CORRESPONDENCE.

Taranaki Daily News, 12 January 1922, Page 7

CORRESPONDENCE.

SEVENTH DAY ADVENTISTS. (To the Editor.) Sir,—l have seen a report of the Seventh Day Adventist Conference at 2Tew Plymouth. It is not clearly stated if there has been an increase of 716 during the year, or whether that is the total membership. But it is really astonishing that £lO,OOO is raised annually for their work. It is an example of what may be accomplished by persistent effort and organisation, no matter how contrary to fact, Scripture, and reason, may be the enterprise. The name Seventh Day Adventist, as applied to New Zealand, is an unfortunate mistake, for they should call themselves Sixth Day Adventists in Australasia. The Saturday of America cannot be the Almanac Saturday of New Zealand, on account of the fact of one whole day and night having been dropped out of reckoning on the voyage from ’Frisco to Wellington. One week on the voyage has only six days, instead of seven, and what should be Friday is called Saturday. The Saturday of Tahiti is the New Zealand Sunday. This may be seen by the days of sailings from the South Sea Islands. For more than a quarter of a century this fact has been placed before that Church organisation, an 4 still they refuse to acknowledge their mistake, and their workers continue to proclaim that Friday, the sixth day of •the Creator’s numbering of His week, is the Sabbath in this country, and should be observed by everyone who desires to enter the Kingdom of God. It is a question if there has been a greater blunder introduced into Christendom than that of calling the sixth day the seventh, and raising £lO,OOO a year upon it. Well might Jesus say: “Take heed that no ' man deceive you.” The confusion has been caused by counting the time and day eastward as well as westward. The sun always rules the day, and sets westward, never eastward. Wte believe in religious liberty. But when a relig-* ion demands upon the weekly worker to “down tools” on Friday afternoon, and all day Saturday, without Divine authority, it becomes an important social question, which even the extreme labor unions have not noticed. If these 716 workers lose one day every week, the amount of time lost would over 5000, weeks in the year by that of workers, and it has, a similar effect upon the country as the “go slow” policy of the miners, w.hich the Dominion cannot and should not afford. If this religious denomination has turned down the Bible for the Almanac why do they not say so? If they go on insisting upon the observance of the Bible Sabbath, they are in honor bound to show, and prove from the Word of God alone, which is the genuine Sabbath of the Fourth Commandment. Otherwise, they should change the name of their Church, and the object of their nlission. There are other vital Pagan and Papal errors which we have set forth in, our publications, which should be examined, and cast aside by them. Our best wishes and efforts have ever been for their everlasting good.—l am, etc.,

DAVID NIELD. Tasman Street, Wellington.