How Are Things With Your Sunday School?

Rev. K. Warren, Trowel & Sword, September 1968

Preamble: In this article Rev. Warren took some time to outline what other churches were doing with their Sunday Schools, with a particular focus on what was then the Methodist, Presbyterian and Congregational churches before they amalgamated to form the Uniting Church. One can confidently say that he was less than impressed with their theology and teaching. But then he turned his attention to Sunday Schools in the Reformed Churches and found that they were not exactly gold standard either, giving a number of examples where there was room for improvement. Fifty plus years later one could rightly ask, has the situation improved or, in Keith’s words, “Is Sunday School teaching (still) not the neglected step-child in the Reformed family?”

How Are Things With Your Sunday School?

Some brothers in the Presbyterian church continue to battle against liberalism. It is good to see that at least some show the spirit of Luther: we can do no other than fight! They need our prayers.

But one wonders about the effect of these far-and-few-in-between local offensives against the firmly established liberal bastion. Is it not like fighting one of those ancient dragons: chop off one head, and seven others take its place! May more and more people become convinced that chopping off heads gets you nowhere with this type of dragon: it needs to be stabbed in the heart!

But at least some of the faithful are trying to have another chop. The ‘head’ they’re aiming for this time: SUNDAY SCHOOL MATERIAL.

The Westminster Society within the Presbyterian Church in N.S.W. prepared and published a booklet some months ago with the title : “Thy children … taught of the Lord?” The booklet gives an analysis of the Sunday School material produced by the Joint Board of Christian Education of Australia and New Zealand. This material is widely used in Methodist, Presbyterian and Congregational Sunday Schools. (Editor’s Note: The Methodist, Congregational and many Presbyterian churches amalgamated to form what is now the Uniting church.)

No doubt a number of Reformed people – notably the ministers – will have received this publication for information, and it certainly is good to see plenty of clear language, pointing out the glaring deviations from the orthodox standpoint regarding Bible and Confession.

Here are some samples :

Why did Jesus allow Himself to be killed? 

Who is Jesus Christ?

Why is Jesus called Saviour? 

How can I know Jesus Christ?

The Joint Board of Christian Education tells us that “these are big questions to which we have no final or complete answer.”

The Joint Board of Christian Education reacted to this booklet!

In a public statement to the churches they answer some of the criticisms and accusations. We learn that the published Sunday School materials are used by half a million people each week in more than 5000 local churches, and that fact alone would make it strange if the material satisfied everybody.

Says the Joint Board: “Christian education is a ministry of the church designed to share the Christian faith with persons of all ages.  The theological position of Christian education materials must be the theological position of the church. The Joint Board has, therefore, always sought to base its lesson materials on the mainstream of the church’s theology.

Our churches permit theological teachers, ministers, and members some freedom in theological viewpoint, says the Board. In dealing with such differences the Board works on the principle that where one point of view must be adopted it will be in the mainstream of the church’s scholarly thinking…. 

Now that’s clear enough isn’t it?

THE MAINSTREAM OF THE CHURCH’S SCHOLARLY THINKING.

That is the rule, the standard, the confession:

Really, this settles the issue!

If the mainstream of scholarly thinking is the basis for past, present and future Sunday School material, concerned orthodox Presbyterians MUST face the inescapable fact that the now in progress initiating Curriculum 1970 will NOT be more true to Scripture and to the Lord Jesus Christ.

For when the ‘foundations’ are becoming more shaky all the time, what will the ‘building’ be?

Added to this is the fact that compulsion is exercised by some State assemblies to force the use of this Sunday School material by all local churches. That is also the case here in Perth. Evangelical Presbyterians are forced to put up with this liberal material and have it taught to their children.

Fortunately there has been some reaction in Perth to the statement of the Joint board. Says the writer: “Surely it is a very dangerous procedure to base lesson materials ‘on the mainstream of the church’s theology’! What if Luther, Calvin or Knox had been content with the mainstream of the church’s theology? There would have been no Reformation.

To sail along on the “mainstream of the church’s scholarly thinking” might seem a safe and pleasant cruise, but there are some pretty big navigational hazards.

The writer continues: “The position in the churches today is that the Church COMPELS deviation from the Confession. One may be as liberal as one pleases, even to the point of denying the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ; yet large numbers of people who hold to the Confession’s exposition of the Faith, and who adhere to the Confession’s view of Scripture, are DENIED the liberty by some State Assemblies (the West Australian being one of them), to teach the children of the church from materials much more faithful to Scripture, and to the church’s own Subordinate Standard, than those of the Joint Board which are imposed by the church. We maintain in our own denomination’s Christian Education programme a state of affairs in which the liberal has liberty to be liberal, but the conservative has no liberty to be conservative.”

And in closing, the writer of this comment on the statement by the Joint Board of Christian Education, says:

“It is a laughable but grim comment on our church life that the processes of church discipline grind against the home missionary or Sunday School teacher who dares to use teaching literature that is truer to our Confession of Faith, until he is forced either to leave his church or make some kind of miserable compromise; whilst the theological teacher who questions everything and destroys the faith of many is left untouched.”

May the Lord bless these courageous efforts, as this comment goes to Presbytery. Would they result in REFORMATION? Or COMPROMISE? Or SEPARATION?

But what about OUR OWN Sunday Schools? How are things there?

We cannot boast of a Joint Board of Education, and of a curriculum worked out by experts. And the topic ‘Sunday Schools’ has quite probably never been discussed on the floor of Synod. I don’t think that ecclesiastical oversight goes much further than an elder or deacon paying a yearly visit to a class of noisy covenant-youngster and/or non Reformed children.

The teachers are as a rule, keen and hard-working, but without much training. And a variety of material is used (more or less suitable to Reformed teaching), some churches producing their own.

My question is : Is Sunday School teaching not the neglected step-child in the Reformed family? No, don’t get me wrong. Not that there are not enough Sunday school classes and teachers. We thank the Lord for all the dedication and devotion with which many people have been doing this work for years!

But does this work have the attention of our churches? I don’t think so. Not sufficient anyway.

Take only the matter of TRAINING for instance. Do our Sunday School teachers receive adequate training? Many other church workers do. The ministers are thoroughly prepared for their work. The elders and deacons have their literature, conferences, and even a special magazine. The choir members study every week, and the F.C.Y.A. has a training course for senior youth club leaders. Geelong has made a Teachers’ Training Course available, and there’s plenty of opportunity for those who are willing to become better acquainted with e.g. Reformed doctrine and ethics. But what about the Sunday School teachers? Where do they get the training?

Possibly one or two local congregations have a training effort, but that’s not sufficient. The work is important enough to warrant more attention on a local, a state, or even a nation-wide level. Do our teachers have a grasp of the basic teaching concepts? What about the psychological make-up of the various age-groups? And class-discipline? And teacher-child relationship? And are all our teachers born-again Christians, making Jesus REAL in their teaching? And does the session take a REAL interest in this Kingdom work?

Then there’s the MATERIAL used. Is it good? Could it be better? What do others use? Is it not time that Synod requests an extensive report on these matters, and consequently give advice and guidance to the local churches?

These are just some of the questions I’m asking myself. Care to give YOUR answer?

K. WARREN.