Sunday's Coming?

Lady Dragon broke the news a few days ago: in Somoa, Adventists in Samatau will continue observing "Saturday," as will the only local Jewish resident, while most other Adventists will observe Sabbath on "Sunday." Some have effectively defined the Sabbath as an institution opposed to "Sunday" on the civil calendar; others feel the civil calendar is less relevant in this case.

This demonstrates what many of us have said for years: Sabbath observance can't be coordinated across the globe. Between arctic midnight suns and international date lines, the "Somoan shift" should force us to recognize that the calendar "day" we observe is an arbitrary and relative convention with respect to position on the globe. The fact is, there is no "seventh day" in any absolute sense. Many speak of it as if it were a concrete institution; it is not. Neither group of Somoan Adventists is now observing the right or wrong day as the seventh day. There is no such thing as an "actual," "correct," or "real" day of worship, anymore than there is an absolutely "real" day.

The fourth commandment offers us a rhythm, a principle, a guide--concrete within the narrow confines of ancient Israel, but relative on a global scale. It calls us to regularly consecrate time to God on "the seventh day." But notice: it does not call us to insist upon arbitrary constructs of the "day," artificially set a time for sundown where none exists, discuss leap seconds, or coordinate our clocks with Jerusalem as a meridian. At this point, one becomes lodged in a web of human tradition and pharisaism that is antithetical to the teaching of Jesus with respect to the Law.

Jesus had little use for these sorts of legal speculations and discussions. In fact, Jesus himself claimed the Sabbath was made "for man, and not man for the Sabbath." The Sabbath observes us(!). It meets our needs, and adapts to our limitations. It is flexible. Its obligations are superseded by a variety of temporal human concerns.

It's time to show Christian humility with respect to "our day" of worship.