“Sabbath observance is a good sign of a person’s religiosity. If [people] think enough to keep the Sabbath day holy, then they would likely be living . . . other precepts of their religion.”
Sabbath Day
LDS Quotes on the Sabbath Day
The Sabbath of the Lord is becoming the play day of the people. It is a day of golf and football on television, of buying and selling in our stores and markets. Are we moving to mainstream America as some observers believe? In this I fear we are. What a telling thing it is to see the parking lots of the markets filled on Sunday in communities that are predominately LDS. Our strength for the future, our resolution to grow the Church across the world, will be weakened if we violate the will of the Lord in this important matter. He has so very clearly spoken anciently and again in modern revelation. We cannot disregard with impunity that which He has said.
“We can readily see that observance of the Sabbath is an indication of the depth of our conversion. Our observance or nonobservance of the Sabbath is an unerring measure of our attitude toward the Lord personally and toward his suffering in Gethsemane, his death on the cross, and his resurrection from the dead. It is a sign of whether we are Christians in very deed, or whether our conversion is so shallow that commemoration of his atoning sacrifice means little or nothing to us.”
| “The Sabbath Day,” Ensign, May 1975, 49.
“Sunday is not necessarily a day to catch up on our sleep, but to rest from things of the world, although we usually find ourselves working harder on this day than any other. But it’s a different kind of work—it’s the Lord’s work. Thus, the Sabbath is our weekly opportunity to enter into God’s presence, . . . partake of His glory, and ultimately prepare ourselves for that reality.”
Don’t you be the means of causing someone to work on Sunday because you patronize their establishment.
| Ensign, May 1996, p. 11
“Two essential weekly signposts that mark our journey to our Heavenly Father are the perpetual covenant of the ordinance of the sacrament and our Sabbath observance. President Russell M. Nelson taught last general conference that the Sabbath is the Lord’s gift to us. Our devoted weekly observance of the Sabbath is our sign to the Lord that we love Him. … We are promised that, with devoted Sabbath day observance, the fulness of the earth will be ours.”
| “Your Next Step,” general priesthood session
“Stake president, bishops, and branch presidents, please take particular interest in improving the quality of teaching in the Church. I fear that all too often many of our members come to church, sit through a class or a meeting, and then return home having been largely uninspired. It is especially unfortunate when this happens at a time of stress, temptation, or crisis [in their life]. We all need to be touched and nurtured by the Spirit, and effective teaching is one of the most important ways this can happen. We often do vigorous work to get members to come to Church but then do not adequately watch over what they receive when they do come.”
| "Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball"
The Lord has directed his people to rest one-seventh part of the time, and we take the first day of the week, and call it our Sabbath. This is according to the order of the Christians. We should observe this for our own temporal good and spiritual welfare . . . six days are enough for us to work, and if we wish to play, play within the six days; if we wish to go on excursions, take one of those six days, but on the seventh day, come to the place of worship, attend to the Sacrament, confess your faults one to another and to our God, and pay attention to the ordinances of the house of God.
| Journal of Discourses, 15:81
Let us not be like the Church member who partakes of the sacrament in the morning, then defiles the Sabbath that afternoon by cleaning the house or by watching television or by choosing an afternoon of sleep over an afternoon of service.
| “The Example of Abraham,” Ensign, June 1975
“A great person is reverent. He will be deferential in a house of worship even though he be the only soul therein. No congregation was assembled when the Lord commanded Moses: “Put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground!” [See Exodus 3:5.] Presiding officers should plan so carefully that no whispering would be heard or seen on the stand. Parents should train and discipline their children and sit with them (except where class groups are supervised). Ushers should be trained to quietly care for seating with a minimum of disturbance. Attenders should arrive early, do their friendly greeting in subdued tones, slow their step, find seats toward the front, and sit in quiet contemplative mood. All should participate as fully as possible—singing with the singers, praying with him who prays, partaking of the sacrament with a grateful heart and a reconsecration to covenants previously made. An opportunity is given to follow sympathetically lessons that are taught, the sermons that are preached and the testimonies that are borne, judging not by eloquence but by sincerity. Here is a chance to drink deeply from fountain heads, for the humblest teacher or speaker will contribute thought which can be developed. As we quietly enter the door of the chapel we may leave behind us outside all criticisms, worries, and cares—all occupational, political, social, and recreational plans—and calmly give ourselves to contemplation and to worship. We may bathe in the spiritual atmosphere. We may devote ourselves to learning, repenting, forgiving, testifying, appreciating, and loving.”
| “Chapter 15: We Should Be a Reverent People,” Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Spencer W. Kimball (2006), 154–64
“I believe that starting a tradition of telling the stories of Jesus to our children and families is a very special way to keep the Sabbath day holy in our homes. This will surely bring a special spirit to our home and provide our family with examples from the Savior himself.”
| “That They Do Always Remember Him,” Sunday morning session
“But, as President Kimball noted, ‘We do not go to Sabbath meetings to be entertained or even solely to be instructed. We go to worship the Lord. It is an individual responsibility, and regardless of what is said from the pulpit, if one wishes to worship the Lord in spirit and in truth, he may do so by attending his meetings, partaking of the sacrament, and contemplating the beauties of the gospel. If the service is a failure to you, you have failed. No one can worship for you; you must do your own waiting upon the Lord.”
| (Ensign, January 1978.) — Church News, July 6, 2002, p. 16
The Sabbath involves much more than refraining from inappropriate activities. The Lord’s prophets have provided ample instruction on how to keep the Sabbath day holy. They include such things as reading the scriptures, conference reports and Church publications; studying the lives and teachings of the prophets; writing in journals; praying and meditating; writing or visiting relatives and friends; listening to uplifting music; family gospel instruction; family councils; genealogical research; fellowshipping neighbors and those of other faiths; and setting aside time for wholesome family activities. The Sabbath should be a day of joy, a day in which one’s spirit is lifted, in which the feeling of being a child of God touches the soul. And it will be for those who keep the Sabbath day holy.
| Church News, July 6, 2002, p. 16
The Spiritual renewal we receive from our sacrament meetings will not exceed our preparation and our willingness and desire to be taught.
| “Holy Place, Sacred Space,” Ensign, May 2003, p. 72
In our time God has recognized our intelligence by not requiring endless restrictions. Perhaps this was done with a hope that we would catch more of the spirit of Sabbath worship rather than the letter thereof. In our day, however, this pendulum of Sabbath day desecration has swung very far indeed. We stand in jeopardy of losing great blessings promised. After all, it is a test by which the Lord seeks to “prove you in all things” (D&C 98:14) to see if your devotion is complete.
| Ensign, November 1991, p. 35
“Strange as it may seem, some Latter-day Saints, faithful in all other respects, justify themselves in missing their church meetings on occasion for recreational purposes, feeling that the best fishing will be missed if one is not on the stream on opening day or that the vacation will not be long enough if one does not set off on Sunday or that one will miss a movie he wanted to see if he does not go on the Sabbath. And in their breach of the Sabbath they often take their families with them.”
| (Ensign, January 1978) — Church News, July 6, 2002, p. 16
“For members of The Church, of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints honoring the Sabbath is a form of righteousness that will bless and strengthen families, connect us with our creator and increase happiness. The Sabbath can help separate us from that which is frivolous, inappropriate or immoral. It allows us to be in the world, but not of the world.”
| “Shipshape and Bristol Fashion,” Saturday morning session
We mention another matter of importance. We note that in our Christian world in many places we still have business establishments open for business on the sacred Sabbath. We are sure the cure of this lies in ourselves, the buying public. Certainly the stores and business houses would not remain open if we, the people, failed to purchase from them. Will you all please reconsider this matter. Take it to your home evenings and discuss it with your children. It would be wonderful if every family determined that henceforth no Sabbath purchase would be made.
| Conference Report, October 1975
“Eric Liddell was the son of a Scottish missionary to China and a devoutly religious man. He infuriated the British leadership of the Olympics by refusing, even under enormous pressure, to run in a preliminary 100-meter race held on Sunday. Ultimately he was victorious in the 400-meter race. Liddell’s example of refusing to run on Sunday was particularly inspiring.
Depictions and memorials in his honor have referred to the inspirational words from Isaiah, “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”
| “Day of Delight,” New Era, June 1993, 48–49.
Liddell’s admirable conduct was very influential in our youngest son’s decision to not participate in Sunday sports and, more importantly, to separate himself from unrighteous and worldly conduct. He used the quote from Isaiah for his yearbook contribution. Eric Liddell left a powerful example of determination and commitment to principle.
| “Can Ye Feel So Now?” Ensign, November 2012
“Recently, living prophets have counseled us to ‘remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, and to live the law of the fast. Obedience to this prophetic counsel provides a way for us to be obedient to God’s commandment to love Him and our neighbor as we increase our faith in Jesus Christ and extend our hand to love and care for others.”
| “If Ye Love Me, Keep My Commandments,” Sunday afternoon session
The Lord expects us to keep the Sabbath Day holy. I can’t understand why anyone thinks that he or she has to shop on Sunday. We have refrigerators. . . . You don’t need to buy meat on Sunday. You don’t need to buy milk on Sunday. None of these things. You don’t need to buy furniture on Sunday. You don’t need to buy automobiles on Sunday. You don’t need to do any of these things on the Sabbath Day. The Lord, from the time of Sinai has declared unequivocally that we should keep the Sabbath Day holy. It is just that simple, but He has said again…that we will be blessed if we do so.
| Sandy Utah Central Regional conference, January 25, 1998. President Gordon B. Hinckley, Church News, March 14, 1998, p. 14
[The Lord] asks us to rest from daily work. This means we should perform no labor that would keep us from giving our full attention to spiritual matters. The Lord told the Israelites, “thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, they manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor the cattle” (Exodus 20:10). Our prophets have told us that we should not shop, hunt, fish, attend sports events, or participate in similar activities on that day.
President Spencer W. Kimball cautioned, however, that if we merely lounge about doing nothing on the Sabbath, we are not keeping the day holy. The Sabbath calls for constructive thoughts and acts.
| (See Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Spencer W. Kimball [2006], p. 170) — Gospel Principles, p. 141
“We call upon parents to devote their best efforts to the teaching and rearing of their children in gospel principles which will keep them close to the Church. The home is the basis of a righteous life, and no other instrumentality can take its place or fulfill its essential functions in carrying forward this God-given responsibility.
We counsel parents and children to give highest priority to family prayer, family home evening, gospel study and instruction, and wholesome family activities. However worthy and appropriate other demands or activities may be, they must not be permitted to displace the divinely-appointed duties that only parents and families can adequately perform.”
| Feb. 11, 1999; quoted in Handbook 2: Administering the Church (2010), 1.4.1.
“The first has to do with the physical need for rest and renewing. Obviously God, who created us, would know more than we do of the limits of our physical and nervous energy and strength. The second . . . is, in my opinion, of far greater significance. It has to do with the need for regeneration and the strengthening of our spiritual being. God knows that, left completely to our own devices without regular reminders of our spiritual needs, many would degenerate into the preoccupation of satisfying earthly desires and appetites. This need for physical, mental, and spiritual regeneration is met in large measure by faithful observance of the Sabbath day.”
| “The Lord’s Day,” Ensign, November 1991, 35.
It may be of interest when we think of the desecration of the Sabbath day in our own land – I speak of the land of America – a day that has been set apart by many people for their vacations and for their pleasures, notwithstanding there thundered down from Sinai one of the Ten Commandments that we should honor the Sabbath day and keep it holy. One of the first sermons that was preached in this valley was by President Brigham Young, and he warned the people to honor the Sabbath day and to keep it holy, and no matter how difficult their circumstances they were not to go out and do manual labor on the Sabbath day. From that time on, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has encouraged its people to remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy because it is pleasing to our Heavenly Father that we do so.
| Conference Report, April 1948
“Another important doctrine that we should cling to is to observe the Sabbath day. This helps us remain unspotted from the world, provides us with physical rest, and gives each of us the spiritual refreshment of worshipping the Father and the Son every Sunday. When we delight in the Sabbath day, it is a sign of our love for Them.”
| “God is at the Helm,” Saturday morning session
There is no need for people to shop and desecrate the Sabbath day by buying things on Sunday. That is not the time to buy groceries. You have six days of the week and you all have a refrigerator. You do not have to shop on Sunday. Do not buy furniture on Sunday, buy it the other days of the week. You will not lose anything if you do your shopping the other days and do not do it no Sunday. Let this day be a day of meditation, of reading the scriptures, of talking with your families, and of dwelling on the things of God. If you do so you will be blessed.
| Jordan Utah South Regional Conference, 3/2/97
The Sabbath breaker shows early the signs of his weakening in the faith by neglecting his daily family prayers, by fault-finding, by failing to pay his tithes and his offerings; and such a one whose mind begins to be darkened because of spiritual starvation soon begins also to have doubts and fears that make him unfit for spiritual learning or advancement in righteousness. These are the signs of spiritual decay and spiritual sickness that may only be cured by proper spiritual feeding.
| Teachings of the Presidents of the Church, Harold B. Lee, p. 179
Sunday is more than a day of rest from the ordinary occupations of the week. It is not to be considered as merely a day of lazy indolence and idleness or for physical pleasures and indulgences. It is a feastday for your spirit bodies. The place of spiritual feasting is in the house of worship. . . .You who make the violation of the Sabbath a habit, by your failure to “keep it holy,” are losing s soul full of joy in return for a thimble full of pleasure.
| Teachings of the Presidents of the Church, Harold B. Lee, p. 178
My belief is that it is the duty of Latter-day Saints to honor the Sabbath day and keep it holy, just as the Lord has commanded us to do. Go to the house of prayer. Listen to instructions. Bear your testimony to the truth. Drink at the fountain of knowledge and of instruction, as it may be opened for us from those who are inspired to give us instruction.
| “Chapter 26: Observing the Sabbath: That Your Joy May Be Full,” Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph F. Smith (2011), 230–39
“Over a lifetime of observation, it is clear to me that the farmer who observes the Sabbath day seems to get more done on his farm than he would if he worked seven days. The mechanic will be able to turn out more and better products in six days than in seven. The doctor, the lawyer, the dentist, the scientist will accomplish more by trying to rest on the Sabbath than if he tries to utilize every day of the week for his professional work. I would counsel all students, if they can, to arrange their schedules so that they do not study on the Sabbath. If students and other seekers after truth will do this, their minds will be quickened and the infinite Spirit will lead them to the verities they wish to learn. This is because God has hallowed his day and blessed it as a perpetual covenant of faithfulness. (See Ex. 31:16.) . . .What is worthy or unworthy on the Sabbath day will have to be judged by each of us by trying to be honest with the Lord. On the Sabbath day we should do what we have to do and what we ought to do in an attitude of worshipfulness and then limit our other activities.”
| “The Lord’s Day,” Ensign, November 1991, pp. 34-35
“The Almighty provided that we should observe a sacred Sabbath each week. We have flouted this law to his face, and most of us have turned his holy day into one of pleasure or of ‘business as usual,’ and yet the Sabbath was given as a symbol of allegiance to our Creator.”
| “Warnings from the Past,” Ensign, June 1971, 47.
Let us ask ourselves how important the Lord’s atonement is to us. How dear to us is the Lord Jesus Christ? How deeply are we concerned about immortality? Is the resurrection of vital interest to us? We can readily see that observance of the Sabbath is an indication of the depth of our conversion. Our observance or nonobservance of the Sabbath is an unerring measure of our attitude toward the Lord personally and toward his suffering in Gethsemane, his death on the cross, and his resurrection from the dead. It is a sign of whether we are Christians in very deed, or whether our conversion is so shallow that commemoration of his atoning sacrifice means little or nothing to us. Do we realize that most national holidays are observed more widely than is the Sabbath, so far as its divine purpose is concerned? Then have we put God in second or third place? And is that what we want to do? Is that where he belongs? I bear you testimony that to properly observe the Lord’s holy day is one of the most important things we can ever do. It is an essential step toward our eternal salvation.
| “The Sabbath Day,” Ensign, May 1975, p. 49
“When you look on the dictionary for the most important word, do you know what it is? It could be ‘remember.’ Because all of you have made covenants – to know what to do and you know how to do it – our greatest need is to remember. That is why everyone goes to sacrament meeting every Sabbath day.”
“Soil is broken to plant wheat. Wheat is broken to make bread. Bread is broken to become the emblems of the sacrament. When one who is repentant partakes of the sacrament with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, he or she becomes whole.”
| "Called of Him to Declare His Word"
The Sabbath is a holy day in which to do worthy and holy things. Abstinence from work and recreation is important but insufficient. The Sabbath calls for constructive thoughts and acts, and if one merely lounges about doing nothing not he Sabbath, he is breaking it. To observe it, one will be on his knees in prayer, preparing lessons, studying the gospel, meditating, visiting the ill and distressed, sleeping, reading wholesome material, and attending all the meetings of that day to which he is expected. To fail to do these proper things is a transgression on the omission side.
| Ensign, January 1978, p. 4
When seeking a job, share with your potential employer your desire to attend your Sunday meetings and keep the Sabbath day holy. Many employers value employees with these personal convictions. Whenever possible, choose a job that does not require you to work on Sundays.
Sunday is not a holiday or a day for recreation or athletic events. Do not seek entertainment or spend money on this day. Let your friends know what your standards are so they will not try to persuade you to participate in activities that are not appropriate for the Sabbath.
| The Strength of Youth, pp. 32-33
“Sabbath observance was a sign between ancient Israel and their God whereby the chosen people might be known.”
| Ensign, May 1996, p. 10
“Now, remember, my brethren, those who go skating, buggy riding or on excursions on the Sabbath day – and there is a great deal of this practiced – are weak in the faith. Gradually, little by little, the spirit of their religion leaks out of their hearts and their affections, and by and by they begin to see faults in their brethren, faults in the doctrines of the Church, faults in the organization, and at last they leave the Kingdom of God and go to destruction. I really wish you would remember this, and tell it to your neighbors. “
| Journal of Discourses, 15:83
President Brigham Young said to the saints in anticipation of the arrival of more of our members walking across the plains on the Sabbath Day: “When those persons arrive I do not want to see them put into houses by themselves. I want to have them distributed in this city among the families that have good, comfortable houses; and I wish the sisters now before me, and all who know how and can, to nurse and wait upon the newcomers, and prudently administer medicine and food to them. . . . The afternoon meeting will be omitted, for I wish the sisters to go home and prepare to give those who have just arrived a mouthful of something to eat, and to wash them, and nurse them up. . . . Prayer is good, but when (as on this occasion) baked potatoes, and pudding, and milk are needed, prayer will not supply their place. Give every duty its proper time and place.”
| Comprehensive History of the Church, 4:100-101
When we go home, get the family together. Let us sing a few songs. Let us read a chapter or two in the Bible, or in the Book of Mormon, or in the Doctrine and Covenants. Let us discuss the principles of the gospel which pertain to advancement in the school of divine knowledge, and in this way occupy one day in seven. I think it would be profitable for us to do this.
| Gospel Doctrine, pp. 242-243
“It just appalls me to see the Latter-day Saints who shop on Sunday. I cannot understand how they can go in the face of the direct word of the Lord that ‘thou shalt keep the Sabbath day holy.’ Shopping is not a part of keeping the Sabbath day holy, my brothers and sisters.”
| regional conference in South Jordan, Utah, March 2, 1997. Church News, March 8, 1997, p. 4
We constantly talk about the worldliness of the present day and speak of the fact that our young people face more serious temptations than did those of a generation ago, and this is probably true. Also, more parents seem to be caught up in the worldliness of today than was the case a generation ago.
What can we do to protect ourselves under these hazardous circumstances? How can we better help our young people to remain unspotted from the world? The Lord gives us the answer, and says that it can be done by sincerely observing the Sabbath day. Most people have never thought of it in this way, but note the words of the Lord in this regard: “That thou mayest more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world” – note these words – “that thou mayest more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world, thou shalt go to the house of prayer and offer up thy sacraments upon my holy day.” (D&C 59:9)
Think about that for a moment. Do we really believe in God – sincerely? Are we convinced that he knows what he is talking about? If we are, then will we take him and his word seriously? Or will we further trifle with divine revelation? The Lord does know what he is talking about. Sabbath observance will help us to more fully remain unspotted from the world. If we are serious about avoiding the contamination of worldliness, shall we not take his word at face value and believe it and practice it? We should be willing to admit that we are surrounded by nearly every form of seductive worldliness. We should never close our eyes to this fact.
| “The Sabbath Day,” Ensign, May 1975, pp. 47-48