I am looking for an answer to just what is a seventh day catholic? From the sounds of the one person's response, I can't believe them to be a Catholic in tune with the Holy Father. Such a deragatory remark about the Holy Father and disdain for others that follow the Church's teachings. My query is where are they coming from? Do they honestly believe that they are right? What is the basis? How does a secular calendar make one day better then the other? Where exactly did one decide that the Sabbath had to be Sunday or Saturday?

-- Nancy R. Cline (NCLINE@CENTURYINTER.NET), August 27, 1998

Answers

The Church decided that Sunday "The Lord's Day" would be the christian Sabbath. It is derived from Scripture. If you read the Early Fathers this is clear. Seventh Day Catholics are Seventh Day Adventists trying a new approcah to attack the Catholic Church.

-- Rich Pohlman S.F.O. (REPSFO@Prodigy.net), August 27, 1998.

As a Seventh Day Catholic I love all people. I do feel that some are misled, as we all can be. I believe that the true sabbath is the one that God wrote on the tables of stone and gave to Moses. When you write something in stone, it does not change. God decided what day was to be the sabbath. When we read the Bible we find that the original Sabbath was the seventh day...Saturday. We need only to check our own calendars. I urge everyone to read their Bible, do not take anyone's word for it. Only we are responsible for our own salvation, no other human being. In Christ's love, Suzana.

-- Suzana Clementine (SUCl@uka.net), September 04, 1998.

Maybe this will help Suzana:

THE SABBATH SATURDAY OR SUNDAY OR BOTH?

There is a difference between the obligation of a day of rest and the determination of which day it will be. If you are Jewish then of course Saturday is your Sabbath day! If you are Christian however that day is no longer Saturday, but Sunday and it has nothing to do with Constantine. He just enacted a civil law requiring rest on the already well established "Christian Sabbath" day. The fourth, (or third) commandment does not specify a specific day just "a day of rest", the meaning of the word Sabbath. The Jewish people chose the 7th day, the day God rested in Genesis, and the Christians chose the "8th" day, the day of the resurrection. The day has "shifted", by who's authority? The Church's. The Church established by Christ and clothed with his authority ( MT 2:28 / JN 20:21) and by "the power of the keys" ( Mt 16:19) given to Peter to bind and loose! Peter chose to replace Judas on the Church's authority, the Apostles added Paul to their number by their authority, the authority given them by Christ.

Is the "Sunday Sabbath" unbiblical? No, it may not be found in the Bible, but it is not against any teaching of the Bible. John does mention the "Lord's Day". If one studies the writings of the Apostolic Fathers and the pre-Nicene Fathers one finds that Sunday is well established as the day of Christian worship from the close of the first century on. St. Ignatius of Antioch, at the beginning of the second century, referred to the drastic change that took place with the coming of Christ when "those who walked in ancient customs came to a new hope, no longer Sabbathing but living the Lord's Day, on which we came to life through him and through his death.''

Since the Apostles and disciples were "Jewish-Christians" they met in the synagogue on Saturday and in the Christian home communities on Sunday to celebrate the Eucharist until Christianity separated itself from Jewish practice. Before the year A.D. 100, we already have written record of the Sunday practice of assisting at Mass in the Teaching of the Twelve Apostles. It is expressed in mandatory form in the Didache. In the middle of the second century, Justin the Martyr left a detailed account of how the faithful gathered together for the celebration of the sacred mysteries. He also explained why Sunday was observed among Christians. The Bible does shed some light on the subject; Jesus rose on the first day of the week, he appeared to the Apostles on the first day of the week, and never again on the Sabbath. The Holy Spirit descended on Pentecost Sunday. The Apostles met on the "first day of the week" (Act 20:7) etc. The Jewish Sabbath honored and gave thanks to God as the Creator. The Lord's day honors and gives thanks to God for the Redemption of mankind through Christ.

-- Br. Rich S.F.O. (REPSFO@Prodigy.net), September 05, 1998.

Br. Rich, Thank you for your response. However, I still do not understand why if Jesus was the first "Christian" and the deciples were "Christians" wouldn't they keep God's true sabbath? If they would, why don't Catholics and most protestants keep the sabbath of Jesus Christ....Saturday? Suzana

-- Suzana Clementine (SUCL@uka.net), September 09, 1998.

Dear Suzana, You are not looking at the whole picture. Yes the first christians did worship on Saturday. But the Catholic Church has the power to change the sabbath from saturday to sunday. We have had the power for a long time, and if We want to change it back to saturday we can do that too. God told us to worship on saturday because He rested on the seventh day of creation. This is what all these seventh day people base their religion on (Adventist, baptist and yes even catholics). But we believe in the infalliability of our Pope and he has the power to do his will. He has the power to change days of worship and even the 10 commandments. Yes he can change the laws to make sunday a world wide day of worship if he wanted. In his last letter he was very clear about what should be done to those who chose not to worship on sunday..."they should be punished as a heritic". The Holy Father is in charge of the church as well as the political agenda. I have been candid. I urge all believers to ask the Holy Spirit to show them the truth. Actually, I feel that saturday is the true sabbath and we had no right to change the 4th commandment, but I am too far along in my career to become a seventh day (who ever) and have no ambitions to change now. Best to all, Br. Mark S.F.O.

-- Br. Mark D. Kincade (MDK@pendulum.net), September 09, 1998.

I am staggered by these revelations! How candid. How sad to know the truth but be "too far along in my career" to act upon it! Christians have kept the Saturday Sabbath throughout history. There is an unbroken line. As for Seventh-day Catholics, the very term is a contradiction. One cannot be a Catholic and keep the 7th day holy as such action denies the infallibility of the Pope and the authority of the Catholic church. There is absolutely no support for Sunday observance in scripture. It is, as stated here, a change made by the church, but made with no authority whatsoever.

-- SM Lacey (nehpets@ix.netcom.com), December 01, 1998.

I have attended a church in Illinois called the Christian Catholic Church which is not afilliated with the Roman Catholic Church. The word "catholic" means "universal." Don't confuse it with the Roman Catholic Church. John Conrod, editor Fishermen's Net Library http://www.seventhdaybaptist.net/fishnet

-- John Conrod (jconrod@juno.com), December 12, 2000.