Bloomberg News reported on December 1, 2022, that Croatia was moving to ban Sunday shopping, giving retailers only 16 Sundays a year to remain open. Bloomberg reported the following:
“Tourism-dependent Croatia is moving to ban shopping on all but 16 Sundays of a year, giving retailers the right to decide when they would use the exemption. “We want to make it possible for retail employees to spend Sundays with their families,” the government said on Twitter on Thursday. The proposal may dent the country’s aspirations for year-round tourism. The predominantly Roman-Catholic nation’s economy is heavily dependent on tourism income. Most retailers are expected to use the exception during summer at the height of the tourist season. Retail stores that are part of airports, bus and train stations, ferries, hotels, gas stations or museums would be completely exempted from the new law.” [1]
Compelling all businesses to observe Sunday in this predominantly Roman Catholic nation means that these laws are designed to encourage people to go to church or spend time with their families. Sunday closing laws, regardless of their intentions, always result in unjust discrimination and persecution of all religious faiths that observe the seventh-day Sabbath, Saturday, as holy time.
The economic impact will be felt first by business owners who observe Saturday as their day of worship. Sabbath-keepers face economic hardship as a result of Sunday laws, which require them to close their businesses two days a week: Saturday for their day of worship and Sunday for the Sunday law. Sunday laws, on the other hand, impose no burden on the larger Catholic and Christian communities because their businesses could operate six days a week because Sunday is already their day of worship. As a result of the burden of having to close their businesses two days a week, some of these Sabbath-keeping minority groups must be open on Sunday.
So, whether directly or indirectly, Sunday laws are unjust because they discourage Saturday-keeping while encouraging Sunday-keeping. Sunday laws are discriminatory because they benefit one group while punishing others economically. Instead of taking into account the religious beliefs of Sabbath-keepers, the Croatian government has decreed that people need a day of rest and that Sunday is the uniform day of rest for all citizens.
We can see the precedent being established. This law, which requires everyone to rest on Sunday, is a dangerous infringement on the constitutional guarantees of religious liberty. It is an arbitrary legal restriction that favors Rome and works against Seventh-day Adventists. This means that Sabbath-keepers will be forced to rest two days a week: Sunday by law and Saturday according to their religious beliefs.
Religious liberty is the most cherished gift that we have today, and it should never be surrendered by anybody under any circumstances. For the sake of the preaching of the gospel and for liberty of conscience, we should be doing everything we can to preserve this gift that God Himself gave to us.
“We are not ready for the issue to which the enforcement of the Sunday law will bring us. It is our duty, as we see the signs of approaching peril, to arouse to action. Let none sit in calm expectation of the evil, comforting themselves with the belief that this work must go on because prophecy has foretold it, and that the Lord will shelter His people. We are not doing the will of God if we sit in quietude, doing nothing to preserve liberty of conscience. Fervent, effectual prayer should be ascending to heaven that this calamity may be deferred until we can accomplish the work which has so long been neglected. Let there be most earnest prayer, and then let us work in harmony with our prayers” (Testimonies, vol. 5, p. 713).
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The prophecies of revelation chapter 13 are being fulfilled before our eyes and there is no time to waste; the prophetic pendulum will shift to the western hemsphere from the old world of europe and the nation that will lead the world towards the enforcement of the mark of the beast is none other but the United States of America and the whole world will follow her by the example. This work of enforcing sunday observance as the day of rest is gaining ground every where across the globe. The seventh day adventists who are supposed to be the light bearers we must give the trumpet a certain sound to warn the earth’s inhabitants about the impending conflict that is to take place in the near future. But it is very unfortunate the general conference leadership under the stewardship of Ted Wilson and religious liberty leader Ganoune Dioup is working in cahoots with rome to fulfill the prophecies of revelation 13.Instead of unmasking the nefarious agenda of the man of sin these leaders are turning blind eye to the apostacy that is taking place in the world and the church in particular .Before the enfocement of sunday law God will have a purified people who have the christlike character and the right sound biblical doctrines people who will give the last warning message of the three angels message not converging into the ecumenical gatherings of apostate church leaders under the banner of rome. The sunday movement is gaining prominence across many parts of the world and many countries are supportive for this nefarious agenda but unknowingly they are trending in the wrong trajectory which will cost them eternal life . let us all draw closer to christ and follow him everywhere he goes and seek forgiveness of our sins before the close of probation whe christ is in the heavenly sanctuary as our intercessor before it is too late.
Kimani Hi,