SUNDAY OBSERVANCE. A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN REST AND REGREATION. THE REV. J. S. HILL INTERVIEWED. Auckland, Nov. 23.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 320, 28 November 1888, Page 3

SUNDAY OBSERVANCE. A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN REST AND REGREATION . THE REV. J. S. HILL INTERVIEWED. Auckland, Nov. 23.

As the question of Sabbath observance continues to agitate the public mind, a £tar representative called upon the Rev. J. S. Hill this morning at his residence in Park Avenue to ascertain his views. Our reporter found Air Hill in his library immersed in the study of a work which deals exhaustively with the very question under notice, and it was evident'lhut the reverend gentlemen, like his bruthr. n ot (he laity," is considerably interested a& to the .proper manner in which the Sabbath should be observed.

A VEKV DIFFICULT QUESTION. The whole question, said Mr Hill, is one of great difficulty. The binding" nature of the Sabbath, or its obligation, so to speak, is based upon two very uitierent things. To all mankind, in the abstract the law is binding — that is? what i hold - not on account of its being 1 part of the Jewish law, but because it wufc in the mind of the Creator from the beginning. The Jewish law only more distinctly emphasises the command that one day in seven is to be observed as a day of rest. Therefore, the Sabbath Day is binding upon ali man kind.

ONE DAY IN SEVEN. The next thing seems to me to be that to a Christian man'the one clay in seven is the first day of the week, and the 1 enson why we observe the tivst day of the week is a matter really of slight impoitance. There is lio reason leally why we should observe the first day of the week before the seventh day except that we are unitedly agreed that the first day is the best. We prefer to observe it as our Sab bath because it was the day upon which the Christian dispensation was introduced ; therefore the first day of the week is universally adopted as the Sabbath; of Christian men. There is no binding law as to the particular day, except the concensus of opinion to vihicih I have previously referred. The first principle is that there should be one day set apai t for the Sabbath, for a day of rest, and we ob erve one particular day which we consider to be the most appropriate according to the Christian religion.

HOW THE SABBATH SHOULD BE KEPT. ■As to bow that day shoxild be observed, ifc seems to me that a Christian man ought nofc to make any difference between things secular and things sacred in the abstract, and that everything should be done for one object and for the glory of God. That is the right principle upon which every man should act, ant I conceive thafc any man's business is quite .is sacied as my calling for instsince. At the same time the setting apart of a day for divine worship is a necessary thing, and by that I mean more than as a mere benefit. All that can tend towards making, that day a fitting one for the * or-hio of God, it seems to me, should be observed. In regard to the way in which one should u&s the day to this end, viz., for the worship of God, theie would, in my opinion, have to be excluded anything approaching ordinary amusements. I distinguish between

REST AND RECREATION. I do not chink they are one and the same thing: 1 think that another necessaiy outcome of the Christian faith in th^ fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man in that we should meet togethei foi the worship of God, unitedly us one family ; ■this 'seams to have been the practice ot the early Church, and has been hitherto.

HOW THE SABBATH IS KEPT. How do the working classed observe bne Sabbath V As a rule, the working classes keep the day much bettor than any other class of people, and they prize the Sabbath more fchan otheis So far ac our church service-* are concerned, they are better attended by the working classes than by those in more affluent en cu instances:. My Sunday afternoon da's 5, for instance, h chielly composed of' working men, and our services at the Qi* y Hall on Sunday night are attended principally by the working classes.

PEW RENTS A^RE OBJECTIONABLE. I think the main objection the working classes have to attending regular church services i* the system of charging pew renfcs. TheyobjecCfco.qlassdisbinctions which appear to be involvecl,in the payment of i tnt for pews, and consequently are induced to absent themselves.

THE WORKING MAN'S SUNDAY. I know that the working men a r e opposed to any form of amusemisnts on Sunday such as would invohe any travelling by trams, steam- boats, or anythiug of fcbao kind, on the ground thatit necessitates Sunday labour to some of their number. This feeling i& especially strong with reference to the running of trams or 'buses on Sunday, and I have received complaints on the subject several times. As a matter ot fact men are nob paid extra for Sunday work, and they consequently prize the one clay's resfc in seven highly. What is the usual prog i am me for a working man's Sunday ? I think fcbat, as a rule, in fche morning- a good number of our working men take it oufc in bed. In the afternoon many go for a walk or visit; one another, and 1 always find a good number of visitors at the Hospital on a Sunday afternoon. Many of our Sunday-fechool teachers and workers are working men and their wi\ es, and they pi ove to be as good workers* a? any. In the evening, except where there 'ire family ties, the working classes go to some place ot worship. Of course theie are those among the working people who go to church in the morning, but these are the more earnest l Christians. Taking them as a whole, however, they, like to go to the evening service chiefly. j

THE UPPER CLASSES. And how do the well-to-do classes use the Sabbath ? They go to church principally in the morning and nob so much in the evening. I think you would find in many of our clubs a good number playing cardfc, and worse, gambling, on the Sunday. You will tind in nearly all the clubs a goodly number o£ men on Sunday evenings. I think, however, that Auckland will compare very well with any other place with which I am acquainted — with Sydney and Melbourne. "The Sunday is better observed in any of the centi es in this colony than it is in 1 any ordinary English town. That is chiehy owing to the fact that we have Saturday afternoon as a half 'holiday to the working classes, while some of the shops) in England are kept open till'l2 o'clock on the Saturday night. I have never seen anything that can be looked upon as disturbing the religious and due observance of Sunday in colonial life

- LAWN TENNIS ON SUNDAY. As, for such 'amusements as lawn tenni3 being indulged in oh fche Sunday, I have known of this, but it has occurred

chiefly in the* outlying districts —on sheep runs, where there were oo religious ■ service*?. Tho v poople came together.) and played lawn tennis simply because they had no other way of occupying their-tiine. In several districts which I have visited, there have been lawn tennis paities on the Sabbafch, bub they were not popular, and they had thoir origin in the neglect ol religious men to care for the spiritual welfare of these people. Then you do not approve of lawn tennis for Sunday V 1 do not. >Vhat do you consider to bo reasonable recreation on the Sabbath V 1 do not think the word rest means recreation, and therefore 1 do uot think tho Sabbath should be looked upon as a day of lecreation in any sense. It is a day given for cultivation of the higher natvue ot man, and should be given wholly to the development and growth of the moral and spiritual part of man, not for either mental or physical recreation.

MR UTTON'S DELIVERANCE. Then you do not hold with Mr Upton's view s at all ? No, I do nob hold with him in iiny respect aa to recreation on the Sabbath. Of course I do not saj- that Mr Upton could have done anything else than he did, holding those opinions, i don't agree with tho c who jhink a. man ou'tht.on such an occasion to retrain from -a> ing what he means. The mistake was on the park ot those who, knowing 1 Mr Upton's view 3, asned him to speak. Thete is a good deal ot talk about parsons not saying what they mean, and yet when a man stands up and says what he moans, as did Mr Upton, he is condemned tor it. At the same time I must i-ay that 1 do not think Mr Upton realised his iesponsibility as a public man and to tho community when he made these 1 emarks. Perhaps if he had done j so he would haveref rained tromgi vingexpression to things tlu.t might do a good deal of hat m. lam sure his> intention was not to do any haim, and I do nob think any cxpiest-km of hi.-, opinions would have done any harm to those piesenb at the meeting, but they might do a great deal of harm to outsiders, and especially to children, many of whom are only too ready to throw over all authority.

A CHILDREN'S SUNDAY. T think that by making the Sunday too , sG\ore a day for children, by making it too Puritanism to them, much harm has been done. E think that ie should be bright and na PPy. cheeiful and musical. In our household we ha\e special books for the children on Sunday, and we have niu?ic on Sunday evening, &o that the eliilmen look lorwaid to the Sunday. In my 3*oll ny days; it was considered very awful to do many things which aie now allowed, and the Puritans' method ot keeping- the Sabbath hab not pioved to be healthy ' owing to itc resttictions. A boy cannot be made into a man all at once, and this should be kept in mind by his eldei>. Our repre^enlathu then thanked the Rev. ilr Hill tor his courtesy and ve tiled.