# Lehre und Wehre_St. Louis Missouri_December 1863_S364
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

364 Report of the Sixth Ordinary Synodical Convention of the Norwegian Ev.-Luth. Church.

...from the beginning, and remains forever and ever with all the world." (Erlangen Edition XXXI, 443 and 444.)

Following this passage of Luther's, attention was drawn to how Luther here expressly says that neither Abraham nor the other fathers before Moses had a Sabbath, but that it was added as an outward ornament for the Jews. Here Luther holds to Scripture, whereas, when elsewhere, as was noted above, he speaks of a Sabbath in Paradise, he merely lets his imagination guess, and does not himself insist that one must believe this. In general, the author of the paper explained that he had deliberately not cited many testimonies of the fathers in this matter, because he did not wish to give the appearance of wanting to bind consciences by human word in so important a matter. This testimony from Luther was accordingly certainly very gratifying, but we accepted it only because it agrees with Scripture. —

One then proceeded to the discussion of propositions 4–7 of the paper, but set in their place the following shorter form:

1. What at present should bind us Christians to keep Sunday is accordingly: a. the order and custom of the Christian Church, which we should keep for the sake of peace and love, according to Philippians 4:8–9, Romans 14:13, 1 Corinthians 14:33; b. the command of our authorities, whom we should obey for God's sake according to the Fourth Commandment and 1 Peter 2:13.

2. Consequently we sin by unnecessary work on Sunday, a. against the Fourth Commandment, when we transgress the command of our authorities; b. against the Third Commandment, insofar as we thereby neglect and despise God's Word; c. against love, in that without valid reason we break the custom and order of the Christian Church and give offense. —

In the discussion it was first pointed out how Sunday gradually became the festival and rest day in the Church. While the first Christians knew themselves free from the Jewish ceremonial law, God had nevertheless instituted the public preaching office, and thereby obligated the congregations to make common public use of God's Word. For this purpose they came together daily at the beginning; but since this could not go on indefinitely, they soon set apart individual days in the week for the purpose, namely both Saturday and Sunday, and likewise Wednesday and Friday. On these days, however, one went from work to church and from church to work, and it became established church order, though probably only in part, already in the earliest Church that, because much work hindered the use of the Word, one rested on Sunday, which day gradually asserted itself most as the festival day. Now when in the meantime some heathens hindered their servants and subordinates from coming to divine service, the first Christian emperor, Constantine, commanded that Sunday should be a general day of rest; field labor, however, was exempted in favorable weather. As church order this was confirmed at the Council of Laodicea in the year 360, but it was also added,