by Edwin M. Cotto
Dear friends of the Adventist Defense League,
As usual, I was minding my own business, cleaning some dishes, getting ready for a Health Seminar the ministry and I are preparing to conduct in Brooklyn this coming Sabbath, when suddenly I heard something interesting on channel 7 eye-witness news. “A four day work week, great idea!” I heard. Of course, numerous thoughts came to my mind as I watched with anticipation the report being given on the television. Let me explain what I saw.
A reporter asks a Suffolk city employee named Diane Rein how she felt about the idea to have four-days of work… she replies:
“My day off, oh boy, I have a list a mile long,” Suffolk city employee Diane Rein said. “Especially this time of year, around the house.”
Then the news continues with the following… notice my bolded sections:
“Suffolk County Legislator Wayne Horsley proposed the bill, called Operation Sunshine. It is a concept also being considered in California, West Virginia and Georgia. The optional plan would allow about 400 county employees to work four 10-hour days from July first through September 30. If approved, it would eventually include more than 12,000 county employees.
“The average trip to work is 34 miles in Suffolk,” Horsley said. “If you’re going to work, you could save 34 miles and gallons a day by conserving that one day off.”
But would cutting one day out of the work week commute really help? Some say no, pointing out that people will probably use more gas because their cars won’t just be parked at work.
“There’s going to be more people on the road,” construction worker Scott Hawkins said. “We already have enough. That’s what people are going to do.”
But Horsley doesn’t think people will take advantage and says it would bring down demand for gas, as long as people don’t go too far.
“That is the message here,” he said. “We have to start consolidating our trips to the store. etc.”
Suffolk County’s top official is also taking the four-day work week seriously. Only County Executive Steve Levy would like to see a compromise on Operation Sunshine – a voluntary furlough program. The difference: you don’t get paid for the day off.
“You get the day off, we in the county get the savings and pass it on to taxpayers,” Levy said.
Whether or not Operation Sunshine sees the light of day has yet to be decided, but one way or another, it looks like the four-day work week will be an option for most Suffolk County employees as early as this summer.” –Source
Well, to my surprise it was the legislators who came up with this idea. And although the idea is for a “four-day week,” did you notice the indirect mention of “one day off?” What, I wonder, are the real intentions behind this movement?
CNN commentator and author Jack Cafferty has this to say:
“44% of Americans in a recent survey said paying for gasoline was a serious problem for them. Gasoline costs were the most frequently cited economic concern across all income levels. 25% of people who make more than $75,000 per year said it’s a serious problem while a whopping 63% of folks who earn less than $30,000 feel that way… And all indications are it’s going to get worse before it gets better. As gasoline shoots past $4 per gallon in some parts of the country, the president of OPEC is predicting crude oil prices could hit $200 per barrel. A year ago average gas prices were less than $3 per gallon according to AAA.”
Mr. Cafferty informs us that the gas problem in America will be getting much worst then some can imagine. And after such information, he says:
“One idea being tossed around as a way of dealing with this is the four-day workweek. Several states are considering it.”
And his opinion?
“I, for one, think it’s a terrific idea.” –Source
So, this idea can help with the gas prices! But is this the only benefit? There are a couple of comments at Mr. Cafferty’s article. If you read some of them, you’ll quickly notice that, while some disagree with the fact that it might help our pockets, the majority seem to be very interested in it, saying things like that it would benefit the family, provide vacation time, etc. And did you notice the title of this idea? It’s called, “Operation Sunshine.” How convenient that they named it this way. Business might complain because of the long weekend, perhaps it would be better to legislate just one day off? And with the majority of legislators being either Christian or Catholic, which day do you think would be the best day to take off?
The editor of a website called “bluelaws.net,” a website created for the purpose of “upholding Sunday as the Lord’s day,” seems to agree with a national day of rest to save the enronment:
“When I was a youngster, I remember far less traffic on Sundays. Business were closed, commercial vehicles were off the road, only businesses of necessity, like drug stores were allowed to open. It’s true that the Sunday closing of businesses in the past had more to do with religion then conservation. However it is common sense that with less businesses open, we had less pollution and far less gas was being consumed. If the United States takes one day off per week, they would reduce their demand by 20 million barrels of oil per day (1 billion per year), which would be up to a 14% reduction in oil consumption. It is time we get serious about the gas prices and return to the wisdom of keeping our Sundays as a day of rest for us, our families and even the creation.” Source
It just makes sense to promote this national day of rest, eh?
Another website promoting a national day of rest called “Save Our Sundays” share with their audience books like “National Sunday Law,” a book written by Adventist author A. Jan Marcussen (can be read online at sundaylaw.net). But have they really considered what’s written therein? They feel that a national Sunday law is a great idea, and they are doing their part in pushing for it. At a forum where they were sharing their website, one person commented on this idea saying:
“There is enough already going on in the corporate world. People need some rest and ability to take in activities and family values freely without interference, as a result most retail activity should be banned on Sundays, as well as on all major holidays, religious or not. It is more than a religious issue, it is a quality of life issue as well.” Source
Did he say “religious or not?” Friends, critics like Dirk Anderson claim the secular world would not allow such a thing, but we forget that they dont view it as a religious thing anyway! They dont find any reason why this would get in their way:
“… [i]n light of the evolution of our Sunday Closing Laws through the centuries, and of their more or less recent emphasis upon secular considerations, it is not difficult to discern that as presently written and administered, most of them, at least, are of a secular rather than of a religious character, and that presently they bear no relationship to establishment of religion… [T]he fact that this [prescribed day of rest] is Sunday, a day of particular significance for the dominant Christian sects, does not bar the State from achieving its secular goals.” –Source
We wrote to “Save our Sundays” soon after this article came out on ABC channel 7:
>Sender’s Name: Edwin C
>Sender’s Email: adlqanda@yahoo.com
>Sent: Friday, May 23, 2008 8:55 AM
>Subject: Save Our Sundays Feedback
>Message:
Recently in the US there has been a push for a four-day work week. Some have suggested that a day off would benefit the family, and help with the gas problem we are having. The price for gas now is at a very high rate, and consumers are interested in taking days off work to save money and lesson polution. What are you thoughts on this, and do you think a national day of rest would also help in this way
News Article is found at 7onlineDOTcom. I can send you the HTML link if needed. Thank!
Here is the response we got:
Hello Edwin,
I’m in 100% agreement on a shorter work week. There should be a National Day of rest across the world. Families will get to spend time together. We would be using less gas and there would be less polution with people driving less. Can you please send me that HTML link. Are you in support of this? We also have facebook groups on the internet.. about Holidays and Sundays. I will provide them to you if you want to take part.
Regards
Tony Lohnes
Save Our Sundays
We wanted some more information, and we also wanted to answer his question on whether if we were in agreement with this:
Hi again Tony
In regards to your question. Because the popular day is Sunday, a day believed to be by most a religious day, I am oppossed to the governments getting involved in any way with some type of law demanding what some call a sunday, or blue law, simply because it would go against the conscience of others who feel sunday is not the Lords day, and should not be observed above the day they feel is the true Lords day, like Saturday.
I know from the contents of your site that you would disagree, but those are my feelings. I can try to provide you with more information if you’d like. Your site is helpful for my research.
Thanks again.
Edwin
Friends, let us remember what Ellen G. White said on this coming Sunday Law:
“When our nation shall so abjure the principles of its government as to enact a Sunday law, Protestantism will in this act join hands with popery; it will be nothing else than giving life to the tyranny which has long been eagerly watching its opportunity to spring again into active despotism.” –Testimonies, vol. 5, p. 712.
Add to all this, that, just as predicted by Ms. White, the protestant world is stretching forth her hand, and clasping the hand of the Romish church. We see it on TV, read it online, and hear it on the radio. Various church leaders joining forces with the Roman Church to “protect” certain issues they feel should be protected… like abortion and marriage between a man and a women. While abortion is indeed wrong and while marriage should be between and man and a women, we can see through such movements the “unity” taking place, especially since the recent visit to America by the pope.
The editor of the “Catholic Knight” blog, who is also a member of the “Nights of Columbus,” has this to say:
“However, would it surprise you to learn that it isn’t just individual Evangelicals who are converting, but a good portion of the Evangelical movement itself. It’s been going on for a long time. Various denominations and affiliations have been incorporating aspects of traditional liturgy for decades. A group of Southern Baptists are now observing Ash Wednesday and Lent, finding that it works quite well with the Baptist theme of repentance and call toward holiness. They’re even eating fish on Fridays! Some Evangelical groups have begun observe The Lord’s Supper (their version of Holy Communion) on a weekly basis, citing the command Christ gave to do this as often as you meet in remembrance of him. Typically, Evangelical churches observe the Lord’s Supper just once a month. Some Evangelicals are even introducing aspects of liturgy to their church services. To sum it up, Evangelicalism is a Christian movement in search of itself. It’s trying to find an identity that connects with the early Church — the first Christians. –Source
Evangelical Pastor John Hagee, in a letter to the “Catholic League for Civil and Religious Rights,” apologizes for preaching against the “mother church” saying:
“Out of a desire to advance greater unity among Catholics and Evangelicals in promoting the common good, I want to express my deep regret for any comments that Catholics have found hurtful.” –Source
Protestants accepting Catholic doctrine and traditions? Protestants uniting with the Catholic Church? Protestants now addressed as, no longer protestants, but Evangelicals?
On commenting on the issue of the Popes recent visit to the US, a women by the name of Gail Giacobbe said:
“I have never in my life seen so many Americans of all denominations as touched as they were by our beloved Pope Benedict’s visit here. I was blessed to have been able to attend the mass at Yankee Stadium and to see 58,000 go absolutely CRAZY for the Vicar of Christ was something to behold. He has stolen away the hearts of ALL Americans and we love him and continue to thank him for his visit here. Even people in my exercise class went BANANAS when they all heard that I was at Yankee Stadium. I am talking about everyday people of ALL RELIGIONS and BACKGROUNDS. They kept repeating to me: “Wow, how wonderful to be in YOUR presence knowing that you had been in the Pope’s presence.” Holy Father, you brought us an even deeper and renewed hope in our Lord, Jesus Christ. THANK YOU WITH ALL OUR HEARTS AND PRAYERS!!” –Source
Did she say all denominations? Such things as these should remind us of the following prediction set forth by Ellen G. White:
“God’s Word has given warning of the impending danger; let this be unheeded, and the Protestant world will learn what the purposes of Rome really are, only when it is too late to escape the snare. She is silently growing into power. Her doctrines are exerting their influence in legislative halls, in the churches, and in the hearts of men. She is piling up her lofty and massive structures, in the secret recesses of which her former persecutions will be repeated. Stealthily and unsuspectedly she is strengthening her forces to further her own ends when the time shall come for her to strike. All that she desires is vantage-ground, and this is already being given her.” –Great Controversy (1888) p. 582.
We need to wake up from our slumber, fellow Adventist brethren. We must sound the alarm, and prepare for what’s ahead. There is no more time to sleep, no more time to waste watching shows, going to the movies, playing games, or even listening to sermons that do not deal with the present truth! We must study our bibles today like never before:
“We as a people have not accomplished the work which God has committed to us. We are not ready for the issue to which the enforcement of the Sunday law will bring us. It is our duty, as we see the signs of approaching peril, to arouse to action. Let none sit in calm expectation of the evil, comforting themselves with the belief that this work must go on because prophecy has foretold it, and that the Lord will shelter his people. We are not doing the will of God if we sit in quietude, doing nothing to preserve liberty of conscience. Fervent, effectual prayer should be ascending to heaven that this calamity may be deferred until we can accomplish the work which has so long been neglected. Let there be more earnest prayer; and then let us work in harmony with our prayers” –Testimonies, vol. 5, pp. 713, 714.
I pray we sharpen our swords and ready the armor, that we may be ready to give an answer to them that ask us for the reason of our faith. And I also pray that our critics, including former-SDA’s, consider the rapid fulfillments of these prophecies in our days, and return to the truth.
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