Recent Persecution
By the 17th century, much of the Sabbath-keeping Christian body had been eliminated by oppressive European church-states. But with the freedoms of a newly founded United States, a great religious awakening{†††††††††††††††††††} occurred. Sleepy traditionalism was thrown off, and the Seventh-day Adventist Church rose to its feet.
The year 1844 signaled the cleansing of the sanctuary;{‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡} a return to pure doctrine{§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§} in the church. The reform was foretold of God: “And they that shall be of thee{********************} shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths{††††††††††††††††††††} to dwell in. If thou turn away thy foot from [trampling] the sabbath…”{‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡} Just at the time when evolution theory was taking hold, these Christians saw the unique value of the seventh-day as heralding the Creator{§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§}—a claim which Sunday cannot substantiate, but contrariwise, repudiates.{*********************}
To a “No Fear” generation of irreverence and burgeoning immorality{†††††††††††††††††††††}, an angel with the everlasting gospel{‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡} is heard, “Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.”{§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§} In their proclamation of the Gospel, Seventh-day Adventists took up this loud cry{**********************} to worship our Maker on the day{††††††††††††††††††††††} specifically designed to commemorate His creative act. This reformative movement saw rapid growth; the number of Sabbath-keeping Christians quickly swelled.
Again, the Dragon would vent his rage upon the commandment-keeping followers of Jesus.{‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡} The genius of the scheme is emblematic of the superhuman intellect{§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§} of our adversary. First, the deceiver inspired Sunday-keeping pastors to embrace the deadly antinomianism{***********************} or “lawlessness”{†††††††††††††††††††††††} which they had formerly fought. One author of the day observed the process:
As the claims of the fourth commandment are urged upon the people, it is found that the observance of the seventh-day Sabbath is enjoined; and as the only way to free themselves from a duty which they are unwilling to perform, many popular teachers declare that the law of God is no longer binding. Thus they cast away the law and the Sabbath together…. The doctrine that men are released from obedience to God's requirements has weakened the force of moral obligation and opened the floodgates of iniquity upon the world.{‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡}
Thus the pendulum is set to swing, as what began as a mindless defense precipitated conditions for an outright attack against observers of the Saturday Sabbath:
Yet this very class put forth the claim that the fast-spreading corruption is largely attributable to the desecration of the so-called ‘Christian sabbath,’ and that the enforcement of Sunday observance would greatly improve the morals of society. This claim is especially urged in America, where the doctrine of the true Sabbath has been most widely preached. (Ibid.)
In America, where the Seventh-day Adventist Church was organized in 1863 and initially had its highest concentration, a backlash of bigotry on the part of Sunday-keepers found its way to the legislative halls. “Blue Laws”—so called for the blue paper upon which they were printed—forbade certain activities on Sunday, and soon had those who worshipped on Saturday “singing the blues.” Seventh-day Adventists could no longer labor six days and rest the seventh as the Lord commands,{§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§} but had only five days of the week in which to work. More than an economic hardship, however, the Sunday Laws became a vehicle for venting hatred against the little flock.
It soon became apparent that these laws were intended not so much to strengthen Sunday observance as to weaken the Sabbath-keeping body. The St. Louis Globe-Democrat ran an insightful article with this observation on November 30, 1885:
It is a little singular that no one else has been troubled on account of the law, with perhaps one minor exception, while members of the above denomination [Seventh-day Adventists] are being arrested over the whole State. It savors just a trifle of the religious persecution which characterized the Dark Ages.{************************}
On Sunday in this same state; at this same time, the trains ran uninhibited, the hotels were open for business—as were the drugstores and barber shops—and the livery stables did more business than any other day of the week.
Conscientious Sabbath-keepers were far from the criminal element supposed to be subdued by Sunday legislation. There was the case of the Sabbath-keeping carpenter. (One wonders how Jesus would have faired in this era.) This Mr. Star repaired a broken window on Sunday as an act of charity—no fee incurred—for a Methodist widow. He did the work in the rain, for the lady had no other place to shelter herself and her family. At the complaining of a Reverend Powers from the Missionary Baptist Church, it was Star who would pay a fee, to the court, in February of 1887. In a similar case at about that time, John Neusch was observed gathering overripe peaches from his orchard on Sunday, after resting and worshipping on Saturday. The witnesses had come requesting that Mr. Neusch not prosecute a young man who had stolen peaches the preceding Sunday. Neusch agreed to overlook the matter, and refused pay. With incomprehensible ingratitude, the acquitted party reported Neusch for harvesting on Sunday!
Even sadder is the case of Joe McCoy of Louisville Kentucky. Unlike others who were “seasoned” in the faith, McCoy was a relatively new Christian. Though he was held in high esteem, having served as a constable seven years and two terms as justice of the peace, McCoy had not given his heart to the Lord until afterward becoming a Seventh-day Adventist. Upon McCoy’s conversion, the enemy of souls inspired a Mr. Reatherford of the Methodist Church to have McCoy arrested for farming on Sunday. Tearfully, the budding believer decried the paradox of being undisturbed when “reckless and wicked”, only to be arrested after committing himself to the right.{††††††††††††††††††††††††} Of course, Jesus warned His followers that they would incur persecution. It is confusing, however, when such persecution comes from those who profess loyalty to the Savior. Jesus pronounces a fearful woe against those through whom such offences come.{‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡}
Not everyone was blind to the injustice of Sunday Laws. Attorney J. P. Henderson was employed to prosecute violators. But upon investigation, he found the cases “were simply of the nature of religious persecutions,”{§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§} and refused to seek penalty. Public school teacher Mr. E. Stinson stated,
I believe the prosecutions to be more for religious persecution than for the purpose of guarding the Sunday from desecration. The men who have been indicted are all good moral men and law-abiding citizens, to the best of my knowledge. The indictments, to the best of my belief, were malicious in their character, and without provocation. I believe the unmodified [without provision for observers of another day] Sunday law to be unjust in its nature, and that it makes an unjust discrimination against a small but worthy class of our citizens.{*************************}
According to Arkansas Supreme Court Judge Williams of Little Rock, such a law “was used oppressively upon the seventh-day Sabbath Christians, to an extent that shocked the bar of the whole State”; he asserted that “the judges, as men and lawyers, abhorred it.”{†††††††††††††††††††††††††}
On May 27, 1892, a W. S. Lowry was tried for Sunday labor in Paris, Tennessee. The man employed no counsel, but made this noble declaration:
My convictions on the Bible are that the seventh day of the week is the Sabbath, which comes on Saturday. I observe that day the best I know how. Then I claim the God-given right to six days of labor. I have a wife and four children, and it takes my labor six days to make a living. I go about my work quietly, do not make any unnecessary noise, but do my work as quietly as possible. It has been proved by the testimony of Mr. Fitch and Mr. Cox, who live around me, that they were not disturbed. Here I am before the court to answer for this right that I claim as a Christian. I am a law-abiding citizen, believing that we should obey the laws of the State; but whenever they conflict with my religious convictions and the Bible, I stand and choose to serve the law of my God rather than the laws of the State. I do not desire to cast any reflections upon the State, nor the officers and authorities executing the law. I leave the case with you.{‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡}
Lowry was found guilty and spent 45 days on a chain-gang.
Animosity and hypocrisy among the accusers was great. While other men were hunting, fishing, and working their farms in a more public and noisy manner, it was only the Seventh-day Adventist R. M. King who was arrested in Obion County, Tennessee, upon quietly cultivating his corn in the summer of 1889. The case advanced to the U.S. circuit court, where a Colonel Richardson declared, “that the persons who claimed to be disturbed were disturbed or excited only because of their religious views.”{§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§} Georgia Attorney William F. Findley further clarifies this, especially at the conclusion of this statement:
One of these Seventh-day Adventists was tried over here in Forsyth County, and I think there never was a more unrighteous conviction. There was a man named Day Conklin, who was moving on Friday. He got his goods wet on Friday, and it turned off [the day ended] cold. On Saturday he went out and cut enough wood to keep his family from freezing.{**************************} On Sunday he still hadn’t his things dry, and it was still as cold as it had been on Saturday. He still cut enough wood to keep his family warm, and they convicted him for doing this. I say that that was an outrage, an unrighteous conviction, for he was doing the best he could. One of the jurymen told me that they did not convict him for what he had done, but for what he said he had a right to do. He said he had a right to work on Sunday.{††††††††††††††††††††††††††}
Both a juror and a witness against Conklin in this case were found chopping wood at their own homes the following Sunday, without incrimination.
In 1909, a party with two children under that age of fourteen was accused of picking strawberries on Sunday. One of the supposed witnesses to the crime was no closer than a quarter mile and on the opposite side of a hill. Another “witness” proved to be more than 150 miles distant at the time of the incident. The plaintiff’s hostility was evident in that he was reprimanded several times by the magistrate for improper language. An August 19 Washington Post article somewhat sarcastically observed that the accuser, “deeply imbued with the gloomy faith of a John Balfour of Burley, this excellent and exemplary man, just from the sanctuary, where he worshiped in the name of Him who sat at meat with publican and sinner and plucked green corn [on the Sabbath day{‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡}]…had the five of them arrested for breaking the Sabbath.”{§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§}
In Maryland a Seventh-day Adventist was turned in by the minister of another denomination for husking corn on Sunday. In that same state, members of the Methodist Church volunteered their witness against a Mr. Baker for violation of Sunday “sacredness.” Baker had formerly worshipped with those who testified against him. And it was also in Maryland that a Mr. Ford prosecuted his own brother for hauling some window sashes to a new Seventh-day Adventist church on Sunday, responding to a threat that they would otherwise be destroyed at the boat dock. It so happened that this same prosecutor was also the dock agent, having reneged on his promise to transfer the sashes to the safety of the freight house. In another instance from that region, a Mr. Bullen was accused of five minutes labor one Sunday while inspecting his garden. “At the same time axes were to be heard all around the neighborhood. Even their informants were caring for their boats, baling out water, drying sails, etc., preparing to amuse themselves on the same ‘Lord’s day, commonly called Sunday.’”{***************************} A Sunday-school superintendent met Bullen on his way to trial, stating that he would give a hundred dollars to put him in the penitentiary for life. And a Watchman’s Association was formed in Shady Side Maryland, for the express purpose of catching seventh-day observers in violation of Sunday laws. The would-be offenders received many threats, had their worship services disrupted, and suffered damage to the door and transom of their meetinghouse.{†††††††††††††††††††††††††††} These things took place in the early and mid 1890s.
In the Fall of 1910, the state of Virginia saw another example of blatant persecution. The case involved a Mr. Eugene Ford, who worshipped on Saturday. While Sunday-laws were in force, Ford’s employer, a nominal Sunday-keeper, nevertheless requested he do a small job for him on the first day of the week. This would involve repairing some dredging machines which the owner wished to pick up that day, hiring also a driver for that purpose. But Ford’s faith irked a certain Methodist Sunday-school teacher, who readily reported him alone as a violator. (The whistle-blower himself was known to have sold and delivered crab meat and gasoline on Sunday that summer.) We are somewhat comforted to find that Ford’s employer volunteered to pay the fine, though neither he nor the others involved in that Sunday’s business were faulted. In fact, the complainant declared that he “would not cause the arrest of anyone for Sunday work except an observer of the seventh day.”{‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡}
In several cases men took ill and died on account of lengthy terms in abysmal jails, leaving poor families bereaved and in great hardship. But it took a while for these injustices to quicken the conscience of our country. Sunday-law violators were still being prosecuted throughout the 1920’s and 30’s, in places such as Alabama, California, Georgia, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia. Though enforcement has waned over the years, it is a fact that all of the United States—with the exception of Alaska—retain Sunday Laws on their books to this day.{§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§} One might think that our society has matured beyond such bigotry, but modern man is just as susceptible to blind rage. We shall see in our next chapter that all it takes is the “right” set of circumstances to rekindle the fire of persecution against Sabbath-keeping Christians. A lucky strike of lightning is all that’s needed to resurrect this Frankenstein’s monster.
By this time, there were Seventh-day Adventists all over the world. In 1939, a 40-year old father of three was drafted into the German army. His name was Franz Hasel. Being a very conscientious Christian, Hasel requested medical (non-combatant) duty. Upon noting his religious status, the man enrolling him asked another officer what was a Seventh-day Adventist. “They are like the Jews,”{****************************} came the response. “They keep Sabbath.” Franz was assigned to a front-line bridge-building brigade—the most dangerous work conceivable.
Hasel was not the only professed Seventh-day Adventist to be drafted into Hitler’s wehrmacht.{††††††††††††††††††††††††††††} But because of this man’s unique determination to honor the Sabbath, and the availability of his story, Hazel’s life is a showcase of both persecution and divine provision to persevere in spite of it. We shall borrow largely from the account of his youngest daughter, Susi Hasel Mundi, in her book, A Thousand Shall Fall.{‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡}
Out of the original company{§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§} of 1200, Hasel would be 1 of only 7 to survive; 1 of 3 never to be wounded. During the entire war, Franz refused to perform any work on the Sabbath.{*****************************} The Lord assisted with various providences such as muddy roads or extreme fatigue among the men, making Saturday travel disagreeable. Franz was also granted the wisdom and tact to exchange duties with others, or reason as to why certain projects might be postponed until Sunday. At first his superiors were censorious and noted on his papers that he should be court-martialled at the end of the war, but put up with him in the meantime for his exemplary work.
It is important to note that Hasel’s morality was not exclusive to Sabbath-keeping, but extended to every aspect of life. Franz refused to partake in the frequent incidence of looting, or rude and drunken conduct at parties. Before long, he was entrusted with their paychecks as company clerk and later accountant. The well-respected corporal was eventually ordered to bunk with his sergeant, who took note that this Sabbath-keeper always escaped injury.{†††††††††††††††††††††††††††††} (Franz was not without sin, but was willing to make things right when repentance was offered{‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡} him. Thus he found himself the beneficiary of the One who declares, “Those who honor{§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§} Me, I will honor.”{******************************})
Finally, Franz would give a Bible study that convinced his leaders their mission was doomed, and he was given command of the entire company for their retreat from the Russian front. While discharging German soldiers, a U.S. officer noticing Hasel’s court-martial for Sabbath observance marveled in disbelief. “I’m a Jew myself, by the way. But even in the American army I don’t keep the Sabbath because it’s too difficult.”{††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††} The colonel erred on two points: 1) Not all Sabbath-keepers are Jews. 2) Nothing to which God calls us too difficult. “I can do all things through Christ.”{‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡} (Again, our study is limited to Sabbath-keeping Christians.)
Mrs. Hasel also tried the Lord of the Sabbath{§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§} and found Him true. Wrestling with the decision of whether to let her children attend school for two hours on Sabbath, she finally pled to the Savior, “Don’t ever let my children become more important to me than you are.{*******************************} Don’t let them become my idols.”{†††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††} The first Principal who reproached her for this resolution was soon shipped away to war and became missing in action. When pressure was again brought to bear, the Allies changed their bombing schedule to daytime on Saturdays, while continuing to raid evenings every other day. When she had to leave Frankfurt and gather her brood to the relative safety of the country, Mrs. Hasel again made her request to the school. This time, the principal let her children off on Saturdays under the pretense that they needed less instruction because of their advanced education in the city.
Helene Hasel’s fortitude was especially inspiring as she was persecuted for refusing to join the Nazi party. After months without rations for the little ones or herself (friends provided), Mrs. Hasel was eventually called to the Party headquarters—an appointment from which many never returned. When the interrogating officer learned that her resistance was based on her beliefs as a Seventh-day Adventist, his indignation suddenly eased. As it turned out, his neighbor was also of the faith, and had done much to comfort the officer in times of need. So we see one way in which God turns the tides of persecution is through the winsomeness and charitable acts of His people. Another example is seen in Helene’s willingness to cook for Allied invaders when others refused, resulting in her bedroom being the only one left unmolested that night. Hers was often the only laundry left hanging, with the rest torn down and trammeled. And upon returning to the city after the war (1945), her apartment stood intact though surrounded by rubble. These are but a small sampling of the many honors bestowed upon this faithful family.
Next we examine the case of Glorious Country Wong, as he is called in Stanley Maxwell’s, The Man Who Couldn’t Be Killed. In 1948, this Seventh-day Adventist citizen of China was sentenced to 20 years in prison, during the oppressive People’s Revolution. Being a Christian was scarcely tolerable in itself, for the association with capitalist Westerners. But it was Wong’s “laziness” in refusing to work Saturdays that aroused his persecutors. Of the 5000 sent to the desert work camp, Wong would be among just 18 to survive, and the only one released to see his family again.
Satan did his best to destroy this little Sabbath-keeping clan. Neighbors were conscripted by the government to pressure and manipulate. One said to his first wife, “I believe you have a good chance to influence your husband. With your wifely wiles, you can dissuade him from pursuing his feudalistic path.”{‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡} This ploy is reminiscent of the serpent’s whispers to Eve, or the Philistines’ efforts to overcome Samson through his wife Delilah (Genesis 3, Judges 16). So the Communists tried to access Wong’s heart through “the weaker sex.”{§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§} Especially in our current age, when nihilistic despair has elevated romance to the height of human attainment, this is a critical avenue the adversary uses in the persecution of God’s people. But Wong was unshakable; even willing to give up his cherished second wife—a beautiful opera singer—in order to conform to the biblical model. Again, we see a zeal not just for a day, but for the entire way{********************************} of Christ.
Wong was no mere mispatriot. “Seventh-day Adventists believe it’s their duty to obey the government—as long as it doesn’t go against God’s laws. If I have to sin against your government{††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††} in order not to sin against God, I choose to break my government’s regulations.”{‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡} Wong’s testimony is like that of the early apostles: “We ought to obey God rather than men.”{§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§}
“I’m sure your so-called Real God would make an exception for criminals in hard labor camps who must work,” a guard pretends compassion. “We have priests available who could give you absolution. I’ll arrange it for you.” Mr. Wong replies, “A priest isn’t above God’s laws.”{*********************************} This exchange shows the absurdity of a religion that would have God obey man.
Wong chooses God’s rest over whatever ease his adversaries offer; yet treats them with respect. “I know you mean good to me. If I could follow your wishes, I would.” “Don’t be afraid,” says the warden. “Why do you think I’m afraid?” Mr. Wong replies. “You have no idea how much courage it takes to stand here and take the inmates’ beatings in silence.”{†††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††} Indeed, Wong’s was a super-human courage, withstanding many consecutive days of kicking, slapping, punching and; being thrown to the ground and leapt upon by his fellows from morning ‘til night, when he’d sleep with eyes swollen shut. Many times Wong did not believe he could endure another day, but always awoke with fresh resolve to stand for Jesus. Thus applies the sacred promise, “As thy days, so shall thy strength be.”{‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡‡} On the 17th day, for a grand finale, both of Wong’s arms were broken. But his heart reached out to Jesus. “Please heal my arms and face to prove to both prisoners and jailers that you are the Real God. …I believe you can perform a miracle for me, because your reputation is at stake.”{§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§} Here we see the pure motive that propels the Sabbath-keeper past the pain: a love for God, and His righteousness. “Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is