In his newly released Apostolic Letter Pope Paul John II expresses legitimate concern over the fact that in Western countries "the percentage of those attending the Sunday liturgy is strikingly low." Pope John Paul
II, as well as church leaders of different Christian denominations, recognize the vital role of the observance of the Lord's Day for the survival of Christianity, both at a personal and societal level.
The concern of Pope John Paul II is legitimate because the essence of Christianity is a relationship with God. Christians who ignore God on His Holy Day most likely will ignore Him every day of their lives. The Pope
knows well that if the prevailing trend continues it could spell doom not only of Catholicism but of Christianity itself. Social analysts tell us that Western Europe now lives in the post-Christian era because less than 10% of Christians go to church. If no radical changes occur in America, the same could be true of this country few years from now.
This concern over the prevailing profanation of Sunday was
addressed over 30 years ago while I was a student at the Pontifical
Gregorian University in Rome, Italy. At that time it was felt that a
convenient solution to the crisis of the Lord's Day, was the anticipation
of the Sunday Mass to Saturday evening. This arrangement was designed to
provide an opportunity for Catholics to fulfil their Sunday Mass precept on
Saturday evening and thus be released from the obligation to attend Mass on
Sunday.
It is evident that the Saturday evening Mass has not resolved the
problem, partly because in developed countries many people take off for the
weekend on Friday afternoon. By Saturday evening very few people are left
in the big cities. Aware of this situation, Catholic Liturgist Christopher
Kiesling suggests, in his book THE FUTURE OF THE CHRISTIAN SUNDAY, the
possibility anticipating or postponing the Sunday worship obligation to a
more convenient, fluctuating time of the week.
Incidentally, this arrangement may be good enough for those
Sundaykeepers who have reduced their LORD'S DAY to the LORD'S HOUR, but it
is not good enough for Sabbathkeepers, like me, who conceptualize and
experience the Sabbath as a HOLY DAY and not as a HOLY HOUR. For me, as a
Sabbatarian, the essence of Sabbathkeeping is not going to church, but
giving priority to the Lord in my thinking and living during the 24 hours
of the seventh day. This means that all what I do on the Sabbath, whether I
participate in a formal worship service, or whether I engage in informal
fellowship, recreation, visitation, all of these acts are an act of worship
because they springs out of a heart that has decided to honor God on His
Holy Day.
In his Pastoral Letter Pope John Paul II invites the faithful to
reflect on the meaning of Sunday. He says: "I see this Letter as
continuing the lively exchange which I am always happy to have with the
faithful, as I reflect with you on the meaning of Sunday and underline the
reasons for living Sunday as truly "the Lord's Day," also in the changing
circumstances of our own times."
Pope John Paul II reiterates very eloquently in his Pastoral Letter
the fundamental reason for Sunday observance, namely, the celebration of
Christ's resurrection. He says: "The Resurrection of Jesus is the
fundamental event upon which Christian faith rests (cf. 1 Cor 15:14). . .
. Therefore, in commemorating the day of Christ's Resurrection not just
once a year but every Sunday, the Church seeks to indicate to every
generation the true fulcrum of history, to which the mystery of the
world's origin and its final destiny leads."
The fundamental problem that I see with the Pope's reiteration of
Christ's resurrection as the fundamental reason for Sunday observance, is
that this reason is devoid of Biblical and historical support. My reasons
are given at length in the third chapter of my dissertation FROM SABBATH TO
SUNDAY that was published by the Pontifical Gregorian University with the
official Catholic imprimatur-approval. I would be glad to make a copy of
the book available to anyone interested. Just contact me at:
samuele@andrews.edu In this context I will limit myself to mention briefly
seven significant indications which discredit the alleged role played by
Christ's Sunday-resurrection in causing the change from Sabbathkeeping to
Sundaykeeping.
No Command in the New Testament. First, the New Testament contains
no command or suggestion by Christ or the Apostles enjoining or hinting at
a weekly or annual Sunday celebration of the resurrection. This is all the
more surprising in view of the explicit instructions which are given
regarding other practices such as baptism, the Lord's Supper, or
footwashing.
No "Day of the Resurrection." Second, in the New Testament Sunday
is never called "day of the resurrection" but consistently "first day of
the week." It is not until the fourth century that the designation of
Sunday as "day of the resurrection" first occurs in Christian literature.
The absence of such a designation indicates that during the first three
centuries Sunday was not seen as the weekly memorial celebration of
Christ's resurrection.
No Completion of Christ's Earthly Ministry. Third, the
Sunday-resurrection does not mark the completion of Christ's earthly
ministry. The latter ended on a Friday afternoon when the Savior said, "It
is finished" (John 19:30) and then rested in the tomb according to the
commandment. It is noteworthy that divine rest marks the completion of
both creation and redemption. The resurrection, however, marks not the
completion of Christ's earthly redemptive ministry but the inauguration of
His new intercessory ministry (Acts 1:8; 2:33). Like the first day of
creation, the first day of Christ's ministry presupposes work rather than
rest.
No Invitation to Rest and Worship. Fourth, the words uttered by
Christ on the day of His resurrection are an invitation to work rather than
to rest and worship. Note that divine institutions such as the Sabbath,
Baptism, the Lord's Supper, all trace their origin to a divine act that
established them. Had Christ wanted to make the first day of the week the
memorial of His resurrection, would He not have capitalized on the day of
His resurrection to make such a day the fitting memorial of that event?
But, on the day of His resurrection, the Savior did not say "Come apart and
worship . . . Let us take time today to celebrate My resurrection." On the
contrary, He told the women, "Go and tell my brethren to go to Galilee"
(Matt 28:10) and later to His disciples "Go . . . make disciples, teach,
baptize" (Matt 28:19-20). These utterances bespeak of work and not of rest
and worship.
No Lord's Supper Commemoration of the Resurrection. Fifth, the
Lord's Supper, which many Christians view as the core of their Sunday
celebration of Christ's resurrection, was initially celebrated at night on
different days of the week (1 Cor 11:18, 20, 33) and was seen as the
commemoration of Christ's sacrifice and Second Advent, rather than of His
resurrection. Paul explains that by partaking of the bread and wine,
believers "proclaim the Lord's death until He comes" (1 Cor 11:26).
No Easter Sunday Celebration of the Resurrection. Sixth, the
Passover, which many Christians today observe on Easter Sunday as a
celebration of the resurrection, for at least a century after Jesus' death
was observed not on a Sunday but on any day of the week on which the date
of Nisan 14 fell. This implies that no special significance was attached
to the actual day of the week in which Passover was celebrated. Moreover
the earliest documents indicate that Passover was a celebration of the
Passion-death, rather than of Christ's resurrection. (These questions are
discussed at great length in FROM SABBATH TO SUNDAY).
The Resurrection was not a Predominant Justification. Seventh, the
earliest explicit references to the Christian observance of Sunday, which
are found in the writings of Barnabas (about 135) and Justin Martyr (about
150), mention the resurrection but only as the second of two reasons for
Sundaykeeping, important but not predominant. The first theological reason
given by Barnabas for Sunday observance is the eschatological significance
of the "eighth day" which, he claims, represents "the beginning of another
world." Justin's first reason is the commemoration of the inauguration of
creation: "because it is the first day on which God, transforming the
darkness and prime matter, created the world." These testimonies indicate
that Christ's resurrection was not seen initially as the predominant
justification for Sunday observance.
The seven reasons submitted above suffice to discredit the
contention that Christ's resurrection on the first day of the week was the
major reason for the adoption of Sunday observance instead of the Sabbath.
In my view the solution to the prevailing profanation of Sunday is
to be found by recovering the Biblical meaning, authority and experience of
the Sabbath, the day when God invites to stop our work so that he can work
in us more fully and freely. I welcome your reactions, but be patient with
me because I will be out of town for the next 4 days.