Dear Editor,

A fellow employee of mine brought something to my attention, last week. When my husband and I came in from our trip the afternoon of Wednesday, March 7, I confess that I only scanned the newspaper and missed an important article on Page 4A, under the “Opinions” heading.

The writer’s last paragraph hit a nerve, and I quote, “We think Tuesday’s result is a win-win for Bainbridge. It should help us look more attractive to prospective restaurateurs, but it also helps maintain the traditional Sunday values of the South that so many of us cherish.”

I called the editor. He was very nice and explained the article to me. I thanked him for being available and helpful. However, I did not agree with his reasoning that this was good for Bainbridge. He said restaurants had refused to locate here because we didn’t serve alcohol seven days a week in our restaurants. (Editor’s note: It was suggested that restaurants might not choose to locate here, not that any had definitively “refused” to come.)

I asked him if he knew what that was a sign of. It’s compromise, pure and simple. We are compromising our principles for the almighty dollar. Our nation’s capital reeks of compromise and now our local governments have taken up the habit, as well.

We do have cherished, Southern traditions concerning Sunday. We take that day to worship our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself on Calvary’s cross for our sins and the sins of the whole world. We pray for those who are indifferent to his sacrifice, and try to help our neighbors in every way possible, to see their need for him. It is time we Christians speak out and stand up for the principles of the Bible. It’s a shock to my Southern mind to think of someone ordering a martini with their ham and sweet-potato soufflé.

The “blue law” was still in effect in the south Virginia town where we moved in 1979. When we moved home, five years later, it had been abandoned because a mega-store wanted to locate there and would not, unless they could be open on Sunday. Did we shop there, on Sunday? Guilty as charged, here and there.

So who is responsible for the compromise? We all are! The time has come to stop compromise for commerce.

Think about it. Isaiah 58: 13-14. Sunday is the Lord’s day!

Frances T. Gay

Bainbridge