The evening leader., 1918-09-07

arise, old organizations must be modi-
fled or. new organizations lnust b,
formed to meet the new neeis. This
fact is illustrated IN the Sunday school
movement in America Frcm 1880 TO
1872 the key word IN the Sunday
school world was organization. Ma
chinery was set IN motion for the or
ganization of Sunday schools in every
village and hamlet in America. The
American SUNDAY school union was
the pathfinder of the Sunday school
movement in frontier territory. The
time came when it was evident that
the Sunday school needed something
besides organization. There We're hum
dreds of dead and dying schools and
there was no association prepared to
give them life. In 1872 the Interma-
tional Sunday School association was
organized to meet the new needs.
There were but two words in it's orig
lnal program, unifcation and inspira-
tion. Unification was secured through
the uniform Sunday school lesson sys-
tenn, which has been in general use
since 1872; inspiration was seculed
through the International Sunday
School convention System. This sys1
tenn provided for an international con-
vention once in three years tchanged
in 1910 to four years. an annual state
convention in each state, an annual
county convention in each county, ana
a township or district convention in
each township or district once or
twice year. This great convention
system has federated the resources
of counties and states; it has been the
source of great inspiration to count
less thousands of officers and teachers
It's thousands of conventions held an
nually are still one of the most potent
factors in the moral and religious life
of America. The fact that these con-
ventions are increasing in size and in
terest with the passing years indicates
their worth. To carry on this conven-
tion system, township, city, county
and state associations were organized.
These organizations served their pur-
pose well; they developed stereo-
typed convention machinery which ex-
pended its energy in building conven-
ion programs, advertising the con-
vention, rounding up delegates and
giving publicity to convention pro-
ceedings. These organizations requir-
ed little more than a president, sccre-
tary and executive committee. The
business of the association was trans
acted in the most democratic manner
at the regular conventions, and the
officers had little to do save to assem-
BILE the next convention. The finances
of such associations were provided for
by contributions from schools, con-
vention offerings and gifts, seldom
large, from friends of the organiza-
ton.
But new problems arose as our
country developed. The Sunday
schools came to need type of su-
pervision which the convention system
could not give. The old slogans of un-
ification and inspiration gave way to
the demand for graded instruction.
trained teachers, standardized educa-
tional methods. The Religious Educa.
tionaf association was organized in
1903 as champion of the new ideas.
Responding to the demand for an en-
larged service, the international Sun
day School association has added
schools of methods to its convention
program, special departmental secIe-
taries have been employed to promote
the newer methods between conven-
tions and special schools for teacher
training have been established. And
now comes the demand for permanent
community training schools, and sys-
TENS of week day religious schools,
involving trained specialists, and
greatly increased financial response
bility.
Onto a simple organization created