's Day?
The Lord's Day is Sunday.
...
The LAW of keeping Sunday holy, instead of the Sabbath, was made by the Church, probably by the apostles. (end quote)
Source: A Catholic Catechism for the Parochial and Sunday Schools of the United States, Rev. James Groenings, Priest of the Society of Jesus, translated by Very Rev. James Rockliff, of the same Society, Benzinger Brothers, Printers to the Holy Apostolic See, copyright 1900, Nihil Obstat: Theodore Van Rossum, S.J., Censor Deputatus, Imprimatur: Michael Augustine, Archbishop of New York, page 65.
Faerber's Catechism
(quote)
THIRD COMMANDMENT OF GOD
Thou shalt keep holy the Lord's day.
209. Which is the Lord's day?
Sunday, the first day of the week, is the Lord's day.
On Sunday, God the Father began creation, God the Son arose from the dead, and the Holy Ghost descended from Heaven.--The Jews observed the last day of the week, the Sabbath, and the Apostles, commissioned by our Lord Jesus Christ, substituted for it the first day, the Sunday. (end quote)
Source: Catechism for the Catholic Parochial Schools of the United States, by Rev. W. Faerber, 36th edition, Revised, published by B. Herder Book Co., 17 South Broadway, St. Louis, Mo., and 33 Queen Square, London, W. C., copyright 1935, page 41.
The Sunday Sabbath flagrantly contradicts the Bible
(quote)
It is worth its while to remember that this observance of the [Sunday] Sabbath, in which, after all, the only Protestant worship consists, not only has no foundation in the Bible, but it is in flagrant contradiction with its letter, which commands rest on the [7th day] Sabbath, which is Saturday. It was the Catholic Church which, by the authority of Jesus Christ, has transferred this rest to the Sunday in remembrance of the resurrection of the Lord. Thus the observance of Sunday by the Protestants is an homage they pay, in spite of themselves, to the authority of the [Roman Catholic] Church. (end quote)
Source: Plain Talk About The Protestantism Of Today, from the French of Monsignor Louis Gaston de Segur, Boston: Patrick Donahoe, 1868, Imprimatur Joannes Josephus, Episcopus Boston, pg. 225.
CATECHISM OF POPE PIUS X
(quote)The Third Commandment
1 Q. What does the Third Commandment: Remember thou keep holy the Sabbath day, command us to do?
A. The Third Commandment: Remember thou keep holy the Sabbath day, commands us to honour God by acts of worship on festivals.
2 Q. What are festivals?
A. In the Old Law they were Saturdays and certain other days regarded as specially solemn by the Jews; in the New Law they are Sundays and other festivals instituted by the Church.
3 Q. Why is Sunday sanctified instead of Saturday in the New Law?
A. Sunday, which means the Lord's Day, was substituted for Saturday, because it was on that day that our Lord rose from the dead. (end quote)
St. Paul Family Catechism
[pg. 249](quote)
629. Which is the third commandment?
The third commandment is: Remember to keep holy the Lord's day (cf. Ex. 20:8).
[pg. 250]
630. What are we obliged to do by the third commandment?
By the third commandment we are obliged to worship God on Sundays and on holy days of obligation by participating in the holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
[pg. 253]...
640. Why was Sunday set aside as the Lord's day in place of the Sabbath of the Old Testament?
Sunday was set aside as the Lord's day in place of the Sabbath of the Old Testament because of an apostolic tradition which took its origin from the day of Christ's resurrection. (Acts 20:7) (end quote)
Source: St. Paul Family Catechism, Third Edition, Copyright 1992, by the Daughters of St. Paul, published by St. Paul Books & Media, 50 St. Paul's Ave., Boston MA 02130, pp 249, 251, 253.
A New Catechism
(quote)
What day was the Sabbath?
The seventh day, our Saturday.
Do you keep the Sabbath?
No: we keep the Lord's Day.
Which is that?
The first day: Sunday.
Who changed it?
The Catholic Church. (end quote)
Source: A New Catechism of Christian Doctrine and Practice for School and Home Use, American Edition, Authorized, by James Bellord, published in Notre Dame, Indiana, by The Ave Maria, 1902, pages 86-87. (Also published in London in 1901 by the Catholic Truth Society.)
Keenan's Catechism
[pg. 53](quote)
Q. When Protestants do profane work upon Saturday, or the seventh day of the week, do they follow the Scripture as their only rule of faith?
A. On the contrary, they have only the authority of tradition for this practice. In profaning Saturday, they violate one of God's commandments, which he has never clearly abrogated; "Remember thou keep holy the Sabbath day."
Q. Is the observance of Sunday, as the day of rest, a matter clearly laid down in Scripture?
A. It certainly is not; and yet all Protestants consider the observance of this particular day as essentially necessary to salvation. To say, we observe the Sunday, because Christ rose from the dead on that day, is to say, that we should rest on Thursday, because Christ ascended to heaven on that day, and rested in reality from the work of redemption.
[ pg. 54]
Q. What do you conclude from all this?
A. That Protestants have no Scripture for the measure of their day of rest; that they abolish the observance of Saturday without warrant of Scripture; that they substitute Sunday in its place without scriptural authority; consequently, that for all this, they have only traditional authority. Yet Protestants would look upon a man who would do profane work after five o'clock on Sunday, or keep the Saturday, and profane the first day, as a victim of perdition. Hence we must conclude, that the Scripture, which does not teach these things clearly, does not contain all necessary truths; and, consequently, cannot be the only rule of faith.
[ pg. 108]
Q. Have you any other way of proving that the church has power to institute festivals of precept?
A. Had she not such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religionists agree with her - she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday the seventh day, a change for which there is no Scriptural authority. (end quote)
Source: Controversial Catechism, by the Rev. Stephen Keenan, Second Edition revised and enlarged, published in 1849 by John Doyle, 22 Leith Street, Edinburgh, & J. Chalmers, Castle Street, Dundee, and in 1851 by C. Dolman, 13 South Hanover Street, Edinburgh; and 61, New Bond Street, London, pages 53, 54, and 108.
A Doctrinal Catechism, by Rev. Stephen Keenan, Imprimatur by John Cardinal McCloskey, Archbishop of New York, Third American Edition, Copyright 1876 by T. W. Strong, published by P. J. Kenedy, pages 352-355, 174.
Anglican Archbishop Declares Tradition as Sunday's Origin
(quote)
TORONTO, Oct. 27 (BUP).--Rev. Philip Carrington, Anglican Archbishop of Quebec, sent local clergymen into a huddle today by saying outright that there was nothing to support Sunday being kept holy. Carrington defiantly told a church meeting in this city of straight-laced protestantism that tradition, not the Bible, had made Sunday the day of worship. He quoted the biblical commandment which said the seventh day should be one of rest, and then stated: "That is Saturday." "Nowhere in the Bible is it laid down that worship should be done on Sunday," the Archbishop told a hushed, still audience. Local parsons read his comments today with set, determined looks. They refused comment. (end quote)
Source: News Item, Albertan (Calgary, Alberta, Canada), Oct. 28, 1949.
Sunday Holy By Habit Not By Scripture Says Anglican Leader
(quote)
TORONTO, Oct. 27 (BUP).--Rev. Philip Carrington, Anglican Archbishop of Quebec, sent local clergymen into a huddle Wednesday by saying outright that there was nothing to support Sunday being kept holy.
Archbishop Carrington defiantly told a church meeting in this city of straight-laced Protestantism that tradition, not the Bible, had made Sunday the day of worship.
He quoted the Biblical commandment which said the seventh day should be one of rest, and then stated: "That is Saturday."
"Nowhere in the Bible is it laid down that worship should be done on Sunday," the archbishop said. (end quote)
Source: News Item, Winnipeg Free Press, Manitoba, Thursday, October 27, 1949, page 16.
Sundaykeeping is not founded on Scripture
(quote)
"It is a matter of wonderment to us to see Catholic clergymen using the word ' Sabbath ' for ' Sunday. ' We protest energetically against the Protestant mode of speech. It does not look well for Catholics to knuckle to such Protestant fantastic notions. Sunday is founded, not on Scripture, but on tradition, and is distinctly a Catholic institution. As there is no Scripture for the transfer of the day of rest from the last to the first day of the week, Protestants ought to keep their Sabbath on Saturday, and thus leave Catholics in full possession of Sunday." (end quote)-- Catholic Record, Sept. 17, 1891.
The Catholic Christian Instructed
[p. 202](quote)
Q. What are the days which the Church commands to be kept holy?
A. 1st, The Sunday, or the Lord’s day, which we observe by apostolical tradition, instead of the Sabbath. …
Q. What warrant have you for keeping the Sunday, preferably to the ancient Sabbath, which was the Saturday?
A. We have for it the authority of the Catholic Church, and apostolical tradition.
Q. Does the scripture any where command the Sunday to be kept for the Sabbath?
A. The scripture commands us to hear the Church, St. Matt. xviii. 17. St. Luke x. 16, and to hold fast the traditions of the Apostles, 2 Thess. ii. 15, but the scripture does not in particular mention this change of the Sabbath. St. John speaks of the Lord's day, Rev. i. 10; but he does not tell us what day of the week this was, much less does he tell us that this day was to take the place of the Sabbath ordained in the commandments: St. Luke also speaks of the disciples meeting together to break bread on the first day of the week, Acts xx. 7. And St. Paul, I Cor. xvi 2, orders that on the first day of the week the Corinthians should lay by in store what they designed to bestow in charity on the faithful in Judea: but neither the one nor the other tells us, that this first day of...
[p. 203]
...the week was to be henceforward the day of worship, and the Christian Sabbath; so that truly, the best authority we have for this is the testimony and ordinance of the Church. And therefore, those who pretend to be so religious of the Sunday, whilst they take no notice of other festivals ordained by the same Church authority, show that they act by humor, and not by reason and religion; since Sundays and holydays all stand upon the same foundation, viz, the ordinance of the Church. ...
[p. 204]
Q. What was the reason why the weekly Sabbath was changed from the Saturday to the Sunday?
A. Because our Lord fully accomplished the work of our redemption by rising from the dead on a Sunday, and by sending down the Holy Ghost on a Sunday: as therefore the work of our redemption was a greater work than that of our creation, the primitive Church thought the day, in which this work was completely finished, was more worthy [of] her religious observation than that in which God rested from the creation, and should be properly called the Lord’s day.
Q. But has the Church a power to make any alterations in the commandments of God?
A. The commandments of God, as far as they contain his eternal law, are unalterable and indispensable; but as to whatever was only ceremonial, they cease to oblige, since the Mosaic law was abrogated by Christ's death. Hence, as far as the commandment obliges us to set aside some part of our time for the worship and service of our Creator, it is an unalterable and unchangeable precept of the eternal law, in which the Church cannot dispense: but for as much as it prescribes the seventh day in particular for this purpose, it is no more than a ceremonial precept of the old law, which obligeth not Christians. And therefore, instead of the seventh day, and other festivals appointed in the old law, the Church has prescribed the Sundays and holydays to be set apart for God's worship; and these we are now obliged to keep in consequence of God's commandment, instead of the ancient Sabbath. (end quote)
Source: The Catholic Christian Instructed in the Sacraments, Sacrifice, Ceremonies, and Observances of the Church, by the Right Rev. Dr. Richard Challoner, published in Baltimore in 1852 by John Murphy & Co., pp. 202 - 204.
No Scriptural Warrant for Baptizing Infants or Observing Sunday
(quote)
It is true, Catholics do not hold, as Protestants profess to do, that nothing can possibly be matter of divine revelation which is not contained in holy Scripture, nor do Protestants themselves in fact, though they do in words; for they believe the inspiration of holy Scripture to be matter of Divine revelation, yet this, from the very nature of the [pg 10] case, cannot rest on the testimony of Scripture itself. So, too, with the duty of baptizing infants, and of observing Sunday instead of Saturday as the Christian holiday, on which points Protestants believe and act as Catholics do, while yet they would be puzzled to find Scripture warrant for so doing. ... (end quote)
Source: Library of Controversy - The Clifton Tracts, by the Brotherhood of St. Vincent of Paul, Volume 1, How Do We Know What The Bible Means?, published about 1854 in New York by P. J. Kenedy, Excelsior Catholic Publishing House, 5 Barclay Street, pages 9, 10.
Rebuilding A Lost Faith
(quote)
Protestants often deride the authority of Church tradition, and claimed to be directed by the Bible only; yet they, too, have been guided by customs of the ancient Church, which find no warrant in the Bible, but rest on Church tradition only! A striking instance of this is the following:—The first positive command in the Decalogue is to “Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy,� and this precept was enforced by the Jews for thousands of years. But the Sabbath Day, the observance of which God commanded, was our Saturday. Yet who among either Catholics or Protestants, except a sect or two, like the “Seventh Day Baptists,� ever keep that commandment now? None. Why is this? The Bible, which Protestants claim to obey exclusively, gives no authorisation for the substitution of the first day of the week for the seventh. On what authority, therefore, have they done so? Plainly on the authority of that very Catholic Church which they abandoned, and whose traditions they condemn. (end quote)
Source: Rebuilding a Lost Faith By An American Agnostic, John L. Stoddard, published in New York by P. J. Kenedy and Sons, circa 1921, p. 80.
The Observance of Sunday and Civil Laws for its Enforcement
[pg. 139]...(quote)
Strange as it may seem, the State, in passing laws for the due sanctification of Sunday, is unwittingly acknowledging the authority of the Catholic Church, and carrying out more or less faithfully its prescriptions.
The Sunday, as a day of the week set apart for the obligatory public worship of Almighty God, to be sanctified by a suspension of all servile labor, trade, and worldly avocations and by exercises of devotion, is purely a creation of the Catholic Church.
It is not the Jewish Sabbath; it is, in fact, entirely distinct from it, and not governed by the enactments of the Mosaic law. It is part and parcel of the system of the Catholic Church, as absolutely as Christian marriage is or any other her sacraments, her festivals and fasts, her days of joy and mourning, her indulgences and her jubilees.
[pg. 149]
The Catholic Church created the Sunday and made the very regulations which have come down on the statute-books, and she still constantly, from her pulpits, her catechists' chairs, and the confessional, calls on her faithful to obey them, to sanctify the day, and refrain from all that desecrates it.
[pg. 152]
For ages all Christian nations looked to the Catholic Church, and, as we have seen, the various states enforced by law her ordinances as to worship and cessation of labor on Sunday. Protestantism, in discarding the authority of the Church, has no good reason for its Sunday theory, and ought logically, to keep Saturday as the Sabbath, with the Jews and the Seventh-Day Baptists. For their present practice Protestants in general have no authority but that of a Church which they disown, and there cannot be a greater inconsistency than theirs in asking the state to enforce the Sunday laws.
If it be a mere state holiday, most of the legislative provisions are a mere tyrannical interference with the liberty of a citizen; and it is a strange holiday on which people are forbidden to enjoy themselves, under penalty of fine and imprisonment. If it were merely this, it would be more sensible to punish the man who wore a long face on a public holiday than the man who laughed. (end quote)
StarNet Ed.:
Yahweh's Signature Law is Written
upon our hearts and in our heads, and we Love His great Law
because it is our Freedom from Tyranny of Men
who remain steadfast in their uninspired & unsympathetic Much Religiosity:
"Come out of her My People!"
~finis~