David Jeffrey is a former professional football player and the current manager of the Northern Irish football team Ballymena United. On March 11, 2022, he was speaking ahead of a Sunday League Cup game and shared his views about Sunday, worship, and football.
• “My own view is very simple: God made the Sabbath for man, not man for the Sabbath,” he said.
• “The most important thing for me on Sunday is really making sure I’m in my place of worship.”
• “I suppose for me traditionally in Northern Ireland we haven’t played [on Sundays] and I’ve always been very comfortable with that.”
• “My own preference would be not to play – simply around the practicalities of if you’re playing away from home, say Coleraine or anywhere else, it would maybe interfere with my worship.”
• “My priority on a Sunday is worshipping God … the practicalities of trying to prepare for a game on a Sunday would interfere dramatically with getting to church.” [1]
According to Rome, professional sports are frequently played on Sundays, making it difficult to attend church. In an attempt to “reclaim Sunday,” one Roman Catholic Archbishop has banned all sports on Sunday in his archdiocese. Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron, Vice-President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops [2], the Catholic Church’s highest authority in the United States, is on a mission to ban sporting events on Sunday.
Our Sunday Visitor published an article titled “Banning Sporting Events on Sundays is Something to Cheer For” and stated the following:
In a pastoral letter entitled “The Day of the Lord,” released May 15, Detroit Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron wrote: “We in the Archdiocese of Detroit will cease sporting events on Sunday. This means that competitive athletic programs in the grade school and high school levels are called to no longer play games or conduct practices on the Lord’s Day.” Archbishop Vigneron goes on: “In shifting away from the hustle of required sporting activities on Sunday, we will reclaim this holy day and create more time for families to choose activities that prioritize time spent with each other and Our Lord.” [3]
The Sunday movement is gaining popularity. Resolutions are being drawn up from all sides in support of Sunday closings. The growing movement for Sunday rest is destined to take our world by storm, as it is championed by so many people all over the world. How do we convey to our people a sense of urgency about the signs of the end times? How do we instill in the minds of Seventh-day Adventists the awareness that our world is becoming more lawless and corrupt as our Saviour’s return approaches? As we see the prophecies coming to pass, we are called to illuminate the world with the truth and to give a clear testimony about the Sunday movement.
“I do hope that the trumpet will give a certain sound in regard to this Sunday-law movement” (Publishing Ministry, p. 222).
“The law of God, through the agency of Satan, is to be made void. In our land of boasted freedom religious liberty will come to an end. The contest will be decided over the Sabbath question, which will agitate the whole world” (Evangelism, p. 236).
Sources
[2] https://www.usccb.org/about/allen-h-vigneron-archbishop-detroit
[3] https://www.osvnews.com/2019/05/21/banning-sporting-events-on-sundays-is-something-to-cheer-for/
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“Sooner or later Sunday laws will be passed.” The Review and Herald, February 16, 1905.
Don’t people read their Bibles? Sunday is not the Sabbath.
So sad. We have our work cut out.
Adventists in Ireland should write the news media informing them that Sunday is not the Lord’s day.
My priority on Sunday (first day of the week Genesis 1:5) to play football ⚽️ and on the Saturday worship our true Living God Jesus Christ. Amen 🙂📖🕊💚🙌