Under the title “Sunday Schools Actually Work Against the Church,” a correspondent of the “Lutheran and Missionary” paints the following dark picture of the nature of American Sunday Schools. We share this essay, in order that our readers see also that this danger is recognized in other circles, this danger which reveals itself in this highly regarded institution. The article reads:
This thought stands out to be sure, but it is not new. It has already suggested itself to the spirit of many. They take the work of the Sunday Schools seriously, but they are neither dazzled by the shine of popular opinion, nor do they let themselves be deceived by naked pretext or shiny appearance. They are not able to close their eyes to the evils, which are constantly unfolding in this institution. The Sunday School has become such a popular thing, that to say something against it would be regarded by many to be blasphemy. But when this quiet thought is given a chance to prove itself, one can see the different questions which Sunday School raises. One can also learn from the private conversations of serious workers in the Sunday School, who have actual and true interests in this matter of Christ, which lies on their heart. In the shiny religious school buildings which we have built, we perceive a diseased air, which itself is poisoning the sources of religious life and stirs up the most painful fears for the future. How we clear away the evil at hand, this is a question which should grasp the attention of every true Christian and upstanding member of the church of Christ.
Two powerful elements of corruption are active in our Sunday Schools. The one is money, and the other, through which the first is also active, is the pursuit of the churches and congregations towards relevance and grandeur. The institution of Sunday School has called a gigantic business to life. The selling of books, music, newspapers, magazines, Sunday School equipment, etc. – is shockingly huge. Thousands of Sunday Schools live off these things, and they employ the tact and cleverness of the best business talent. The goal is to have big Sunday Schools, which must be achieved above all else. The more and bigger they are, the better the business. Every congregation has the ambition to have the biggest Sunday School, and every means is employed to reach this goal. Good and wise men and women often raise objections against the means, which are often employed, in order to maintain and expand their schools. But what can they do? The congregation complains. Children also complain that their school is not popular. They complain until they feel compelled to adopt the tactics of their neighbors, so that they are able to compete with them, both in growth and popularity. The library is filled with books, which have the most miserable art. Newspapers, printed assignments, workbooks, and touchy-feely music transform the Sunday School into a pleasant Sunday amusement. They decorate the whole matter heavily with rallies, big to-do festivals, gifts, and stage plays – until the religious tastefulness is fully corrupted, and the sincere religious atmosphere disappears in the air of applause and self-congratulations. The goal is reached. The school is big and in blossoming status. The pastor, the superintendent, and the congregation are all proud of it. Hundreds of newspapers and books are used. The music is rocking. Great sums of money are collected, and everything is trumpeted as a great success.
But what is the fruit? The young people are being trained to love the Sunday School – but not the church. If they join the church, they neglect the Divine Services, because the Sunday School formed their taste for something different. Many teachers and students pass up the Chief Service in the church during the morning, in order that they can attend the exercises of the Sunday School in the afternoon. The superintendents often feel flattered and turn a blind eye. In such manner the Sunday School is lifted above the church. And this is not surprising. The practices of the Sunday School are free-flowing and comfortable. They offer opportunity for social interaction. One doesn’t have to listen to a sermon. The music is more for recreation than anything else. The entire happening is in many ways the purest deceit. It is designed to deceive people with the thought that they are holding worship, while they are only satisfying their own self-serving preference. They amuse themselves as they play religion. When such thoughts about worship are nurtured, it is no wonder that they have an aversion to the biblical seriousness and solemnity of our uniquely Lutheran worship. It is no wonder that their worship attendance is irregular, and that they search out their natural home in the free-flowing and comfortable gatherings whose menus list the same spiritual food, with which they were fed in the Sunday School.
On the whole, the path of the Sunday School leads us towards religious practices which are free from churchly authority, preachers without ordination, congregations without a confession, without duties and without sacraments. It is high time to cease singing the praises of the Sunday Schools and once again honestly look at the type of work which happens there. And when it is possible to attempt it, root out the false principles which they spread.
A Teacher
R.L.
