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Lord’s Day Worship (Sunday Worship): Difference between revisions
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Lord’s Day Worship (Sunday Worship) (view source)
Revision as of 17:14, 20 December 2023
, 17:14, 20 December 2023→Origin of Sunday Worship
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Early Christianity was severely persecuted by the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire was hostile to the Jews who did not follow Roman laws and orders, believing in only one God. The Romans considered Christianity a sect of Judaism because they believed in the only Savior Jesus and kept the Sabbath on the same day as the Jews.<ref>Persecution and Martyrdom pgs. 135-137, Christian Persecution, Martyrdom, and Orthodoxy G.E.M. DESTE. CROIX</ref><ref>A History of the Councils of the Church, History of the Councils, pg. 316, Charles Joseph Hefele, D.D., 1876</ref> The Roman government regarded Jews and Christians as traitors because they refused to worship the emperor or to participate in national events.<ref>Judaism, pg. 135, A history of the Jews, ''New York : Perennial Library'', 1988</ref><ref>The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Volume 1, Edward Gibbon, 1776</ref> | Early Christianity was severely persecuted by the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire was hostile to the Jews who did not follow Roman laws and orders, believing in only one God. The Romans considered Christianity a sect of Judaism because they believed in the only Savior Jesus and kept the Sabbath on the same day as the Jews.<ref>Persecution and Martyrdom pgs. 135-137, Christian Persecution, Martyrdom, and Orthodoxy G.E.M. DESTE. CROIX</ref><ref>A History of the Councils of the Church, History of the Councils, pg. 316, Charles Joseph Hefele, D.D., 1876</ref> The Roman government regarded Jews and Christians as traitors because they refused to worship the emperor or to participate in national events.<ref>Judaism, pg. 135, A history of the Jews, ''New York : Perennial Library'', 1988</ref><ref>The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Volume 1, Edward Gibbon, 1776</ref> | ||
On the other hand, there was a religion that was welcomed among the Romans at that time, and it was Mithraism which worshiped the sun-god [https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mithra Mithra]. Mithraism was derived from Zoroastrianism in Persia and was introduced to Rome around the 1st century B.C. Mithra was mainly worshiped by soldiers, then later was raised a patron deity of the Roman Empire and its emperors, and became the most influential deity in Rome.<ref>{{Cite web | On the other hand, there was a religion that was welcomed among the Romans at that time, and it was Mithraism which worshiped the sun-god [https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mithra Mithra]. Mithraism was derived from Zoroastrianism in Persia and was introduced to Rome around the 1st century B.C. Mithra was mainly worshiped by soldiers, then later was raised a patron deity of the Roman Empire and its emperors, and became the most influential deity in Rome.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Chapter 7 The Roman Mysteries of Mithras, The Ancient Mysteries: A Sourcebook of Sacred Texts|website=University of Pennsylvania Press|date=May 7, 1999|author=Marvin W. Meyer}}</ref> The holy day of Mithraism was Sunday.<ref name=":5" /> | ||
In the early 2nd century, when all the [[Apostle|apostles]] died, the Church in Rome made Sunday, which the Romans regarded as sacred, a day of worship.<ref>From Sabbath to Lord's Day: A Biblical, Historical, and Theological Investigation, D. A. Carson, pgs. 281-282, November 5, 1999</ref> The Church in Rome tried to differentiate Christianity from Judaism, which kept the Sabbath, by worshiping on Sunday. Additionally, they rationalized their Sunday worship observance with the excuse that Jesus [[Resurrection|rose]] from the dead on Sunday. Thus, the Church in Rome and some other churches under its influence accepted Sunday worship, but the Eastern Churches kept the Sabbath on the seventh day, as the Bible teaches.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web|url=https://www.studylight.org/study-desk.html?q1=Exodus+20%3A8-11&q2=&ss=0&t1=eng_n84&t2=eng_kjv&t3=eng_nas&ns=0&sr=1&ot=bhs&nt=wh&hv1=1&b=verse&d=3 |title=Exodus 20:8–11}}</ref><ref>Constantine and the Christian empire, Odahl, Charles M., pgs. 172–173, 2004</ref> | In the early 2nd century, when all the [[Apostle|apostles]] died, the Church in Rome made Sunday, which the Romans regarded as sacred, a day of worship.<ref>From Sabbath to Lord's Day: A Biblical, Historical, and Theological Investigation, D. A. Carson, pgs. 281-282, November 5, 1999</ref> The Church in Rome tried to differentiate Christianity from Judaism, which kept the Sabbath, by worshiping on Sunday. Additionally, they rationalized their Sunday worship observance with the excuse that Jesus [[Resurrection|rose]] from the dead on Sunday. Thus, the Church in Rome and some other churches under its influence accepted Sunday worship, but the Eastern Churches kept the Sabbath on the seventh day, as the Bible teaches.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web|url=https://www.studylight.org/study-desk.html?q1=Exodus+20%3A8-11&q2=&ss=0&t1=eng_n84&t2=eng_kjv&t3=eng_nas&ns=0&sr=1&ot=bhs&nt=wh&hv1=1&b=verse&d=3 |title=Exodus 20:8–11}}</ref><ref>Constantine and the Christian empire, Odahl, Charles M., pgs. 172–173, 2004</ref> | ||
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===Sunday, a Day of Rest=== | ===Sunday, a Day of Rest=== | ||
In A.D. 313, Constantine’s [https://www.britannica.com/topic/Edict-of-Milan Edict of Milan], stating that all religions were recognized equally, became a significant turning point in Christianity. Emperor Constantine carried out policies supporting Christians. However, he did not completely convert to Christianity. He deliberately regarded Christ as the same god as the sun god Mithra, and retained the pagan high priest’s title of [https://www.livius.org/articles/concept/pontifex-maximus/ Pontifex Maximus] until the end of his life.<ref name=":1" /> Historians say that Emperor Constantine chose Christianity as a political means to combine the entire empire into one.<ref>A history of the early church to A.D. 500, Wand, J. W. C. (John William Charles), 1885–1977, pg. 131, London, Methuen, 1949</ref> [[Sunday Law|Sunday law]], too, which was proclaimed in 321, had such intention.{{quote|In 321, Constantine made the first day of the week a holiday, and called it ‘the venerable day of the Sun’ (Sunday). “. . . All judges, city-people and craftsmen shall rest on the venerable day of the Sun . . . 7 March 321.” Constantine’s Edict|Tim Dowley, ''The History of Christianity (A Lion Handbook)'', Lion Publishing, 1994, pp. 140, 152}} | In A.D. 313, Constantine’s [https://www.britannica.com/topic/Edict-of-Milan Edict of Milan], stating that all religions were recognized equally, became a significant turning point in Christianity. Emperor Constantine carried out policies supporting Christians. However, he did not completely convert to Christianity. He deliberately regarded Christ as the same god as the sun god Mithra, and retained the pagan high priest’s title of [https://www.livius.org/articles/concept/pontifex-maximus/ Pontifex Maximus] until the end of his life.<ref name=":1" /> Historians say that Emperor Constantine chose Christianity as a political means to combine the entire empire into one.<ref>A history of the early church to A.D. 500, Wand, J. W. C. (John William Charles), 1885–1977, pg. 131, London, Methuen, 1949</ref> [[Sunday Law|Sunday law]], too, which was proclaimed in 321, had such intention.{{quote|In 321, Constantine made the first day of the week a holiday, and called it ‘the venerable day of the Sun’ (Sunday). “. . . All judges, city-people and craftsmen shall rest on the venerable day of the Sun . . . 7 March 321.” Constantine’s Edict|Tim Dowley, ''The History of Christianity (A Lion Handbook)'', Lion Publishing, 1994, pp. 140, 152}} | ||
The expressions, “Sunday” and the “venerable day of the Sun,” show that Sunday law was issued to be considerate of the followers of Mithra (sun-god), who made up the majority of the Romans at the time. Sunday worship results from a compromise between the Church in Rome and the sun-god religion. Due to the Sunday law, even the Eastern Churches, which had held fast to the Sabbath, eventually came to surrender to the sun-god religion. As a result, the Sabbath disappeared and Sunday worship was established.<ref>The Battle Between the Moon and Sun, The Separation of Women’s Bodies from the Cosmic Dance, ''Universal Publishers'', pg. 98–103, Jenny Kien, 2003</ref><ref>Seventh-day Baptists, The American Encyclopædic Dictionary, Volume 12, R.S. Peale and J.A. Hill Chicago and New York, 1897</ref><ref>[https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3806.htm#:~:text=Canon%2029,them%20be%20anathema%20from%20Christ. Canon 29], Synod of Laodicea (4th Century), New Advent</ref> | The expressions, “Sunday” and the “venerable day of the Sun,” show that Sunday law was issued to be considerate of the followers of Mithra (sun-god), who made up the majority of the Romans at the time. Sunday worship results from a compromise between the Church in Rome and the sun-god religion. Due to the Sunday law, even the Eastern Churches, which had held fast to the Sabbath, eventually came to surrender to the sun-god religion. As a result, the Sabbath disappeared and Sunday worship was established.<ref>The Battle Between the Moon and Sun, The Separation of Women’s Bodies from the Cosmic Dance, ''Universal Publishers'', pg. 98–103, Jenny Kien, 2003</ref><ref>Seventh-day Baptists, The American Encyclopædic Dictionary, Volume 12, R.S. Peale and J.A. Hill Chicago and New York, 1897</ref><ref>[https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3806.htm#:~:text=Canon%2029,them%20be%20anathema%20from%20Christ. Canon 29], Synod of Laodicea (4th Century), New Advent</ref> | ||
==Perspective by Denomination== | ==Perspective by Denomination== | ||