Sunday, the day of rest

Consider the advantages of making Sunday once again a day of rest. Most businesses would remain closed. Furthermore, consider making Sunday a quiet day, with self-imposed bans on noisy neighborhood works like tree trimming and lawn mowing.

Many remember when most stores were closed on Sunday. That was also a time when television stations ended their broadcast day around midnight, to return to the air in late morning. America, but not only America, has become accustomed to commercial activity every day of the week and almost every day of the year. There are breaks on some holidays, but even on those, some businesses still operate. We are used to watching TV at any time of the day or night. We have come to expect uninterrupted connections with the Internet.

Access to the media around-the-clock should be guaranteed, and the continuous operation of all our communication systems, along with that of hospitals and centers for emergency medical treatment, should be maintained. In any case, these do not fill our public spaces with frenetic activities.

Businesses that limit their hours would enjoy savings in costs for labor and utilities and some savings in wear and tear on their facilities. If most stores were to remain closed on Sunday, that day would have fewer cars on the road, motorists would save a little fuel, and there could be some reduction in environmental pollution.

But some people will argue that they cannot find time to shop on other days of the week. They will object to the inconvenience and regard the move as a step backward. Because of this, many businesses are likely to resist the idea of staying closed on Sunday: owners may fear that they will lose their customers to competitors who keep their doors open. There may be some losses, but perhaps not too many. And this problem may not overshadow the benefits of the change.

Closing stores on Sundays will not by itself cause customers to spend less money. (They are already reducing their expenditures for other reasons, however, like the need to reduce their debt.) Shoppers will likely make the purchases of necessary items on other days of the week. By so doing, they will be shopping more efficiently.

Secularism has prevailed in public life. Religious influences are no longer likely to impose a widespread prohibition on commercial activity on any day of the week. And yet Christians might spearhead a movement of storeowners who voluntarily close their doors on Sunday. In any event, cold economic realities, hard-headed financial considerations, and the simple need we all have to reduce the mighty stresses to which we are subjected in the workplace, might lead us once again as a society to favor the idea of taking one day a week off.