700 



SUNDAY SCHOOLS. 



the conspicuous absence of workingmen, the 

 unmistakable opposition of public sentiment, 

 together with the financial loss entailed by Sab- 

 bath opening "; regarding the publication and 

 circulation of the Sunday newspaper " a most 

 subtle and dangerous agency for the seculariza- 

 tion of the Sabbath, inasmuch as it destroys the 

 respect of its readers for the divine command, 

 deprives a multitude of laborers of their week- 

 ly rest day, and proposes to make money by its 

 publication on the day upon which it is unlaw- 

 ful to carry on worldly business " ; and appealing 

 to pastors and members of churches and all order- 

 loving citizens not to patronize any paper issued 

 on the Lord's Day, either by purchasing or ad- 

 vertising. A number of addresses were de- 

 livered during the meetings on subjects relating 

 to the American Sabbath and its faithful ob- 

 servance. 



SUNDAY SCHOOLS. International Con- 

 vention. The International Sunday-School 

 Convention is the body which has the 

 charge of the Uniform International Sunday- 

 School Lessons now used in the Sunday schools 

 of the majority of Protestant denominations 

 throughout the world. It meets every three 

 years. Its first meeting was held in Baltimore, 

 Md., in 1875. Subsequent meetings have been 

 held in Atlanta, Toronto, Louisville, Chicago, 

 and Pittsburg. The seventh meeting was held 

 in St. Louis, Mo., beginning Aug. 30. The Hon. 

 J. I. Harris, of Alabama, presided. Statistics were 

 presented showing that there were in the United 

 States 121,797 Sunday schools, with 1,303,254 

 officers and teachers and 9,688,596 pupils ; in the 

 Dominion of Canada, 8,086 Sunday schools, with 

 67,142 officers and teachers and 557,228 pupils ; 

 and in Newfoundland and Labrador, 314 Sun- 

 day schools, with 2,162 officers and teachers aiul 

 22,817 pupils. The report of the Lesson Com- 

 mittee showed that by the end of the coming 

 December the schools would have gone three times 

 through the Bible since the institution of the 

 International system of lessons, under which it 

 was intended that the whole book should be re- 

 viewed once every seven years not continuously, 

 but in such a way and with such selections of 

 passages as should give a clear idea of the 

 thread of the Bible story and a presentation of 

 the essential doctrines taught in it. Its contents 

 had been covered as fully as possible within the 

 limit assigned. Of 1,031 lessons provided dur- 

 ing the past seven years, 461 had been from the 

 Old Testament and 570 from the New Testa- 

 ment. In reply to criticisms that had been 

 made of the lessons, the report said : 



As to the complaint that our system does not fur- 

 nish a sufficient amount of denominational teaching, 

 our reply is that the difficulty must be with the 

 teachers, and not with the lessons. If these denomi- 

 national teachings have not been included in the In- 

 ternational Lessons, it is because they are not in the 

 Bible. The whole Christian world may be challenged 

 to point out a clearly revealed biblical doctrine which 

 h'as been avoided or omitted. It is true we have 

 not arranged the lessons so as to teach any peculiar 

 system of theology, or to prove any denominational 

 declaration of faith. That work we have left entirely 

 to expositors and teachers, for catechetical instruction 

 and supplemental lessons. But the proof texts for all 

 the essential doctrines found in the Bible are included 

 in our lessons. It has been very truly said by one in 

 no way connected with our committee that the Inter- 



national Lessons conform to the "plan of the Bible 

 as a book of books, rather than to a system of doc- 

 trines, or to a series of duties, or to any central truth." 

 As the " Sunday School Chronicle " of London well 

 expressed it, " Our International system is based on 

 the idea that the moral and religious principles em- 

 bodied and illustrated in the Bible are the proper 

 subjects of Sunday-school teaching." 



Resolutions were adopted recognizing that the 

 International system had stimulated Bible study 

 to a degree never before known; had placed 

 "the richest intellect and the latest acquisition 

 of Bible knowledge in the hands of the common 

 people " ; and had developed and deepened the 

 Christian brotherhood and fellowship ; affirming 

 belief in it as being, all things considered, the 

 most practical system for Sunday schools gen- 

 erally ; urging adherence to it ; and reliev- 

 ing the International Lesson Committee from 

 the instructions hitherto given excepting those 

 providing for a temperance lesson every three 

 months. 



World's Convention. The meeting of the 

 International Convention was followed by that 

 of the World's Second Sunday-School Convention 

 in St. Louis, Sept. 4. A chart suspended over 

 the platform gave the following as the numbers 

 in Sunday schools in the nations mentioned 

 other than the United States. The exhibit is 

 not complete, for Australia and several mission- 

 ary lands are omitted : 



France Sunday schools, 1,456 ; teachers, 3,800 ; 

 pupils, 60,000 : total, 63,800. 



Germany Sunday schools, 5,900 ; teachers, 34,983 ; 

 pupils, 749,786 ; total, 784,769. 



Switzerland Sunday schools, 1.637 ; teachers, 

 6,916; pupils, 113,382; total, 120,298. ' 



Belgium 89 Sunday schools ; 310 teachers; 4,112 

 pupils ; total, 5,422. 



Austria 212 Sunday schools ; 513 teachers ; 7,195 

 pupils ; total, 7,708. 



Finland 6,853 Sunday schools; 11,534 teachers; 

 147,134 pupils ; total, 158,668. 



Denmark 506 Sunday schools ; 3,043 teachers ; 

 55,316 pupils ; total, 58.359. 



Norway 550 Sunday schools ; 4,399 teachers ; 63,- 

 980 pupils ; total, 68,370. 



Portugal 11 Sunday schools; 56 teachers; 1,066 

 pupils ; total, 1,122. 



Newfoundland 359 Sunday schools ; 2,275 teach- 

 ers ; 22,976 pupils; total, 25,251. 



India 5,548 Sunday schools; 10,715 teachers ; 197,- 

 754 pupils ; total, 208,469. , 



Italy Sunday schools, 403 ; teachers, 654 ; pupils, 

 10,969; total, 11.623. 



Ireland Sunday schools, 3,584; teachers, 27,740; 

 pupils, 308,516 ; total, 336,256. 



Canada Sunday schools. 8,336 ; teachers, 68,348 ; 

 pupils, 564,228 ; total, 632,576. 



Scotland Sunday schools, 6,275 : teachers, 62,994 ; 

 pupils, 694,866 ; total, 757,854. 



England and Wales Sunday schools, 37,201 ; 

 teachers, 585,457 ; pupils, 5,976,357 ; total, 6,561,994. 



The Rev. B. P. Jacobs, of Illinois, was chosen 

 president of the convention. Addresses were 

 delivered concerning "Sunday-Schools in Con- 

 nection with Missions," " The System of Home 

 Bible Study," "The Bible," "'The Teacher's 

 Work," "The English System of Systematic, 

 Visitation of Sunday Schools," " The Examina- 

 tion of Teachers and International Diplomas," 

 " Normal Sunday - School Work." " Primary 

 Work," and "The International Bible-Reading 

 Association." 



