Marshall County independent. (Plymouth, Marshall County, Ind.) 1897-1902, 1900-06-01
"OBSTACLES."
Paper Read by Miss Ruth Thomson at the
Center Township SundayschOOl


Paper Read by Miss Ruth Thomson at the
Center Township Sunday school
Convention.
When we look at the number of Sun
dsy-schools in the country and the num-
Der of arduOus workers in the cause,
and then look at the wickedness and
vice in the country Immediately sur
rounding the Sunday schools, we are
apt to hastily form an opinion that the
Sunday-schools are not accomplishing
much. First impressions are seldom
correct; so it is in this case.
Let US first consider what the Sunday
school really should be. 1t is place of
Instruction. place where the children
should receive training to fit them for
their life work as Christians. Their
parents should all be in the church, then
their children would all be in their
places in the Sunday school. They
would attend regularly and never would
the thought of staying at home enter
their minds. Their Sunday school would
appeal to them the same as their day
school. and they would feel the neces-
sity of receiving instruction in the Sun
day school as much if not more keenly
than III the day school.
Is this the way we find it today in our
Sunday schools? Far from it. DO we
find the parents of each child, who at
tend Sunday school, in the church work
ing diligently for their Master? We all
know that we do not. While all parents
who are church members 1--WE may say
all, for there are few exceptlons) see
that their children are in the Sunday
school, still there are many parents who
are church members and who do not
see to this; hence we may say the Sun
day school has two fold object: First
and really by far the more important
that of gaining and keeping members
secondly, that of instruction.
l say the first is more important be-
cause today it is the Sunday-school that
makes the church. If our Sunday
schools did not reach out and get The
children and educate them for the
church it would not be long until we
should have no church. Originally, and
quite properly too, the Sunday -schoo
was in strict subordination to the
church, Little thought was given tC
the school. 1t was merely an hour SCI
apart to instruct the children of church
members. 1t was not so important ths
every energy be exerted to teach ths
child all that could be taught in al
hours time and to make everything at
tractive, for there was no danger o.
his staying out, and what he did no
learn in Sunday school he learned q
home, where a Christian father ant
mother carefully watched over him ant
kept him from following too much "th'
devices and desires of his own heart.
1t is a sad truth that we do not flint
the Christian homes in this age as w
do in others, and this is the very reason
/
more work to do than ever before
They must not only try to make up il
training what the child misses at home
but they also must see that the child /
there to receive the training.
Let us take a look into the ordinar
homes of today. DO We not find tina
in many homes the fathers seldom &
to church? Isn't it even worsep ID
we not find in great many homes tha
the father rarely sits down to have eve
, a fatherly chat? How do the childre
regard their father? Is it with tha
deep reverence and respect which tn
; name of "father" demandsy | ono
heard lecturer say that the fathers G
today are not fathers to their fsmilie