Chick-fil-A, a US fast-food chain run on Christian principles, has guaranteed that staff at its new store in Northern Ireland will not have to work on Sundays.
The successful company’s outlet at Lisburn motorway service station is only open Monday to Saturday, as its founder “saw the importance of closing on Sundays so that he and his employees could set aside one day to rest and worship if they choose”.
According to its UK website, Chick-fil-A’s corporate purpose is to “glorify God by being a faithful steward of all that is entrusted to us”, and to have “a positive influence on all who come in contact” with the business.
Welcoming the brand’s stance, retired Free Presbyterian minister David McIlveen said: “It’s nice to hear that there is a company that’s not opening on Sundays.
“There is also a dimension in preserving the Lord’s Day that is of benefit to those who are non-Christian.
“We need bodily refreshment and that is part of the whole purpose of having a day set apart out of seven.”
The Lisburn venture is currently the only Chick-fil-A restaurant outside North America, but the business plans to open branches in Belfast, Leeds, Liverpool and London.
Meanwhile, concerned residents on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland are urging supermarket giant Tesco to restore Sunday closure at its Stornoway store.
A petition organised by local Christian Thomas Mackay, calling on Tesco to respect the “unique character” and “cherished practice” of Lord’s Day observance on the island, has attracted almost 9,000 signatures.
Mr Mackay told Scotland on Sunday: “Allowing Sunday trading in Stornoway could set a precedent for eroding the Western Isles’ unique culture. We hope to see Tesco reverse this move”.
Although shops in Scotland do not have Sunday trading restrictions, employers must grant a shop worker’s request to opt-out of Sunday working.
Only a few decades ago, a high view of the Lord’s Day was standard among English-speaking evangelicals. Yet today, there are many Christians for whom the whole notion of one day set aside for God seems a quaint throw-back to Victorian values. It is easy to feel intimidated by the tide of this popular thinking within the evangelical world.
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