A long time ago, a government enacted a law that fined citizens for “breaking the Sabbath,” and it used language for exceptions (“work of necessity or charity”) echoing Westminster Shorter Catechism Q&A 60 (“works of necessity and mercy”).
“A Bill for Punishing Disturbers of Religious Worship and Sabbath Breakers”—”If any person on Sunday shall himself be found labouring at his own or any other trade or calling, or shall employ his apprentices, servants or slaves in labour, or other business, except it be in the ordinary houshold offices of daily necessity, or other work of necessity or charity, he shall forfeit the sum of ten shillings for every such offence.”
This was surely authored by 17th-century Puritans, right?
Nope. It was the 1786 Virginia legislature, and the bill’s author was Thomas Jefferson—that Unitarian Founding Father the Supreme Court likes to appeal to for striking down such religious laws. Keep in mind that this is the same Thomas Jefferson who in the election of 1800 was pilloried and vilified by the New England clergy who warned during that election cycle that if elected Jefferson would seize people’s bibles. Keep in mind that this is the same Thomas Jefferson who gave us “the Jefferson Bible.” This bible found old Tom cutting out every supernatural account. Keep in mind that TJ was a Unitarian at best and a raving Deist at worst. Then after you keep all that in mind, remember that Thomas Jefferson acted more biblically than your R2K minister.
Now keep in mind here that your local R2K minister insists that the kind of political action that finds legislators passing laws that are born of the Christian faith is a great sin. Legislators, per R2K, are to appeal to Natural law and not Biblical law for their attempted legislating. Can you imagine the heart attack that R2K political super-hero Sen. Ben Sasse would have over this proposed legislation?
