A few weeks before work on this study paper was started, an Adventistlaymen.com associate worker in Florida informed the Webmaster that she had encountered an individual who is an advocate of the "National Sunday Law" teaching. She suggested that the true facts concerning the relevant prophecy of Ellen G. White be sent to the individual. This paper was started as an e-mail; but it quickly became apparent that this would not work adequately. It is impossible to create hyperlinks to essential internal website documentation in an e-mail. Hence the publication of this paper which it is safe to say provides irrefutable proof that with passage of time and changes in relevant Testimonies, the Seventh-day Adventist faith and the world are far beyond the prophecy of Ellen G. White which was actually fulfilled in 1892. This paper begins with expanded passages from a document published by the Webmaster over a decade ago, titled "NATIONAL SUNDAY LAW Present Truth or Distraction?"

This is followed by passages from the conclusive exposition of the relevant Testimonies by Elder William H. Grotheer in a three-part series of "Watchman, What of the Night" articles in 1989 titled “A National Sunday Law PAST? PRESENT? FUTURE?” The passages are accompanied by necessary commentary by the Webmaster befitting the march of events since the death of Elder Grotheer in 2009.

The following is quoted from "NATIONAL SUNDAY LAW Present Truth or Distraction?" with some additional documentation:

THE HISTORY OF THE LATE 1800s

Ellen White's references to the enactment of Sunday laws are numerous. Nevertheless, the law which she mentioned as the signal to move out of the cities can be placed with certainty in the year 1885. In Testimony for the Church, No. 32 (1885) she wrote:

It is no time now for God's people to be fixing their affections or laying up their treasure in the world. The time is not far distant, when, like the early disciples, we shall be forced to seek a refuge in desolate and solitary places. As the siege of Jerusalem by the Roman armies was the signal for flight to the Judean Christians, so the assumption of power on the part of our nation, in the decree enforcing the papal sabbath, will be a warning to us. It will then be time to leave the large cities, preparatory to leaving the smaller ones for retired homes in secluded places among the mountains. And now, instead of seeking expensive dwellings here, we should be preparing to move to a better country, even a heavenly. Instead of spending our means in self-gratification, we should be studying to economize.-- (T32 220).

Interestingly, there were at least two earlier statements (1876 & 1882) in which she recommended country living to "avoid many evils and close the door against a flood of temptations which threaten to overpower the minds of your children" (1876.) In 1882 she specifically mentioned the habits of vice and dissipation acquired in the cities. Credit must be given to "Back to Enoch Ministries" (hereinafter BEM) for revising Country Living to arrange its quotations from the Writings in chronological order. From this chronological arrangement it becomes apparent that she did not mention the decree enforcing the papal sabbath as the signal to move out of the cities after that one statement in 1885.

It becomes apparent from the revised Country Living that Ellen White must have perceived the passing of a decree enforcing the papal Sabbath before the end of the 19th century. This is contrary to the conclusion drawn by BEM under the heading "Purpose of this Edition" that focuses attention on the "Blair Amendment" which was not enacted. Oddly, BEM states "Ellen White recognized that this signal had come" (to move out of the cities;) but sees this as analogous to the first encirclement of Jerusalem by the Romans under Cestius Gallus in AD 66. BEM further states, "The national Sunday law issue subsided, and God's people have had more than a century to act on the His (sic) counsel. Now we hear rumblings of a return of the Roman armies. It is time to act!" This overlooks the fact that the Roman army surrounding Jerusalem was the only sign to flee. There would be no repetition.  Contextually, by Ellen White's recognition that the signal had come to move out of the cities, the linkage between a Sunday law and country living was broken. She continued to urge believers to move out of the cities, without mentioning a Sunday law. Furthermore, there was a statement which implies a recognition that a Sunday observance law had been passed.

The statement of Ellen White which implies a recognition that the Sunday decree had been passed is as follows:

The Protestant world have set up an idol sabbath in the place where God's Sabbath should be, and they are treading in the footsteps of the Papacy. For this reason I see the necessity of the people of God moving out of the cities into retired country [places,] where they may cultivate the land and raise their own produce. (Letter 90, 1897)  (Emphasis added)  

Not only is there this clear implication in Ellen White's statement; but A. T. Jones, who was the leading authority on the issue of religious liberty in the Church, and instrumental in the defeat of the "Blair Amendment," also recognized that the Sunday law had been passed by the U.S. Congress:

Well, let us see whether we are right.  Testimony 32, page 207 (Vol. 5, page 45):--

"To secure popularity and patronage, legislators will yield to the demand for Sunday law."

Will they-- They have done it. Is that fulfilled? [Congregation: "Yes."] That has been fulfilled. They have done it, and they have done it so certainly that they themselves have publicly said that they did do it for that purpose. The evidence, more than we have had at any other time, is in this little pamphlet-- "The Captivity of the Republic." It is a report of the hearing before the Committee on the World's Fair Sunday Closing Bill, an account of which I gave here in my second talk. This is now being printed and coming from the press. It is entitled "The Captivity of the Republic." And the idea is that the Churches have captured the republic and hold it in the captivity in which they have taken it, and the quotations there from congressmen themselves, lately, not simply those of Hiscock and Hawley, and those of last summer, but those of the very latest -- members of that Committee which heard our arguments and refused to hear what they would not hear willingly, but which they had to hear-- statements from these very men saying that they must not go any further in that direction for fear of the damage to the Fair and country at large, that the church element would do. You have it over and over there in several different ways; so there is further evidence than that which we had last summer; but they keep on saying that they did it then, for that reason, and they still maintain it for the same reason. So that is fulfilled over and over, if anybody wants evidence on that point. (From a sermon delivered by Elder A. T. Jones, in the Tabernacle at Battle Creek, Mich., Sunday evening, March 5, 1893.)

There was yet another impressive contemporary witness to the fact that the prophecy was fulfilled in 1892. In Great Second Advent Movement John N. Loughborough, who was closely associated with James and Ellen White in the build-up of the Advent Movement, wrote the following:

Prediction Concerning Sunday Laws

In Testimony No. 32, printed in 1885, is a statement as to how Sunday laws would be passed in the United States. It reads: "To secure popularity and patronage legislators will yield to the demand for a Sunday law."*373 We will for a moment consider how this has already been accomplished.

World's Fair Legislation

In 1892 a demand was made of Congress to prohibit the opening of the World's Fair which was to be held in Chicago, Illinois, from May to October of that year, from opening on Sunday. Such a law was passed July 19, 1892, under just such a pressure as above predicted. And be it remembered that this is the first time that the Congress of the United States of North America ever legislated on the Sabbath question.

The churches sent in immense lists of names, and petitions, and telegrams, not only petitioning Congress, but kindly (?) informing the congressmen "that we do hereby pledge ourselves and each other, that we will, from this time henceforth, refuse to vote for or support for any office or position of trust, any member of Congress, either senator or representative, who shall vote for any further aid of any kind for the World's Fair except on conditions named in these resolutions." The conditions were that the Fair should be closed on Sunday.

Talks in Congress, 1892

As a sample of the talk on the floors of Congress, when the bill was passed, read the following: "I should like to see the disclaimer put in white and black, and proposed by the Congress of the United States. Write it. How would you write it? . . . Word it, if you dare; advocate it, if you dare; how many who voted for it would ever come back here again? None, I hope. You endanger yourselves by opposing it."

Boast Made by the Church

That those who have demanded and secured of Congress the passage of this bill considered it an important victory in their scheme of religious legislation, is clear from the fact that one of these prominent ministers, in a sermon at Pittsburg, Penn., just after it, said:-

"That the church has weight with great political or governing bodies has been demonstrated most effectually in the late World's Fair matter, when the United States Senate, the highest body in the country, listened to the voice of religion, and passed the World's Fair $5,000,000 appropriation bill with the church-instituted proviso that the gates of the great exposition should not be opened on Sunday. That grand good fact suggests to the Christian's mind that if this may be done, so may other equally needful measures. The church is gaining power continually, and its voice will be heard in the future much oftener than in the past." Thus we see how that testimony given in 1885 has been and is being fulfilled. (Pp. 376-377, underscored emphasis added.)

Note the last sentence. Who among us are qualified over one hundred and twenty years later to question the validity of this statement? Also note the phrase "and is being fulfilled." This was not an accidental inclusion, as will be seen in Elder Grotheer's exposition later in this document.

The significance of the World's Fair Closing Bill was also confirmed by contemporary reports in the news media:

DATELINE SUNDAY

CHICAGO IS DISCOURAGED; NO SUNDAY OPENINGS . . .

The fact that the prophecy was fulfilled in 1892 is proven by overwhelming evidence.

As Ellen White continued to urge church members to get out of the cities without connecting this to the signal of a Sunday law, so she continued to write about a law enforcing the false sabbath with no connection to moving out of the cities. In statement after statement she made it clear that the enforcement of the papal sabbath will be a worldwide event. Here is one particularly telling description of the event:

History will be repeated. False religion will be exalted. The first day of the week, a common working day, possessing no sanctity whatever, will be set up as was the image at Babylon. All nations and tongues and peoples will be commanded to worship this spurious sabbath. This is Satan's plan to make of no account the day instituted by God, and given to the world as a memorial of creation.

The decree enforcing the worship of this day is to go forth to all the world. In a limited degree, it has already gone forth. In several places the civil power is speaking with the voice of a dragon, just as the heathen king spoke to the Hebrew captives.

Trial and persecution will come to all who, in obedience to the Word of God, refuse to worship this false sabbath. Force is the last resort of every false religion. At first it tries attraction, as the king of Babylon tried the power of music and outward show. If these attractions, invented by men inspired by Satan, failed to make men worship the image, the hungry flames of the furnace were ready to consume them. So it will be now. The papacy has exercised her power to compel men to obey her, and she will continue to do so. We need the same spirit that was manifested by God's servants in the conflict with paganism (ST May 6, 1897).

Here is another pointer to the time of the decree enforcing the false sabbath:

The Lord has shown me clearly that the image of the beast will be formed before probation closes; for it is to be the great test for the people of God, by which their eternal destiny will be decided. . . . [Revelation 13:11-17 quoted.] . . .

This is the test that the people of God must have before they are sealed. All who proved their loyalty to God by observing His law, and refusing to accept a spurious sabbath, will rank under the banner of the Lord God Jehovah, and will receive the seal of the living God. Those who yield the truth of heavenly origin and accept the Sunday sabbath, will receive the mark of the beast . . . (Letter 11, 1890).

It is clear that the Sunday law will be decreed and enforced so near to the very end of time that very few of the multitude who have resisted Present Truth (if any at all) will be able to escape the strong delusions that already hold the world captive. (Cf.  2 Thess. 2:10-12, which is contextually linked to the papacy.)

A NEW SIGNAL - Ellen White never mentioned the decree enforcing the papal sabbath after 1885. She did however specify another signal unrelated to Sunday legislation.  This is a signal which she said would mark the beginning of the closing movements of earth's history:

A Message for Frequent Appearance.--In the twenty-first chapter of Luke Christ foretold what was to come upon Jerusalem, and with it He connected the scenes which were to take place in the history of this world just prior to the coming of the Son of man in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. Mark the words: "Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man." . . . Letter 20, 1901 (CW 23)

It is a simple exercise to single out the prophecy of Jesus that Ellen White was identifying.  Only in verse 24 of the 21^st chapter of Luke is there a prophecy that appears in none of the other Gospels. The disciples had unwittingly posed a dual question, and Jesus gave a dual answer. The first part appears in the earlier verses of Luke 21, and in the other Gospels. The second part appears in Luke 21:24. What Jesus stated in verse 32 applies to both parts of the dual question. In other words, we are warned that within a generation from the end of the times of the Gentiles Jesus will return – no date setting here, but a definite time frame within which the closing events of earth’s history are now happening. (Cf. Jesus' Own Prophecy) (Underscored and italicized emphasis added.)

In the passages quoted above the evidence is clear that the specific Sunday law being promoted as signaling the "time to leave the large cities, preparatory to leaving the smaller ones for retired homes in secluded places among the mountains" was fulfilled by the Chicago World's Fair Closing Bill as long ago as 1892! This is verified by the prophet herself, further verified by the church leader who had successfully lobbied against the Blair Amendment, and corroborated by a contemporary of the prophet. Reports in the news media at that time also provide strong evidence that the Chicago World's Fair Closing law was a major enforcement of the false Sunday sabbath in defiance of the fourth commandment. Propagation of the "National Sunday Law" warning lags far behind the march of prophetic events. It is far past the fulfillment of Luke 21:24 over forty years ago, years past the forming of the Image to the Beast, and years past the Church of Rome imposing on the body politic of America a choice for or against the deadly dogma of the immortality of the soul by supporting the "pro-life movement." Satan knows that Seventh-day Adventists readily recognize every move towards enforcement the false sabbath; so he has set about ensnaring the unwary through assent to the immortality of the soul, long before the enforcement of Sunday observance in the time of test that must now be near at hand. The lateness of the hour is further indicated by the clear fulfillment of another prediction of Ellen White. The Protestant churches have united with the secular power to sustain a false religion; the state is using its power to enforce the decrees and sustain the institutions of the church; and Protestant America has formed an image to the papacy, which is a national apostasy that has already led to increasing national ruin.

With an expansive narrative of the history of that period of time in which the Sunday law prediction was fulfilled, Elder Grotheer wrote his three-part series of articles titled “A National Sunday Law PAST? PRESENT? FUTURE?” Part One opens with two cases of prosecutions for the breach of Sunday blue laws, in 1873 and 1884. Fast forward to 1988 and the following years, and the course of events were moving in the opposite direction.

How can the historical facts be understood? Elder Grotheer provides the answer, which is stated in "the rules which Ellen White gave for the study of her Writings." Elder Grotheer next demonstrates the application of these rules to the Sunday laws issue.

Grotheer was noncommittal about A. T. Jones' perception of the Chicago World's Fair Closing Bill as giving life to the Image of the Beast of Revelation 13, and that the Mark of the Beast had been established. This was very likely because of his observation of what was happening at the time, including Ellen G. White's statements on the nearness of the end.

(Whether or not Jones' perception was correct, subsequent history has established that the image to the beast has been manifested with clarity during the first and second decades of the twenty-first century: The Selecting of a President with a Religious Mission; Roman Catholic Dominated Presidencies of America; ROME took over the Republican Party. Here it is worthy of note that the Mark of the Beast is revealed to be more complex than simply observance of the false Sabbath. Here is an illuminating passage: In the formation of this image. There is demand for obedience to deadly dogmas of Rome.)

Elder Grotheer proceeded in Part One of his three-part series of articles to document the fact that after the year 1900 there was a change of counsel from the pen of inspiration:

Counsel to get out of the cities continued to come from the pen of Ellen G. White. In 1906, she wrote "'Out of the cities; out of the cities!' this is the message the Lord has been giving me." (Life Sketches, p. 409).

But the "message" was not connected with the Sunday Law as a sign to leave the cities. Instead, she declared - "On these cities, God's judgments will fall." (Letter 158, 1902) In 1905, she indicated the global extent of the message to get out of the cities, by writing - "The world over, cities are becoming hot beds of vice." (Ministry of Healing, p. 363) Then in 1907, the warning came - "Our cities are increasing in wickedness, and it becoming more and more evident that those who remain in them unnecessarily do so at the peril of their soul's salvation." (Ms. 115, 1907) (From "A National Sunday Law PAST? PRESENT? FUTURE?" Part One, P. 2)

Grotheer documented the reason for the change of counsel:

By comparing testimony with testimony, there is revealed a broadening of the issues which will bring about the same ends had the objectives of the Sunday Law issue of the final decade of the 19th Century been realized. Observe these two statements written with a 22 year time gap, but with the same end result:

1888 -- A time is coming when the law of God is, in a special sense, to be made void in our land. The rulers of our nation will, by legislative enactments, enforce the Sunday law, and thus God's people will be brought into great peril. When our nation, in its legislative councils, shall enact laws to bind the consciences of man in regard to their religious privileges, enforcing Sunday observance, and bringing oppressive power to bear against those who keep the seventh-day Sabbath, the law of God will, to all intents and purposes, be made void in our land; and national apostasy will be followed by national ruin. (R&H, Dec. 18, 1888; 7BC:977)

1910 -- When the Protestant churches shall unite with the secular power to sustain a false religion, for opposing which their ancestors endured the fiercest persecution; when the state shall use its power to enforce the decrees and sustain the institutions of the church - then will Protestant America have formed an image to the papacy, and there will be a national apostasy which will end only in national ruin. (ST, March 22, 1910; 7BC:976)

You will observe that these two quotations are connected by the end result - national apostasy will be followed by national ruin. But in 1910, the base has been widened from a single issue of a law "enforcing Sunday observance" to the exercise of the power of the state "to enforce the decrees" of the church" and to sustain their "institutions." The picture calls for a union "with the secular power to sustain a false religion."

Why is this change of means indicated for the accomplishment of the same ends? Again it must be remembered that in 1901, Ellen White wrote:

We may have to remain here in this world because of insubordination many more years, as did the children of Israel, but for Christ's sake, His people should not add sin to sin by charging God with the consequence of their own wrong course of action. (Ms. 184, 1901)

To this might be added that because we have been in this world "many more years," we should now compound our present predicament by wrongly comparing "testimony with testimony" and giving a perverted picture of the Sunday Law question to further personal ends? God has given in the same testimonies a sign to look for, and He has clearly indicated the nature of a Sunday Law which will indeed be oppressive. Besides this, there is clearly suggested the fact that all will not be so apparent to perceive as we would hope, but rather will be more deceptive and far more difficult to combat. (Underscored emphasis added; Ibid.)

The above documentation is of profound significance in the context of what has been happening in

America since 1980. Here it is pertinent to point out Jesus' warnings to "watch" in general; including in connection with his prophecy of Luke 21:24. The 1910 prophecy of Ellen G. White quoted above provides a guide to the degree of watchfulness required in the relevant times, which is now. It is submitted that we need to look behind the curtain and under the carpet, so the speak. While Roman Catholic agitation of Sunday observance lies dormant, profoundly significant laws are being enacted at federal and state levels in America to conform with the teachings of the Church of Rome. Of high visibility is abortion legislation which is awaiting the ultimate decision of the Roman Catholic dominated Supreme Court. The "pro-life" movement is based on the teaching that "life begins at conception" readily seen to be rooted in the dogma of the "immortality of the soul, which Ellen G. White declared to be one of "the two great errors," the other being "Sunday sacredness," now diabolically hidden from view. It also must not be overlooked in the context of the "pro-life" movement that Rome also opposes contraception (Cf. In 1964, Pope Paul VI created the Papal Commission on Population and Birth Control.) Beyond the historic opposition to contraception by the Church of Rome, it is now all about protecting the Roman Catholic dogma of papal Infallibility.

Sadly, the Seventh-day Adventist Church and most if not all of the independent ministries have been beguiled into supporting this so-called "pro-life "movement, thus leading a vast number of members of the SDA community into acceptance of a deadly theological falsehood. (Cf. The new statement of the Seventh-day Adventist Church on abortion.)

As further evidence that Ellen G. White's prophecy of 1910 is now fulfilled, there is yet another Roman Catholic teaching which has dominated economic and social policies of the U.S. government, in particular since 1980. It is called "Subsidiarity." (Cf. Subsidiarity as a Principle of Governance Beyond Devolution; Subsidiarity: A Principle for the 25 Percent; Now, it can be expected confidently.) The stark reality is that America has become thoroughly catholicized, which in itself is a state of national ruin doomed to be intensified. This process of catholicization was documented in 1943 by Christian Edwardson, in his book titled Facts of Faith.

The above examples of Roman Catholic teachings being received by the body politic in America provide verification that Elder Grotheer's analysis is correct. Furthermore he perceived in the  January, 1980, issue of "Watchman, What of the Night? "that national ruin had already overtaken the nation. The issue included a section titled "NATIONAL RUIN." the opening paragraphs explain:

Grotheer's above statement that "what more lies ahead only time will tell." He lived to see the blatant deepening of the political ties between the United States and the Church of Rome before he died in 2009. This has since included close ties between a second Democratic president, Barack Obama, and the papacy, including a triumphal tour of America by Pope Francis in 2015. Obama had made the same mistake as Carter, and the consequences are far worse. National Ruin followed the very next year by the election of Donald Trump, an openly wicked madman, who was ready by his actions to advance policies which clearly fulfill the prophecies of Rev. 13:12, & 14 (last part,) & 15 (first part;) thus laying the foundation for fulfillment of verse 15 (first part.) He unabashedly let it known that he was willing to promote the goals of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) (for example, victory in the anti-abortion crusade and in their lobbying for government aid to parochial schools.) Turned out of office in the 2020 presidential election, he still wields tremendous influence, supported by a large majority of Republicans, who are determined to achieve absolute power, by insurrection if necessary. His supporters in the American electorate are feverishly deluded into believing that he is a modern-day Cyrus; and they are further fortified in their loyalty to him by an overwhelming tide of lying propaganda. In their delusions they are hell-bent on proving that America was founded as a Christian nation. It cannot be overlooked that the insurrectionists were "christians," so-called, identified as "Christian Nationalists." Christian Nationalism is the product of Dominionism, a sinister and deadly presence in America.

This is all National Ruin with a vengeance, clearly identified by the Testimonies as a much more advanced sign of extreme national apostasy than a national Sunday Law. The present ruinous conditions are but a prelude to what is coming like a run-a-way freight train. Having received [her] power, [her] seat, and great authority from the dragon (Rev. 13:3,) Rome has always hated American democracy as a major obstacle to her autocratic rule over the whole world. She has assiduously sought to destroy it, and has relentlessly worked to achieve its destruction (N.B. Sad it is to call to mind . . .; The theory "that the church be separated from the state" . . .; Pope Pius feels that the United States is the ideal base . . .; The Vatican itself resembles a general staff headquarters . . .; cf. From "Chapter 6 - Why Did Our Political Will Fade Away? . . .) She is about to reach her goal. News reports abound with warnings of the perilous state of America's democracy. None predict with certainty that democracy is doomed; but there are dire warnings; and students of Bible prophecy know that it is. The prophecies of Rev. 13 must be fulfilled. We also must be careful to keep in mind that the conditions described in Rev. 13:14-17 are clearly intertwined with the final drama of the ages predicted in Dan. 11:45; Isa. 14:12-14; and Isa. 2:2-3 (N.B. verse 3 (last part;) all to be played out in Jerusalem. The events preceding and immediately following the extinction of American democracy are probably setting the stage for that final drama centered in Jerusalem.

(On pages 5 & 6 of the same issue of "Watchman, What of the Night" featuring "A National Sunday Law PAST? PRESENT? FUTURE?" Part One is a section titled "SABBATH QUESTION AGITATION - 1889-1905" which is separate from but related to the main topic.)

It is critically important to keep in mind that after the year 1900 there was a change of counsel from the pen of inspiration, and that two quotations from the Testimonies, one in 1888 and the other in 1910, are connected by the end result - "national apostasy will be followed by national ruin." Part Two of Elder Grotheer's "A National Sunday Law PAST? PRESENT? FUTURE?" elaborates on the change of counsel, and opens with an examination of the crucial years of 1901-1903. This leads to the significance of the major prophecy (a prophecy of Jesus Christ Himself) to which Ellen G. White directed attention in 1901. Grotheer points out how the prophecy is linked to an oppressive Sunday Law.

Part Three of the series on a "National Sunday Law PAST? PRESENT? FUTURE?" opens with an observation that is of the utmost importance:

There is not a single Sunday Closing Law on the statute books of the various states of the United States of America with which one observing the Sabbath would be troubled unless there are some remnants of the Puritan Blue Laws remaining from the Colonial Period. Even if the present Sunday Closing laws should be rigidly enforced, one who would make adequate use of the preparation day would find no trouble living through till Monday. In other words, the current Sunday Closing Law agitation in Puerto Rico is not the enforcement of an oppressive law against those who desire to observe the Sabbath of the Ten Commandments. . . (Underscored emphasis added.)

What is stated about the "current Sunday Closing Law agitation in Puerto Rico" also applies to the opening sentence. The current Sunday closing laws on the statute books are not imposing demands on observers of the true Sabbath to obey a command. They do no more than create an inconvenience.

Present research to find out precisely how the Court case in Puerto Rico which was then current was decided or settled has not provided the answer. However, there are reports which clearly indicate that at some point of time after 1989 businesses were allowed to open after 11:00 a.m. on Sundays:

Major Labor Reform In Puerto Rico: The Approval Of The Labor Transformation And Flexibility Act

On January 26, 2017, the governor of Puerto Rico, Hon. Ricardo Rosselló, signed into law the “Labor Transformation and Flexibility Act”, better known as the Puerto Rico Labor Reform Act (hereinafter “the Act”). The Act became effective immediately. This was a campaign promise and one of the first pieces of legislation introduced by this young administration. The Act is a significant shift in Puerto Rican labor policy, which traditionally has been pro-employee. Major changes relate to, but are not limited to, rules applicable to vacation and sick leave, probationary periods, alternate work schedules, lactation leave, overtime, unjustified dismissal, worker’s compensation, wage claims, the Closing Law and many others. . .

V. Act to Regulate the Operations of Business Establishments (“Closing Law”) and Religious Accommodation:

The Act finally repeals the Act to Regulate the Operations of Business Establishments, better known as the “Closing Law”. Although there are some caveats, employers will no longer have to pay overtime on Sundays and commercial establishments are no longer banned from opening on Sundays during the hours of 5 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. (Underscored emphasis added.)

The movement was towards relaxation, not stiffening, of the Sunday Closing Law. This happened in an island community 85% Roman Catholic, and it has happened around the Christian world. This can of course can be misleading, and probably has misled many in the Seventh-day Adventist Church who are undisturbed by the Church's change of attitude towards the Roman Catholic Church. Rome has not abandoned the ultimate goal of demanding obeisance to the false sabbath as an act of worship.

The rest of Part Two recounts how Elder Grotheer seized upon a Sunday referendum in Toronto, Canada, in the mid 20th century to spread the Truth about the Sabbath:

In suggesting what can be done, we speak from personal experience of meeting "head-on" a Sunday referendum. At mid-century two non-related events combined to electrify the city of Toronto, Ontario. The referendum over the Lord's Day Act of Canada produced "the largest vote in the city's history" for the 1950 civic elections. (The Globe and Mail, Jan. 3, 1950, p. 1) Two months prior to the election, Philip Carrington, Anglican Archbishop of Quebec, at a service in Toronto commemorating the 400th anniversary of the Church of England prayer book, remarked that "'the Bible commandment says on the seventh day thou shalt rest. That is Saturday. Nowhere in the Bible is it laid down that worship should be done on Sunday.' Tradition, he said, made it a day of worship." (Toronto Daily Star, Oct. 26, 1949, p. 3) This statement combined with the agitation over the upcoming referendum to liberalize the Canadian Lord's Day Act so as to permit Sunday sports from 1 to 6 p.m., opened the door to an opportunity to seize upon circumstances to proclaim truth. (See p. 3 for full article as it appeared in the Star. Also it has been copied into the Bible Students' Source Book, op. cit., art. #1605.

In consultation with the Board of Elders of the First Church, we decided to move to the forefront of the issue even though this was not the usual Sunday closing law, but rather an attempt to open up Sunday that was tightly closed. We also recognized that it would appear that we were allied with the commercial sports interests, as well as other less desirable elements who wished to take advantage of a more open Sunday. We believed that this could be offset by making this strictly a religious issue. It was decided to offer $1,000 for a Bible text commanding the observance of Sunday; however, we would seek to address the issue of the observance of Sunday in honor of the resurrection.

On Sabbath morning when the plan was presented to the church, the response was enthusiastic. I asked the congregation if they were willing to put their money in what was their belief. In less than three minutes they committed themselves to over $2,000. There was no doubt in their minds, it would be returned to them without loss.

The agitation of the Sunday observance issue has become subdued over the years as commercially organized sports events on both Saturday and Sunday has become irresistibly popular.

In final review of the facts and conclusions stated in this study paper, the first inescapable fact to note is that a National Sunday Law was passed in 1892, as implied by Ellen G. White and confirmed unequivocally by A. T. Jones; and also by J. N. Loughborough. There was a convergence of events before and after the date of 1892 which culminated in a changed road map to the end of time from the inspired pen of Ellen White. There came from the Testimonies a series of predictions starting in 1878 and continuing through 1886 that the Second Coming was at hand. Although not mentioned by Elder Grotheer in "A National Sunday Law PAST? PRESENT? FUTURE?," the message of the 1888 General Conference may be added:

THREE MESSENGERS

In 1888, God sent two other "messengers" to the Church with a specific message. Reviewing this commission, Ellen White wrote:

The Lord in His great mercy sent a most precious message to His people through Elders Waggoner and Jones. This message was to bring more prominently before the world the uplifted Saviour, the sacrifice for the sins of the world. It presented justification through faith in the Surety; it invited the people to receive the righteousness of Christ, which is manifest in obedience to all of the commandments of God. (TM, pp. 91-92)

In the same testimony, it was noted: "It is the perpetual life of the church to love God supremely, and to love others as they love themselves." But in 1888, there was little of this love manifest in the Church, so "God gave to His messengers just what the people needed" (ibid., p. 95) Then the question was asked, "How long will you hate and despise the messengers of God's righteousness?" (p. 96). (Underscored emphasis added.)

The message was not accepted by the Church. It appears that there were no more predictions by Ellen G. White that the eternal world was imminent.

Rejection of the 1888 Message was probably at least a part of the reason for another in the convergence of events directly related to the imminence of the Second Coming. In "A National Sunday Law PAST? PRESENT? FUTURE?"Grotheer provides irrefutable proof from the Testimonies of fundamental changes in the final events of this world, which are being fulfilled before our very eyes. The "national apostasy" and the "national ruin" have already come to pass. Prophetic events have progressed far beyond Ellen G. White's prediction of a Sunday law in Testimony No. 32 of 1885, which in any event was fulfilled in 1892. Prophetic events are rapidly progressing towards the ultimate "oppressive law;" while it must be kept in mind that Dan. 11:45; Isa. 14:12-14; and Isa. 2:2-3 are involved as well as the final events of Rev. 13.