SUNDAY SCHOOL WORK.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 78, 22 September 1911, Page 8

SUNDAY SCHOOL WORK.

ADDRESS BY BISHOP CH.OSSLEY. At yesterday afternoon's session of the conference of church workers in the Taranaki Archdeaconry His Lordship the Bishop of Auckland was announced to speak on "Christian education in day und Sunday schools." The Bishop, however, said lie would touch only on education in the Sunday schools. The Sunday School Board of the diocese, he 'said, had not been a very active body—up to the present it had held only one meeting for the current year. But at a recent meeting a resolution had been carried embodying three very important proposals which would amount to radical changes. Touching on the history of the Sunday school, Dr. Crossley said the church system was about perfect. Every child had live persons—its two parents and its god-parents—to see to its education. Formerly, when there were no Sunday schools, cataehising had always been taken on Sunday afternoons, especially in country places. They owed the loss of the catchising in the church before the congregation to John Wesley. In the country in those times there were no services in the evening, and John Wesley seized upon this opportunity for his preachings. In consequence of this the .Sunday afternoon services were discontinued. The system of god-parents, though a splendid one, was an absolute failure.

Now for the three important proposals he hail referred to. A meeting had been ]»eld of all their teachers in Auckland, and these proposals were unanimously adopted. The first was in regard to the teaching of the very young children. There should be started in every Sunday School a kindergarten class. How was this to be done? First, they would have to get the day school teachers to come and train the Sunday School teachers, various articles of furniture would be required, such as a piano, maps, trays ol sand, and other implements of the kindergarten system of education. In one place each member of the congregation had been asked to provide a chair—there should be a chair for each child. The kindergarten system aimed at constant variety, study of the minds of the children, the presentation of ideas suitable to children, and the dramatising oi Biblical scenes. It might be .said that this would lead to irreverence, but this had never been proved to be the case. If they were to succeed, they must commence with the very young children. They must grade the Sunday schools if the work was to be effectively done. Professor .Smith had written a book on education, and this book should be obtained and read by Sunday School teachers. Junior, middle, and .senior might bo taken as a rough grading of tho schools. It had been determined to experiment with a new system of catechising. The Sunday School Board had gone to the Standing Committee of the diocese and asked them to order £OO worth of books from America, which would do for the middle grade in tht school. This system had been worked with amazing success in America. The Sunday School Board had been enabled to cable for the books, and trusted that the expenses would be met by the various parishes. A complete reform of the Sunday School finance was necessary. Up to tho present time all the expenses of the Sunday schools had always been met out of the children's pence fund. This was bad, very bad, but how was it to be remedied? Every child should be asked to support the envelope system. A circular should be sent to -all parents asking them to enable the children to earn a small sum and that the children should be encouraged to bring that sum to the Sunday School. Of this money, threefourths or a half would be paid to the treasurer of the pariah, and the remainder devoted to some mission or missions, to be decided on, as far as possible, by the children themselves. The vestry would pay the bills of the Sunday School In this way the vestrymen would begin to take a real' interest in the Sunday School, for they would see that it was not a tag of the ahurch work Ibut an integral part thereof. On the other band, the children would recognise their personal responsibility, even though they were young, for the support of the church, .. u u» M aiwjHmft) > ;aiA'r*,*<( .. Discussing the matters sot forth, Mr. S. W. Shaw said he didn't like the idea of the Sunday School money being paid over to the vestry. Mr. C. E. Baker, however, approved the proposal, 'flu; Bishop'* remarks, especially in regard to the kindergarten system, and to the children earning money in order to give it to the church, were heartily approved by Mr. Doiupsey, headmaster of tho Central school. The Rev. Houchen also spoke.