Sabbath-breaking

English folklore is full of warnings against Sabbath-breaking. The theme occurs in local legends, in the stories of the Seven Whistlers and of the Man in the Moon. Children were told the Devil would get them for nutting, sewing, or playing ball on Sunday; whoever celebrates a birthday on Sunday, will die before the next; work done on Sunday never prospers; cheques dated on a Sunday are invalid, etc. (Opie and Tatem, 1989: 382-3). The underlying religious rules were relaxed during the 20th century, and the beliefs have now faded out.