Not about how I feel

Carl Greene is Executive Director of the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference. In the current Sabbath Recorder, he writes "Sabbath Liturgy is Not All About Me":

Liturgy is not a word that we drop in our Seventh Day Baptist circles very often. Even less often do we use the word as a positive descriptor of ourselves. We prefer to say that we are non-liturgical and simply use an order of service for gathered worship. We tend to see the label of liturgical as representative of worship that has become routine to the point of mindless repetition.

I will confess. I like the word liturgy. I am out to convince you that liturgy is a lovable word.

Liturgy is derived from the Greek work leitourgia. It gets better. Two words are contained within liturgy: people (laos) and work (ergon). Hence, leitourgia is literally a "work of the people."' Liturgy is not some stodgy approach to worship—it is the intentional way that we worship together as a body. What I like about using the word "liturgy" is that it keeps us focused on Biblical worship rather than attractional worship.

Our only metric for assessing worship can all too easily be reduced to an assessment of if people like it. This constitutes seeing worship mainly as an attraction to get people through the doors of a church building. One way we do this is by directly demanding our worship personal style preferences—because any normal person will agree with my worship preferences. That usually does not end well.

We can also be indirect in communicating our worship wants. We refer to the wants of people who do not attend worship (yet) but we are confident will come to worship if we make some strategic changes. It just so happens that the worship preferences of the currently-not-attending are the same preferences as mine. I do not even have to ask them. ....

...[O]ur practice of liturgical worship is not so much focused on how I feel or what I want but focused on our great God. ....

Carl Greene, "Sabbath Liturgy is Not All About Me," Sabbath Recorder, May, 2024. (pdf)

A news diet?

My interest in politics started when I was very young. I've participated in it, and taught about it, most of my adult life. So I follow the news. I once subscribed to, and read, Time, Newsweek, and US News & World Report every week, and both local newspapers daily. I still subscribe to The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Telegraph (UK). The evening news, both local and national, once ordered my day. The advent of twenty-four hour news channels and internet outlets didn't help. So this is advice I should follow but probably won't:

The “news diet” part is fairly easy for me, and I’ve been doing it for maybe 2 or 3 years now. I barely read anything these days without cause. Before I read, I do a 1-second mental check and ask myself—do I need to read this? Do I want to read this? The answer to the former is almost always no. And then I move on to wanting. ....

What’s harder for me than merely not following the news is caring less about politics. In some sense, unfortunately, politics is a big part of my life. I mean, after all, I’m a political scientist. It’s not like I have a choice in the matter. But I do believe that life is elsewhere. Where exactly is elsewhere?

Here’s how I put it in the piece, with the important part bolded:

Unless you have a job that requires you to know things, however, it’s unclear what the news—good or bad—actually does for you, beyond making you aware of things you have no real control over. Most of the things we could know are a distraction from the most important things that we already know: family, faith, friendship, and community. If our time on Earth is finite—on average, we have only about 4,000 weeks—we should choose wisely what to do with it.

Family, faith, friendship, and community: the core four. We all sort of intuitively know this to be true. These are the things that matter. These are also the things that make us happy. ....

Shadi Hamid, "How to Break Up With The News," March 25, 2023.

Do procrastinate

...when putting first things first.

.... Oxford Dictionary defines “procrastinate” this way: “delay or postpone action; put off doing something.” ....

Importantly, Oxford Dictionary goes further in providing some basic etymology explaining that the word is a combined form—taking “pro” which means forward and “crastinus” which means belonging to tomorrow—creating a word that conveys the idea of forwarding that which belongs to tomorrow.

…that which belongs to tomorrow.

After Jesus’ instruction in Matthew 6 that we should seek first His Kingdom and that in doing so all the things we need will be supplied, He says, “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”

Let’s not pretend that Jesus was talking about procrastination here, but let’s also not pretend that He’s talking about productivity. Instead, what he’s talking about is the importance of trusting him with both the present and the future as we go about dealing with what is in front of us in the moment; that we would deal with today what belongs to today and leave for tomorrow what belongs to tomorrow.

Work? Yes.

Plan? Sure.

But, how much time do we as a culture steal from today by taking on responsibilities that belong to tomorrow?

Holy procrastination, then, is discovered by asking a slightly different question of yourself: why do today that which SHOULD be done tomorrow? ....

I want to commend to you holy procrastination.

It isn’t about laziness; rather, it’s about recognizing the unrelenting trap of productivity and coming to grips with the fact that no matter how much you accomplish tonight, there will be just as much waiting for you in the morning.

It isn’t about a lack of ambition and drive; rather, it’s about measuring your ambition against your blessings and asking yourself if the potential gain is worth the actual cost. .... (more, as a pdf)

Johnmark Camenga, "Holy Procrastination," The Sabbath Recorder, July/August, 2022.

"Thank God for laughter!"

Re-posted:

I really like the story, and enjoyed noting its attribution. Via Ray Ortlund:

Rev. Theodore L. Cuyler, the celebrated Brooklyn divine, was visiting the famous London preacher, Rev. Charles H. Spurgeon. After a hard day of work and serious discussion, these two mighty men of God went out into the country together for a holiday. They roamed the fields in high spirits like boys let loose from school, chatting and laughing and free from care. Dr. Cuyler had just told a story at which Mr. Spurgeon laughed uproariously. Then suddenly he turned to Dr. Cuyler and exclaimed, "Theodore, let’s kneel down and thank God for laughter!" And there, on the green carpet of grass, under the trees, two of the world’s greatest men knelt and thanked the dear Lord for the bright and joyous gift of laughter.

The Sabbath Recorder, 1 February 1915, page 157.

Updated when I discovered where it was to be found. The page number was correct but the fifth issue, rather than the first, of The Sabbath Recorder in 1915.

"The Bible pays a great deal of attention to the birth of the Saviour"

The current issue of my denomination's monthly magazine, The Sabbath Recorder, contains a number of articles for and against the celebration of Christmas by Christians. Partly because I was annoyed by some of those arguments I found Sinclair Ferguson's post, "Should Christians Abandon Christmas?," interesting and to the point:

...I read an article by a Christian lamenting the fact that his church celebrated Christmas. He didn’t believe it was “biblical.” After all, evangelical Christians and their churches are guided by Scripture—and there’s nothing in the Bible telling us to celebrate Christmas each year, far less celebrate it on December 25. I have friends who share that point of view. They believe we should order our lives, and our churches, exclusively in obedience to the directives of Scripture. And there’s no command to celebrate Christmas—much less Advent! ....

First, the biblical response. We are responsible to obey all God commands in his word. But that isn’t the same as saying that unless Scripture specifically commands it we should not do it. ....

I think there’s another consideration. Many Old Testament passages look forward to the coming of our Lord, conceived in a virgin’s womb, born in Bethlehem. Matthew devotes almost two chapters to describing and explaining the event; Luke does the same. John takes us right back into eternity when he invites us to reflect on its significance. There are other passages in the New Testament that help us to understand it. In other words, the Bible pays a great deal of attention to the birth of the Saviour and the theology of the incarnation. Why shouldn’t we?

My own experience as a minister has been as follows. Frequently I have preached between four and twelve messages on the birth of Jesus during the month of December. That amounts to somewhere between 3% and 10% of my preaching being devoted to the Grand Miracle. Is that out of proportion? Surely not.

But ask the question the other way round. When churches “ignore” Christmas, how much preaching and teaching are they likely to receive on the incarnation? Somewhere between four and twelve messages? I doubt it. Such non-scientific investigation of preachers I have done indicates that, in fact, by and large, the incarnation will be ignored. Is that a more biblical approach? I doubt it—which is why I agree with what Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones said, “I would lay it down as a rule that there are special occasions which should always be observed…I believe in preaching special sermons on Christmas Day and during the Advent season.” .... (read it all)

Those who claim a pagan origin for the holiday are answered here, and those who wonder why December 25 here.

Core Christianity | Should Christians Abandon Christmas?

Thank God for laughter!

Re-posted:

Via Ray Ortlund:

Rev. Theodore L. Cuyler, the celebrated Brooklyn divine, was visiting the famous London preacher, Rev. Charles H. Spurgeon. After a hard day of work and serious discussion, these two mighty men of God went out into the country together for a holiday. They roamed the fields in high spirits like boys let loose from school, chatting and laughing and free from care. Dr. Cuyler had just told a story at which Mr. Spurgeon laughed uproariously. Then suddenly he turned to Dr. Cuyler and exclaimed, "Theodore, let’s kneel down and thank God for laughter!" And there, on the green carpet of grass, under the trees, two of the world’s greatest men knelt and thanked the dear Lord for the bright and joyous gift of laughter.
(attributed to The Sabbath Recorder, 4 January 1915. I've read through that issue of the Recorder and this story isn't to be found there.)

Seventh Day Baptist history

The newsletter of the Seventh Day Baptist Council on History arrived today announcing soon to be available online resources:

In his October report to General Council, Director Nick Kersten highlighted the Council on History's major project: digitizing library holdings and making them available online. For three years the library catalog has been searchable on our website. Now the entire collection of Sabbath Recorders has been digitized and will soon be available on the website. Next will come the remaining periodicals (newspapers, magazines, yearbooks). Then more!

Council member Tim Lawton has taken the reins of the new website....

The Sabbath Recorder is one of the oldest religious publications in the United States. It began in 1844 as a weekly newspaper and has been in continuous publication since, although it is now a monthly magazine. Having it all available online will be an advantage to historians and genealogists. The site is still being developed and they aren't there yet but the promise is that this fall and winter will see developments. The new online logo (see above) for the site was created by the current editor of the Sabbath Recorder, Pat Cruzan.

Seventh Day Baptist Historical Library & Archives

"Be a teacher"

An article I wrote in 2009, four years after I retired from teaching:

In the film of Robert Bolt’s play, A Man for All Seasons, a young friend asks Thomas More for a place at Court. More tells Richard Rich that he won’t give him what he wants but that he may have another position for him:

Rich: What post?
More: At the new school.
Rich: A teacher! [….]
More: Why not be a teacher? You'd be a fine teacher. Perhaps a great one.
Rich: lf I was, who would know it?
More: You! Your pupils. Your friends. God. Not a bad public, that.

One of the great affirmations of the Protestant Reformation was the “priesthood of all believers” and along with that the realization that the idea of vocation applied to all believers, not just those ordained to holy orders. Our lives can’t be compartmentalized. Our work — how we earn our living — is in service to God, just as every other aspect of life. Whether we gain wide acclaim is irrelevant. What matters is whether we are faithful. Who will know? “God. Not a bad public, that.”

I didn’t come to that realization right away. For as long as I can remember I had planned to be a teacher, but because it was something I thought I could do well that would provide me with a living, not as a calling. In fact I became a public school teacher rather by default because I feared the kind of debt I would incur by continuing in graduate school. In 1970 I put out my credentials (teachers were in short supply then) and was contacted by a principal in Madison, Wisconsin. I taught in that school district — secondary history and political science — for thirty-five years.

I was a mediocre teacher when I started, making serious mistakes — especially in disciplining students — but I learned from my mistakes and eventually achieved a certain competence. I learned very little of value in the education courses I was required to take. Teaching is as much an art as a skill and perfecting the art is largely a matter of trial and error. Each teacher needs to discover the style that works for him or her. I always told my student teachers to commit to at least four or five years before deciding they couldn’t do it.

What makes a good public school teacher? You need to like kids and love your subject matter. Most students will do just about anything a teacher asks if they believe the teacher cares about them, knows what he is talking about, and teaches it well. That means knowing your subject thoroughly, and that means reading a lot. The easiest way to earn the contempt of adolescents is to pretend to know more than you do. The best teachers are those who can convey what is most important clearly and interestingly — and that is almost impossible if you are always operating at or close to the limit of your knowledge. Otherwise what makes a good teacher is what makes any good person: integrity, the willingness to admit error, intolerance of cruelty, a sense of proportion and good humor, meeting your commitments and obligations punctually, “doing unto others…,” etc.

These days, in the public schools, there is much less opportunity for Christian teachers to talk freely about our faith than was true even a few decades ago. Nevertheless, I found, at least in high school, that if the subject came up naturally as part of the curriculum or in student initiated discussion, it was possible if the subject was approached descriptively, if disagreement could be freely expressed, and nobody felt pressured. The most important witness a Christian teacher can make in a classroom, though, is behavior consistent with belief. For high school students there is no greater sin an adult can commit than seeming to be hypocritical.

“Be a teacher.” It is an honorable profession. And your Sabbaths will almost always be free.

Laughter

I really like the story, and enjoyed noting where it appeared. Via Ray Ortlund:

Rev. Theodore L. Cuyler, the celebrated Brooklyn divine, was visiting the famous London preacher, Rev. Charles H. Spurgeon. After a hard day of work and serious discussion, these two mighty men of God went out into the country together for a holiday. They roamed the fields in high spirits like boys let loose from school, chatting and laughing and free from care. Dr. Cuyler had just told a story at which Mr. Spurgeon laughed uproariously. Then suddenly he turned to Dr. Cuyler and exclaimed, "Theodore, let’s kneel down and thank God for laughter!" And there, on the green carpet of grass, under the trees, two of the world’s greatest men knelt and thanked the dear Lord for the bright and joyous gift of laughter.

The Sabbath Recorder, 4 January 1915, page 157.

I couldn't find an image online of the specific issue of The Sabbath Recorder referenced above but I did find this cover from 1915 which I especially enjoyed because among the Milton College faculty pictured were several still living, although retired, when I was a boy. Prof "Si" Inglis, for instance, is on the right end of the front row. Prof. Leman Stringer, who directed the Milton SDB church choir and from whose orchard we purchased apples is second from right in the back row, Miss Mabel Maxson, second from left in the second row, was librarian when I was still exploring the children's section, and Miss Alberta Crandall, who taught at the college for forty-five years, is the center person in that row.  All were Seventh Day Baptists, members of the churches in Milton or Milton Junction, Wisconsin.

The Sabbath Recorder is, I think, the oldest continuously published religious periodical in the country. Here is how it looks today.

The gift of laughter | TGC

170 years

August 23, 1909

Kevin Butler, the editor of The Sabbath Recorder, calls our attention to the 170^th anniversary of that magazine's first publication:

.... On June 13, 1844 the first Sabbath Recorder was printed and mailed from New York City. It remains as one of the oldest continuous religious publications in the country.

The Recorder began as a weekly newspaper, went to a pamphlet-sized weekly, and became the monthly magazine we know it as today. ....

An earlier recognition of first publication included a description of the contents of the first issue:

The five-column weekly newspaper carried articles on religion, happenings among Seventh Day Baptist mission fields, and national news, including an article from the Baltimore American about Morse’s magnetic telegraph that had just been perfected. The writer was thrilled to be able to convey the news from the Democratic convention in Baltimore to Washington, as soon as it was announced.

George B. Utter

The editors over the life of the publication so far:

George B. Utter	1844-1857; 1860-1872
Nathan V. Hull	1872-1881
Lewis A. Platts	1882-1893
Leander E. Livermore	1893-1898
Abram Herbert Lewis	1898-1907
Theodore L. Gardiner	1907-1931
Herbert C. Van Horn	1931-1945
K. Duane Hurley	1945-1947
Hurley S. Warren	1947-1952
Leon M. Maltby	1953-1973
John D. Bevis	1973-1982
D. Scott Smith	1982-1989
Kevin J. Butler	1989-2014

Happy 170th, SR!! | Seventh Day Baptist | General Conference of the United States and Canada

Henry Clarke

In the current issue of the Sabbath Recorder SDB Historian Nick Kersten notes the anniversary of a publication:

.... In 1811, the first official history of Seventh Day Baptists was published by Henry Clarke (the same Henry Clarke who proposed the formation of the General Conference), Copies of the book are still floating around in many church libraries, and would be worth a look. If you can't find a hard copy in a location near you, copies can be found on Google Books (books.google.corn) by searching for "Clarke History of the Sabbatarians."

A direct link to the Google Books copy is here. The full title, in true early 19th Century style, is A History of the Sabbatarians or Seventh Day Baptists in America, Containing Their Rise and Progress to the year 1811, with Their Leaders' Names, and Their Distinguishing Tenets. The silhouette is of the author, Rev. Clarke.

"Not a bad public, that."

Something I was asked to write for this month's Sabbath Recorder:

In the film of Robert Bolt’s play, A Man for All Seasons, a young friend asks Thomas More for a place at Court. More tells Richard Rich that he won’t give him what he wants but that he may have another position for him:

Rich: What post?
More: At the new school.
Rich: A teacher! [….]
More: Why not be a teacher? You'd be a fine teacher. Perhaps a great one.
Rich: lf I was, who would know it?
More: You! Your pupils. Your friends. God. Not a bad public, that.

One of the great affirmations of the Protestant Reformation was the “priesthood of all believers” and along with that the realization that the idea of vocation applied to all believers, not just those ordained to holy orders. Our lives can’t be compartmentalized. Our work — how we earn our living — is in service to God, just as every other aspect of life. Whether we gain wide acclaim is irrelevant. What matters is whether we are faithful. Who will know? “God. Not a bad public, that.”

I didn’t come to that realization right away. For as long as I can remember I had planned to be a teacher, but because it was something I thought I could do well that would provide me with a living, not as a calling. In fact I became a public school teacher rather by default because I feared the kind of debt I would incur by continuing in graduate school. In 1970 I put out my credentials [teachers were in short supply then] and was contacted by a principal in Madison. I taught in that school district — secondary history and political science — for thirty-five years.

I was a mediocre teacher when I started, making serious mistakes — especially in disciplining students — but I learned from my mistakes and eventually achieved a certain competence. I learned very little of value in the education courses I was required to take. Teaching is as much an art as a skill and perfecting the art is largely a matter of trial and error. Each teacher needs to discover the style that works for him or her. I always told my student teachers to commit to at least four or five years before deciding they couldn’t do it.

What makes a good public school teacher? You need to like kids and love your subject matter. Most students will do just about anything a teacher asks if they believe the teacher cares about them, knows what he is talking about and teaches it well. That means knowing your subject thoroughly, and that means reading a lot. The easiest way to earn the contempt of adolescents is to pretend to know more than you do. The best teachers are those who can convey what is most important clearly and interestingly — and that is almost impossible if you are always operating at or close to the limit of your knowledge. Otherwise what makes a good teacher is what makes any good person: integrity, the willingness to admit error, intolerance of cruelty, a sense of proportion and good humor, meeting your commitments and obligations punctually, “doing unto others…,” etc.

These days, in the public schools, there is much less opportunity for Christian teachers to talk freely about our faith than was true even a few decades ago. Nevertheless, I found, at least in high school, that if the subject came up naturally as part of the curriculum or in student initiated discussion, it was possible if the subject was approached descriptively, if disagreement could be freely expressed, and nobody felt pressured. The most important witness a Christian teacher can make in a classroom, though, is behavior consistent with belief. For high school students there is no greater sin an adult can commit than seeming to be hypocritical.

“Be a teacher.” It is an honorable profession. And your Sabbaths will almost always be free.

When I started blogging at "One Eternal Day" I made it a practice to link each month to the magazine published by my denomination, The Sabbath Recorder. Since it can be easily found elsewhere, I've decided instead to place a permanent link in the sidebar. Some one of my friends will no doubt observe [quite fairly] that I waited to do this until an issue was published in which something I wrote appeared. Many of the articles in this issue, like mine, are about the choice of a career.

Sabbath Recorder, January 2010

The January, 2010, Sabbath Recorder is available online here as a pdf.

This issue, as the cover indicates, contains articles about missions. There is information about Seventh Day Baptist work among the Oglala Sioux, in Alaska and in Burundi, Ecuador and Malawi.

The Sabbath Recorder is the magazine of the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference and has been regularly published in some form since 1844.

Sabbath Recorder, December 2009

The December, 2009, Sabbath Recorder is available online here as a pdf.

This issue features information about the work of the Seventh Day Baptist Council on Ministry [COM] which includes encouraging and supporting the education of those called to pastoral ministry and intending to serve Seventh Day Baptist congregations. In addition to describing the programs and services offered, there are short articles by a number of those who have been involved in the programs.

And much more...

The Sabbath Recorder is the magazine of the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference and has been regularly published in some form since 1844.

Sabbath Recorder, November 2009

The November, 2009, Sabbath Recorder is available online here as a pdf.

As the cover indicates, this is a Thansgiving themed issue, but not the sentimental kind of giving thanks - the articles are about giving thanks in all circumstances - perhaps especially the difficult ones. And, of course there is no ambiguity about who deserves the gratitude.

Other contents include another article by Don Sanford, this one about the life and ministry of Rev. Abram Herbert Lewis in the late 19th and early 20th centuries - particularly his efforts to persuade other Christians of the validity and importance of the Sabbath.

And much more...

The Sabbath Recorder is the magazine of the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference and has been regularly published in some form since 1844.

Sabbath Recorder, October 2009

The October, 2009, Sabbath Recorder is available online here as a pdf.

The issue contains additional reports about the sessions of the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference held this July in Pennsylvania, including an interesting account of the experience of a young adult who, for the first time, attended almost everything.

Other contents include a remembrance of the contributions of a 19th century pastor, James Franklin Shaw, by Don Sanford.

An article by Doug Clarke describes the involvement of SDB women [and men] in the struggle for a woman's right to vote.

The Sabbath Recorder is the magazine of the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference and has been regularly published in some form since 1844.

Sabbath Recorder, September 2009

The September, 2009, Sabbath Recorder is available online here as a pdf.

The issue contains articles and pictures about the sessions of the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference held this July in Pennsylvania, the theme of which was "Pray!"

Other contents include a remembrance of the contributions of 19th century SDB, Alexander Campbell, by Don Sanford.

New Conference President, Rev. Paul Andries of the Washington, D.C. church, announced his Conference theme to be "Servants Together in God's Ministry." The Recorder this month provides memory verses related to that theme.

The Sabbath Recorder is the magazine of the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference and has been regularly published in some form since 1844.

Sabbath Recorder, July-August 2009

The July-August, 2009, Sabbath Recorder is available online here as a pdf.

This issue has several articles about Seventh Day Baptist history including one based on material I prepared for the SDB Historical Society Museum about Seventh Day Baptists in North America during the colonial and Revolutionary War period. That overlaps somewhat with an article written by the late Rev Don Sanford recounting the stories of SDBs who have served in military chaplaincies beginning in 1775 and continuing through most of America's wars.

There is also news about a new church in the oldest SDB Conference - The Faith Seventh Day Baptist Group of North London, a Milton family about to begin as missionaries in Lesotho, southern Africa, an article about SDBs in Uganda, and much else.

The Sabbath Recorder is the magazine of the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference and has been regularly published in some form since 1844.

Sabbath Recorder, June 2009

The June, 2009, Sabbath Recorder is available online here as a pdf.

Rev. Kevin Butler, the editor, says this about the issue at SDB Exec:

Along with some insightful articles by SDB youth is coverage of the national "Bricks for Malawi" campaign. Organizer Jean Jorgensen was hoping to raise enough money to provide 100,000 bricks toward Malawi's goal of 300,000. Well, the Lord opened the floodgates of ingenuity and generosity and SDBs raised enough money to have the locals make... oh, I'll let you read the good news in the SR. The kids and churches had fun, and the Thembe Medical Clinic will reap the benefits.

This a very youth oriented issue of the Recorder with interesting articles by several Seventh Day Baptist young people. Much of the work raising funds for Malawi was also done by the youth groups in various churches.

The Sabbath Recorder is the magazine of the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference and has been regularly published in some form since 1844.

Sabbath and the Puritans

Dr. Kenneth E. Smith, in 1959, recounted a curious episode in the development of Puritan Sabbatarianism involving Nicholas Bownde:

Dr. Kenneth E. Smith

...[N]ot until 1606 and the publication of a book by Nicholas Bownde (also Bound), D.D., a clergyman at Norton, in Suffolk [England], was the opinion ever widely held that the sanctity and authority of the seventh-day Sabbath were transferred to the first day of the week. The importance of Bownde’s work in understanding contemporary popular opinions regarding the observance of Sunday cannot be overlooked.

The book [entitled Sabbathum Veteris et Novi Testamenti: or, The True Doctrine of the Sabbath] could not have been published at a better time for a favorable reaction from the English public. ....

We are told that within a few years of the publication date, the English observance of Sunday underwent considerable change. Those who opposed Bownde’s views were hesitant to take up the pen. But finally the continental views were reaffirmed by the official church, and the issue was very much a live one.

From 1600 to 1675, we have a Sabbath controversy which for heat and intensity is unique. It was during this period that Traske (1620) and Brabourne (1628) entered the fray on the side of the continuing sanctity of the seventh-day Sabbath.

What did Bownde say to create such an upheaval and change the observance of English Protestantism? I will attempt a brief outline.

1. The seventh-day Sabbath was given at creation before it was given on Sinai.
2. The Gospel has not abolished the observance of the Sabbath. The Sabbath is not Jewish either in origin or intent.
3. The Sabbath is upon the seventh day, and no other. The Lord has given no authority to the church to change the day from the seventh to any other. God hath set down this "very Seventh Day."
4. Only God has the authority to sanctify.

Now how does Bownde escape the inevitable logic of these assertions? Watch him closely, for a shadow forms over his previous clarity:

"The Sabbath day must needs be upon the seventh day as it always hath been, and upon this seventh day that we now keep. But concerning this very special seventh day, that now we keep in the time of the gospel, that is well known that it is not the same it was from the beginning which God himself did sanctify, and whereof he speaketh in this commandment, for it was the day going before ours, which in Latin retaineth his ancient name, and is called the Sabbath, which we also grant, but so that we confess, it must always remain, never to be changed anymore, and that all men must keep holy this seventh day and none other, which was unto them not the seventh, but the first day of the week, as it is so called many times in the New Testament, and so it still standeth in force that we are bound unto the seventh day, though, not unto the very seventh. Concerning the time and persons by whom and when the day was changed, it appeareth in the New Testament that it was done in the time of the Apostles, and by the Apostles themselves, and that together with the day, the name was changed, and was in the beginning called the first day of the week, afterwards the Lord’s Day."

Surely by all laws of logic it is simply impossible to understand that crucial paragraph. It is what A.H. Lewis called a "boomerang of retroactive logic."

Just to be sure that we did not misunderstand Dr. Bownde, let us quote from an earlier section: "I do not see… where the Lord hath given any authority to his Church ordinarily and perpetually to sanctify any day, except that which he hath sanctified himself… and so we see that the Sabbath must needs be still upon the seventh day as it has always been."

It is simply impossible to reconcile these statements, which are repeated frequently, with the first paragraph quoted. The church has not been given authority to change the day, he asserts, but the apostles did change the day, and apparently with Dr. Bownde’s blessing.

Here, then, is a lengthy work (479 pages) which holds that the Sabbath must never be changed or abrogated, but buries in a mysterious paragraph, the admission that it has been changed from the very seventh day to this very seventh day. In every other respect the author shows himself to be a learned scholar and a lucid writer, hence one can only conclude that he got into difficulty by his consistency with the facts, and got out of difficulty by a momentary lapse into obscurantism.

All of this might be amusing but for the fact that Bownde set the pattern for a nation and a culture in regard to a day of rest. Unlike the reformers of Germany, Switzerland, and France, he insisted upon Sabbath observance for Sunday. The use of the term Sabbath for Sunday is our heritage from Nicholas Bownde and the Puritan movement.

Perhaps these voices from the past help to explain the variety of opinion regarding the Sabbath that is evident in the United States. As a melting pot of nations we are aware of three major opinions on this issue:

1. The English influence, particularly the free-church, coming by way of Colonial New England has been a transference of sanctity and authority from Sabbath to Sunday. This group is most likely to call Sunday the Sabbath and is most particular about its observance.
2. The European Protestants claim that all days are sacred and are quite indifferent about the observance of Sunday.
3. The Roman Catholic Church element has found authority for Sunday observance in their doctrine of the Church.

Thus the Catholic agrees with the Puritan that the Sabbath is transferred, but the Catholic has the easier position to maintain since he can demonstrate that the Church made the transferal.

The Puritan, claiming Biblical authority, has nothing more substantial than Dr. Bownde’s mysterious paragraph.

The full article is reprinted in the May, 2009, Sabbath Recorder.