Constantine and the History of the Sabbath Fast

It is historically certain that the transition from the seventh-day Sabbath to Sunday was a strategic maneuver by church leaders and the Emperor Constantine to distance Christianity from its Jewish roots and incorporate heathen customsASLD 98.1+1. While Constantine's primary legal contribution was his famous edict in A.D. 321 commanding rest on "the venerable day of the sun," the practice of solemnizing the Sabbath through fasting was a documented method used to transition devotion toward the Sunday celebrationASLD 98.1+2.

The Role of Fasting in Shifting Worship

• Solemnizing the Sabbath: To prepare the minds of the people for the Sunday service, church leaders required that the minds of believers be solemnized by a fast on the SabbathOGSO 62.2.

• The Saturday Fast: This mandate often required that the usual Sabbath fast continue until the evening or even until Sunday morning, ensuring that the transition to the new day of worship was marked by a sober and prepared state of mind Acts 13:3OGSO 62.2.

• Contrast with Sunday: In contrast to the required fasting on the seventh day, Sunday was elevated as a day of celebration and religious "solemnity" to honor the resurrection and, for some, the "invincible" sunASLD 98.1+2.

Constantine’s Influence on Religious Practice

Constantine’s involvement in church affairs was largely political, aimed at uniting the empire through a singular religious systemBEST August 16, 1897, page 257.4+1.

• The First Sunday Law: In A.D. 321, Constantine issued the first law enforcing rest on Sunday, specifically for judges and townspeople, while allowing agricultural labor to continueTBI 165.2+1.

• Elevation of Sunday: Through this edict, the day of the sun—the chief worship of the heathen—gained a legal place under the name of ChristianityASLD 98.1+1.

• Ecclesiastical Collaboration: Church managers requested these edicts as part of a scheme to secure civil power to compel submission to church dictatesTTR 771.4+1.

The Biblical Foundation vs. Human Ordinance

Despite these imperial and ecclesiastical changes, the fourth commandment remains the only divinely spoken precept regarding the day of restRH June 1, 1897, par. 1.

• The Commandment: "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God" Nehemiah 9:14RH June 1, 1897, par. 1.

• A Human Ordinance: Historical records and church historians acknowledge that Sunday observance is a human ordinance rather than a divine commandment from the apostlesRCASDA 35.2+1.

• Continuing the Sabbath: Even after Constantine’s laws were enacted, the seventh-day Sabbath continued to be observed by many, showing its resilience against human legislationSOSL 148.1+1.

Ultimately, the shift from a Sabbath of rest and delight to a day of fasting was a tool used by the papacy and the empire to elevate Sunday as the primary day of worshipTTR 771.4+1. The "fish gate" of Jerusalem serves as a reminder of the historical trade and life that once centered around the biblical Sabbath-meal, a tradition that was gradually replaced by these new ecclesiastical contrivances Nehemiah 3:3LTJMB3 219.1.