20 April 2009
Attempts to legislate Sunday rest day concern Adventists
Berne, Switzerland
BUC News/Karel Nowak
Attempts to legislate Sunday as an official rest day within the European Union have caused concern among Seventh-day Adventists and other faith groups. Pastor Karel Nowak, communication and religious liberty director for the Adventist Church in the Euro-Africa region, based in Berne, Switzerland, reported on some recent developments for the Adventist Church in Britain's newsletter earlier this month.
According to Pastor Nowak, legal initiatives in Europe that seek to gradually enforce Sunday as a rest day have been attempted for the past few years. "The proposals are usually voiced by different associations but these associations are openly backed by the Roman Catholic Church, as well as various Protestant churches," says Pastor Nowak. "Their immediate goals usually include closing shops and restricting other business activities on Sundays."
Amendments were proposed to change European Directive 2003/88/EC during 2008. This directive deals with work time regulations and Pastor Nowak says, "The initiative was mainly carried by the Commission of Bishops' Conferences of the European Community (COMECE) and the Conference of European Churches." Article 5 of the European Directive 2003/88/EC states workers are entitled to a minimum uninterrupted rest period of 24 hours, plus 11 hours' daily rest, per week.
The proposal regarding changing the directive included adding an additional clause stating the minimum rest period referred to in the directive would, in principle, include Sunday.
Previous moves of a similar nature have been annulled in the past by the European Court of Justice, which, according to Pastor Nowak, is why the new proposal included a paragraph claiming the likelihood of sickness in companies that required staff to work Sundays was greater than in those that do not. Factors such as the reconciliation of work and family life, and the ability to pursue spiritual needs were also included.
On February 11 this year, the secretariat of COMECE also issued a press release welcoming a new attempt of several members of the European Parliament to ask the House to approve a written declaration asking for "protection of a work-free Sunday as an essential pillar of the European social model and as part of the European cultural heritage."
Pastor Nowak says, "To date, all initiatives to legislate a Sunday law through the European Union have failed. This doesn't mean proponents of this legislation have given up on the idea. On the contrary, we're witnessing an increasing number of Sunday rest articles appearing in different publications with the purpose of altering public opinion."
He cites the January 25, 2009, issue of the Belgian Catholic weekly Dimanche as an example. An article was published in this issue addressing shops opening on Sundays. "In the same way, the COMECE's December 17, 2008, news release called for further mobilisation and the uniting of voices to promote Sunday rest," says Pastor Nowak.
Several European countries have laws that prohibit shops from opening on Sundays and restrict activities that "disturb the peace." Pastor Nowak says, "The growing number of exceptions, pressure from large supermarkets who want to remain open on Sundays, and the rather permissive and indifferent attitude of a large portion of Europeans explains the position of the European Parliament.
"Although Adventists recognise and support many of the arguments forwarded by the proponents of legally-instituted Sunday rest-family, health, ecology, economic advantages and values-we regret these initiatives do not take into consideration consequences such legislation would have on minority groups who observe days other than Sunday as their day of religious rest."
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