'Rest' subject to interpretation

"If I make exceptions to following God's rule, even if it is only once, there will be more exceptions that will follow." — 14-year-old Elliot Huck, a spelling bee champion who refused earlier this year to compete on Sunday.

Whether their decisions make headlines across the country or have simply become a part of how they quietly define their lives, those who choose to keep the Sabbath day holy in 2007 have likely become an American minority.

Cultural buzzwords that often emphasize the "spiritual" as a superior alternative to the "religious" leave open to individual interpretation whether Sabbath observance is relegated to the realm of formal worship.

But when Elliot Huck, a Midwest teenager, refused earlier this year to compete in the Bloomington, Ind., regional bee because it was scheduled on a Sunday, some may have wondered about his choice, but no one questioned his faith.

He was quoted by World magazine about his belief that God commands Christians to keep the Sabbath holy. He is among the most recent believers to declare publicly his loyalty to the Fourth Commandment, reiterating concern that if he allows himself one exception to the rule, others will surely follow.

Another memorable example for Utah golfers of avoiding Sunday play happened in July 2004, when Todd Miller — son of golfing legend Johnny Miller — forfeited his chance to play in the Men's State Amateur finals event because it was held on Sunday.

A returned LDS missionary, Miller said he knew going into the tournament that if he advanced to the finals, he wouldn't play on Sunday, though his father had played in hundreds of Sunday tournaments. The move elicited consternation among some and admiration among others.

"What I do on Sunday is way more important than winning a tournament," he said at the time. "I don't look down upon people who play on the Sabbath. I would just feel like a hypocrite in my own heart if I did. I made that decision, and I'm going to stick with that."

It's a dilemma faced regularly by athletes, entertainers and others whose tournaments and audiences are often as readily scheduled on Sunday as on Saturday — both considered to be the Sabbath, depending on your faith tradition.

At least two Utah synagogues are participating today in a national event aimed at directing Jews back to Sabbath worship. The Jewish Sabbath — or Shabbat — begins Friday at sundown and ends Saturday at sundown.