We were headed home after meeting with the church and stopped by the store to get some vittles at around 11:30. I was in the self-checkout lane (and seriously there should be an age cap, anyone over 50 is banned from the self-checkout and must go through an actual line with a checkout person) and the lady next to me (clearly over 50 FWIW) was staring at the screen with a puzzled look while the light flashed red over her head. A young cashier came over, scolded her and took away her bottle. Her problem? She was trying to buy a bottle of wine.You see, in Michigan you can't buy alcohol before noon on Sundays (See the convoluted blue law in Michigan code Section 436.2113. You also can't sell cars on Sunday in Michigan unless you keep the Jewish Sabbath in counties with more than 130,000 people).
This law makes perfect sense especially since a lot of churches will be serving wine to congregants before noon.Of course, a person given to drink who can't buy alcohol until noon will probably kill the time until he can buy his Captain Morgan by going to a church. What is the point here? Are we a more moral place because people can't buy alcohol during "church time" on Sunday? Most drinkers got loaded up on Saturday night and don't wake up until noon on Sunday anyway. If we as a society think drinking is inherently immoral and alcohol shouldn't be sold on "the Sabbath", we should have the courage to outlaw alcohol entirely instead of making it a church thing.
I think recreational alcohol drinking is ugly and an indicator of your character, no matter how you hide it behind Christian liberty. There is no societal good that comes from it and untold misery that it encourages. Having said that as clearly as I can, you cannot legislate morality. You can ban certain illegal activities, like theft and murder, but doing so doesn't make someone inclined to commit those crimes more moral. It just makes them take into account the consequences of their actions. Banning alcohol sales during church time is just silly and gives politicians cover to seem like they are standing up for morality by an empty action. Laws like this reinforce the "Sunday morning is holy, the rest of the week is a free for all" civic religion mentality that pervades America. If you are not a drinker, this law doesn't do a thing for you. It doesn't keep people from getting drunk and driving around. If you are a drinker, this law is only a minor impediment that probably makes you resentful toward those church people and less likely to listen to the Gospel in the first place.
5 comments:
Arthur,
Good to read.
That last paragraph certainly strikes a high note with me!
Recreational drinking? Makes about as much sense as the often heard news reports about "recreational sex"!
Arthur, in Maine you can't buy alcohol before 9 am on Sundays we also have a couple dry counties. I don't know if this has anything to do with morality or what. I have always found it strange.
Anyway in regard to legislating morality in a broader sense I find it very frustrating when those who lead the socialist movement in America try to make it a moral issue. Forcing people to pay higher taxes that will be used to pay for social services is not the same thing as people giving freely to support those in need.
That may have been a little off topic, but I would love to hear your thoughts.
Thanks!
-Dan
Aussie,
There is a great deal of difference between recreational drinking and recreational sex. Sex outside of marriage is explicitly forbidden many times by God in Scripture.
However, God never forbids consumption of alcohol absolutely. Addiction and abuse of alcohol are forbidden. And, addiction and abuse have caused much harm in our culture.
To put people who drink alcohol moderately without abusing it or becoming addicted in the same boat as sexually immoral persons is unfair and unbiblical.
Arthur,
You are exactly right about this law. It is silly. If this law is to protect people, then we should outlaw alcohol all together. Or, if alcohol is not harmful Mon-Sat and after noon on Sunday, it won't be harmful on Sunday before noon.
This makes as much sense as raising taxes on cigarrettes and forbidding smoking everywhere but your own home. Either smoking needs to be outlawed or left alone.
Arthur,
Yes, the blue laws are ridiculous. Back in the 80's, as a naive 20-something from California, I went to Spring Training in Arizona in March to watch some baseball. The games all started at noon. So here's me going to the beer line at ten 'til noon, ordering a beer. The vendor says, "I can't." Huh? Having no clue that there were even such things as blue laws in other states, I was baffled. "It's not twelve yet." I was still puzzled, so he had to explain state law to me, etc.
He made me wait ten minutes standing there just so the big hand could hit 12. But the game started at 12, so of course I missed the first pitch. Of course, SNL's "the church lady" comes to mind when I think of blue laws.
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