In your issue of March 28, this statement is made: "There is no land on earth where people of all sorts of religion have more absolute freedom in the practice of their religion than in England." [The article is titled, "The Coronation Oath," and is included in the book, The Great Falling Away]
That was tenable, but I cannot endorse its present correctness, for although I believe no country in the world was more bigoted than Chile against all creeds, other than the Roman Catholic religion, yet for many years now, all creeds are free there. If Turks or others of the same persuasion come there, they can keep Friday as their sanctified day; so can Jews keep the seventh day, the true Sabbath according to the commandment of God; so also can professing Christians keep either the first or the seventh day as their Sabbath; but one day out of every seven must be kept, then they are free, without molestation!
The Present Truth does not hold a brief for any country on earth; for the best government in the hands of man is imperfect, and no law made and executed by man can fail to work injustice to somebody. God alone is just, and He alone can govern so that every soul shall receive equal and exact justice, and every soul shall have absolute liberty.
Therefore it is to us a matter of very little concern whether England or Chile has the freer government. As a matter of fact, however, you have not made it appear that there is less freedom in England than formerly; for the Sunday laws to which you refer, are not something new, but have been on the statute books for centuries; and whereas they were once strictly enforced, now they are practically a dead letter. It is an extremely rare thing to hear of a prosecution in England for any Sunday labor, and when there is one, the "offender" is usually let off with the smallest possible fine, or a word of judicial advice.
The fact that the laws exist, although not enforced, does indeed constitute a menace for the future, since if some calamity should come, as there certainly will, and narrow-minded zealots should imagine that the laxness of Sunday observance is the cause of the evil, the machinery is all ready at hand, with which to carry on persuasion.
Still that would not make much difference, since everything depends upon the disposition of the people: if they are imbued with the spirit of liberty, they will not curtail any person's freedom, even though all the means be within their grasp; and if they are filled with bigotry and demoniac frenzy, they can easily enact laws to suit their desires, or can even make it appear that their persecuting course is according to laws which forbid it. It is never difficult for people to find or make a "reason" for anything they are determined to do.
But all this is of secondary importance. The point in your letter which chiefly shows a misapprehension of the merits of the case is in those words: "One day out of every seven must be kept, then they are free."
Now this reveals the fact that Chile, no matter how greatly it has progressed, has not yet attained to a knowledge of what constitutes personal liberty. As long as a person is not left free not only to keep any day he wishes, but also to keep none at all, without molestation, there is no real freedom of worship in a country.
It is recognized as unjust to compel a man to observe the first day of the week, when he believes only in the seventh day; but it is equally unjust to compel a person to observe any day whatever, when he does not believe in the sacredness of any day.
The man who does not believe in God has the same right in this world that the man has who believes the whole truth, and should be left just as free to follow his lack of convictions as the other is to follow his convictions, and to abide by the consequences, God does not compel anybody to serve Him, or to profess to do so; and for men to stop in and do so is to exalt themselves above God.
Therefore those who seek to compel others to worship God are opposers of Him equally with those who deny His existence.
It should always be remembered that the sinner injures himself more than anybody else. It a man refuses to worship God, he himself is the loser; his refusal does not hinder anybody else from worshiping. And it does no good to the man, to try to compel him to worship; for the essence and sum of true religion is love, and love cannot be forced.
When God bears so long with transgressors, we can certainly afford to deal kindly with them. Surely God has no need of our championship, and as for that which concerns us, "Whatsoever you would that men should do to you, do you even so to them; for this is the law and the prophets." (Matthew 7:12)--Present Truth, June 13, 1901.