Chick-Fil-A and Sundays

The fast-food restaurant is closed on Sundays. Chick-Fil-A is owned and run by Christians. But why they do they close on Sundays? Even for Christians, who might want a breakfast burrito before church, it might be difficult to understand why the chain is closed on Sundays. Chick-Fil-A provides a brief answer. But, I propose a more specific reason as to why they close on Sundays, or why Christians might rethink how they spend their Sundays.

The idea of a day of rest starts from the Old Testament, or the Hebrew Bible. According to the creation story, God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh. God’s people, the Israelites, were also to rest on this special day, the Sabbath. In Orthodox Judaism, to this day, participants walk to the synagogue on Saturdays, instead of driving. In the New Testament, however, Jesus had conversations about the Sabbath and made a point of healing people on the Sabbath. Once Christianity began, Sunday became the day of worship, because of the belief that Jesus came back to life on a Sunday. So, simply, put: Christians use Sunday for worship and rest. [Some Christians do this on Saturday but that is another issue.]

Jump to the nineteenth century: the United States saw everything closed on Sunday, in recognition of the Christian day of worship. Concerns about church and state ended this in the twentieth century. Today, many evangelicals enjoy the rest of their Sunday after church services. So, are Christians today, then, respecting their tradition when it comes to Sunday? Or should they shut down, like Chick-Fil-A? [I do not, in any way, imply that Chick-Fil-A would want this.]

In one passage from the Old Testament / Hebrew Bible, a rationale for keeping the Sabbath [in addition to the importance of rest] was to remember how God had freed the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. They had been freed without doing anything, relying only on God’s power.

As a Christian, I believe that one of the major reasons for having a day of rest is to show trust in God’s power. For most of the week, most of Americans work long and hard (hustle as Jon Acuff refers to it). We certainly could use some rest. But, a deeper reason to rest may be more important: a reminder to trust God not one’s own hard work, although still required Monday through Saturday. Relaxing or enjoying family time, after church or between services, is certainly a wise use of a Christian’s Sunday. And, perhaps the empty parking lot at Chick-Fil-A, as we drive by, will remind us that by relaxing, we are trusting God.