History of the Sabbath and First Day of the Week - John N. Andrews

sickness or any other cause, and such as are in
bonds, and strangers that come from far; and, in a
word, he is the guardian and almoner to all the
indigent. Upon Sunday we all assemble, that being
the first day in which God set himself to work upon
the dark void, in order to make the world, and in
which Jesus Christ our Saviour rose again from the
dead; for the day before Saturday he was crucified,
and the day after, which is Sunday, he appeared
unto his apostles and disciples, and taught them
what I have now proposed to your
consideration."[20]
This passage, if genuine, furnishes the earliest
reference to the observance of Sunday as a
religious festival in the Christian church. It should
be remembered that this language was written at
Rome, and addressed directly to the emperor. It
shows therefore what was the practice of the
church in that city and vicinity, but does not
determine how extensive this observance was. It
contains strong incidental proof that apostasy had
made progress at Rome; the institution of the
Lord's supper being changed in part already to a
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