Free Republic

Va. Error Reinstates Blue Law Workers Can Insist On Sundays Off By Michael D. Shear Washington Post Staff Writer Friday, July 2, 2004; Page A01 RICHMOND, July 1 -- Virginia's legislature and governor have accidentally resurrected an archaic law that allows employees to demand Sunday as a "day of rest," throwing many of the state's business leaders into a panic about the possibility that stores, airlines, hospitals and factories might be forced to shut down on weekends. From: City To: City Departure Date: Return Date: Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 1 2 3...

On Saturdays and Sundays, rain or shine, locals and visitors fill the restaurants, boutiques, bookstores and coffee shops of Carytown, a popular residential and commercial district here. At night, restaurants bustle, and the line for the second-run movie theater wraps around the block. But thanks to an unnoticed clerical error in a new state law, some here fear that could all change. Advertisement Even after the bill's sponsor, Senator Frederick M. Quayle, a Republican from Chesapeake, said unequivocally that the bill was in error, the mistake has Virginia's business community reeling back to colonial times, when working on Sunday was...

Days after confounding fans with a so-called "special announcement" that fell short of expectations, organizers have confirmed that Black Sabbath will headline Ozzfest 2004. The timing of the announcement comes as more of a surprise than the news it contained, since, for weeks, assumptions were high that the legendary metal quartet was on board for the trek. Last week, Ozzfest.com promised a big announcement on Friday, though visitors to the site were met with a message about an unsigned-band contest instead of the news that Ozzy Osbourne himself first hinted at in a radio interview in early April (see "It's...

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope John Paul (news - web sites) on Friday said Sunday should be a day for God, not for secular diversions like entertainment and sports. "When Sunday loses its fundamental meaning and becomes subordinate to a secular concept of 'weekend' dominated by such things as entertainment and sport, people stay locked within a horizon so narrow that they can no longer see the heavens," the pontiff said in a speech to Australian bishops. John Paul criticized the "culture of the 'here and now,'" urging Church leaders to "lead men and women from the shadows of moral...

VATICAN CITY () - Pope John Paul (news - web sites) on Friday said Sunday should be a day for God, not for secular diversions like entertainment and sports. "When Sunday loses its fundamental meaning and becomes subordinate to a secular concept of 'weekend' dominated by such things as entertainment and sport, people stay locked within a horizon so narrow that they can no longer see the heavens," the pontiff said in a speech to Australian bishops. John Paul criticized the "culture of the 'here and now,'" urging Church leaders to "lead men and women from the shadows of moral...

<p>NEW YORK -- The Rev. Charles Rush, pastor of a church in a well-to-do New York City suburb, knew for sure weekend sports tournaments were encroaching on the sacred day for worship when parishioners informed him the only time their children had for youth activities at church was Sunday nights.</p>

Not only did Constantine enforce SUNday observance in the Roman empire, Pope Alexander III decreed at the Council of Tours in A.D. 1163: "Whereas a damnable heresy (Sabbath-keeping) has for some time lifted its head...and spread infection...concealing itself like a serpent in its folds; as soon as its followers shall have been discovered, let no man afford them refuge on his estates; neither let there be any communications with them in buying and selling..." (Rev. 13:17). People were forbidden to engage in commerce with these "heretics" and "Judaizers." As the hate America/Israel movement grows and spreads across the world, fanned...

Whippings, fines, burnt tongues, severed ears: such were the Puritans' penalties for breaches of the Sabbath. Under the "blue laws" of the 1700s, the punishments could be invoked for simple misdeeds ranging from shuffleboard to skipping church. Most colonial edicts have gone the way of scarlet letters. But one has remained intact in states from Connecticut to Texas: the ban on Sunday sales of alcohol. Now, a stubborn seam of Puritanical America is coming undone. With Gov. Mitt Romney's decision last week, Massachusetts joined five states that have relaxed bans on Sunday sales in the past 18 months. Today, as...

Sunday Worship in Christianity Every Sunday millions of Christian worshippers go to church to attend services devoted to God. Every Friday night and Saturday, millions of Jews go to synagogues to attend worship services to God. Both religions claim to worship the same God. Both religions use the same holy book. In fact, the Jewish bible comprises two-thirds of the Christian bible in the form of the Old Testament. This brings up an interesting question. Why do most Christians worship on Sundays while Jews worship on Fridays or Saturdays? To best understand this issue, it is important to go...

CAIRO — The Al Qaida attack on Friday killed 36 people in simultaneous suicide bombings in Casablanca, but missed its primary target of Israeli tourists and the resident Jews in Morocco. Western diplomatic sources said victims of the 10 suicide bombings on late Friday were Moroccans as well as tourists from France, Italy and Spain. The Al Qaida suicide bombers were believed to have been sent on a mission to target Israeli nationals and Moroccan Jews at a Jewish community center, a hotel frequented by Israeli tourists and a restaurant owned by a French Jew who lived in the kingdom....

In A.D. 135, at the end of the Jewish rebellion against Roman domination, the emperor Hadrian passed laws forbidding circumcision, the keeping of the Sabbath, and the study or teaching of the Torah. Though aimed at the Jews, these laws affected the course of the young Christian church to a greater degree than many realize. Because Jewish Christians refused to join in the war against Rome, Bar Kochba, the self-proclaimed messiah of the Jews, persecuted them. Thus these Christians found themselves treated unmercifully by fellow Jews and at the same time rejected by the Romans because of their illicit religion....

This past Saturday, something extraordinarily rare took place: My team, the Anaheim Angels, was positioned to win a postseason series -- against the New York Yankees no less. And my friend and radio colleague Hugh Hewitt, who could not use his seats (first row, near home plate), sent them to me. Only other diehard fans of such teams as the Red Sox and the Cubs can fully understand how much I wanted to go to that game with my young son. After all, who knows when such an opportunity will come again? But the next day, Major League Baseball announced...

So, there was a bill before Congress to require that mail not be delivered on Sundays, so as to respect the Sabbath. The Senate Appropriations Committee reacted less than warmly to the idea. Here is there report, filed by the chairman, Richard Johnson: "That some respite is required from the ordinary vocations of life, is an established principle, sanctioned by the usages of all nations, whether Christian or Pagan. One day in seven has also been determined upon as the proportion of time; and in conformity with the wishes of the great majority of citizens in this country, the first...

Ottawa, Ontario, Canada author Clive Douglas Campbell and Phoenix, Arizona, USA publisher Selah Publishing Group are pleased to announce the release of Messiah: 2030. Nobody knows the day and hour of the Second Coming, but the following years are on the front cover: Messiah: 2030 Cluny: 1030 Jesus: 30 David: 970 Abraham: 1970 Noah: 2970 Adam: 3970 Messiah: 2030 claims the Bible prophesies a sixth Arab-Israeli war will be over in 2003 and include the following: --the Palestinians will be deported to Jordan --Israel will go to war with Jordan, possess Jordanian land east of the Jordan River and King...