Sigh. Go back to the post where I put some verses from Paul saying that no one has the right to judge others on the day we choose to worship. Christ freed us to do that. That includes you by, the way. You want to worship on Saturday, go for it. But quite apart from all this historical evidence for worship on the "Lord's Day"...as opposed to the "Sabbath"...as Jews, I think they'd know the difference, don't you? Quite apart from that, you'll have to refute Paul's blanket statement of freedom in regards to days of worship. Good luck with that.
Oh...and look, Rome didn't come into that at all!
Look into the history of how easter got established as opposed to the passover. I am talking about the dates. Look into the history of what day the early church actually met. The apostolic church. Not the churches in Rome and Alexandria which early began to apostatize, but the church in Assyria...the Celtic church in Britain, Scotland and Ireland. The church in Ethiopia.
Yes, as Jews the apostles, and those who opposed them, knew exactly the difference between the Sabbath and the first day. Do you not find it curious how the ex-Judaic legalists who had been converted, had no problem whatsoever with the practices of the new faith except for one...circumcision! No complaints ever arose...no protests ever made...by
anyone, that anyone was dishonouring the Sabbath. Why? Because they weren't!. The met every Sabbath. At first in the synagogues, and in house churches. Then as persecution arose, first from the Jews, then pagan Rome, then Papal Rome, that persecution was directed at in particular
Sabbath keepers! In fact, one reason Christians discarded the Sabbath and began to meet on Sunday was to be seen as being different from the upstart Jews that the Romans hated. And the full establishment of Sunday into the church had
everything to do with Rome.
The early Christians saw the Christian faith as a progression, not a new religion. Calvary gave the Sabbath new significance, but did not annul it. Christians were worshiping alongside Jews in the synagogues every Sabbath, but over a period of time Jews became less tolerant of this arrangement and the rabbis actually devised prayers that were to be said which exposed the Christians within the community. This made it very uncomfortable for Christians to continue meeting in the synagogues, but they did not forsake the Sabbath. They began to meet in their houses and in places like the riversides as Paul found in Thyatira. Eventually, Christians found it impossible to worship in the synagogues and about that same time found themselves questioning their connections to the Jews, and with good reason. Much conflict around the early second century between the Jews and Rome began to impact the church. Not wanting to be recognized by Rome as being sympathetic or in any way involved with the Jews, some Christians began to abandon the Sabbath in favour of Sunday, which became an attractive alternative.
At this time also Sun worship increased in popularity with Rome. Mithra was particularly popular with the military, and Sunday became increasingly significant throughout the empire. Constantine established the first Sunday law in 321ad, and the church of Rome adopted that day as its own. As late as the 5th century however there were still a majority of Christian churches that were still observing the Sabbath. The church leaders in Rome strongly encouraged resting on Sunday in accordance to the law, while at the same time imposing fasts and other strictures on the Sabbath. Councils such as that of Laodicea in the mid 4th century recognized the continuing popularity of the Sabbath observance, and instituted canons to further enforce Sunday and demote the Sabbath. Churches that abandoned the Sabbath altogether however were very much in the minority, as attested to by Socrates Scholasticus when he wrote in the 4th century “
For although almost all churches throughout the world celebrate the sacred mysteries on the Sabbath every week, yet the Christians of Alexandria and Rome, on account of some ancient tradition, have ceased to do this.”
Despite theological arguments, anti-jewish prejudice, and empirical decrees, the Sabbath was still honoured well into the 5th century. It was not dead. In fact, the Sabbath issue became a greatly heated debate between popes and patriarchs throughout the ensuing centuries, and became a test of authority. Sunday became the sign of submission to papal authority, and was a major cause of the great rift within the Christian faith that remained for 900 years.
With that history in mind, let us forever lay to rest the idea that Jesus or the apostles, or the scriptures themselves for that matter, had anything to do with any change or annulment of the seventh day Sabbath. Let us, at least in this matter, agree with the Church of Rome that responsibility for such a change can be laid squarely upon her shoulders. For it was the leaders, the popes, cardinals and bishops of that church who down through the ages from the 3rd century to the present day deliberately exalted Sunday and erroneously named that day the Lord’s Day; meanwhile persecuting Sabbath keepers, labeling them, among other things as Judaisers and heretics, and have trampled upon the true Lord’s day and cast it aside.
It remains for the Christian today to “choose this day whom ye will serve”. It is for you friend to decide upon whose authority your faith is surrendered to. The Creator of the “heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and all that in them is” as written in the 4th commandment or the prelates and lawmakers of the Catholic church, the foster parents of the counterfeit day of rest and worship, the day of the Sun.
But I fully and without reservation agree with you that freedom of conscience (not scripture)
demands all of us have the freedom to set aside whatever day we choose, join whatever church we choose, worship in whatever way we choose. And
that is the reason I discuss prophecy. Because Revelation, and the shadow cast from Daniel 3, inform us that the day is fast approaching when such freedoms are going to be removed, notwithstanding the constitution.
