KEiDETfOiPRiND BiSWOKJC BV 15 50 .B3 Barclay, Wade Crawford, 18 ... The adult worker and h work The Worker and His Work Series A Correspondence Study Course for Sunday School Workers THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK By ^ WADE CRAWFORD BARCLAY Educational Director of the Board of Sunday Schools Authorized and issued by the Board of Sunday Schools of the Methodist Episcopal Church, Fifty-Seven Washington Street, Chicago, Illinois, David G. Downey, Corresponding Secretary, IN co-operation with John T. McFarland, Editor of Sunday School Publications, and with his approval. Printed for the Board 4 BY JENNINGS AND GRAHAM Copyright, 1910, by The Board of Sunday-Schools OF THE Methodist Episcopal Church CONTENTS Introductory Chapter. — The Graded Sunday-School, - 7 I. The New Ideal for the Sunday-School, - 21 II. The Organized Adult Bible Class, - - -33 III. The Relation of the Organized Adult Bible Class TO the Sunday-School and the Church, - 45 IV. The Class Teacher, 55 V. The Course of Study for the Adult Bible Class, 69 VI. What the Teacher is About, - - - - 79 VII. Formal Steps in the Teaching Process, - - 89 VIII. Interest and Attention, loi IX. Illustrations in Teaching, - - - - 115 X. Open Secrets of Successful Teaching, - - - 127 XI. Methods of Instruction, 139 XII. The Evangelistic Aim in Teaching, - - - 151 XIII. The Teacher Come from God, - - - - 161 XIV. Religious Work of the Class, - - - - 173 XV. Winning Men, 189 XVI. Practical Forms of Social Service, - - - 201 XVII. General Class Activities, - - - - - 209 XVIII. Building and Maintaining a Strong Class, - - 221 XIX. Class Advertising, ------ 233 XX. Class Officers and Their Duties, - - - 247 Appendix A. — Model Constitution, .... 259 Appendix B. — Sample Printed Forms, .... 263 Index, -, - - 271 INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER THE GRADED SUNDAY-SCHOOL "Is it not worth while to teach the Bible as well as we teach arithmetic and geography, to give as good instruction in the things of the soul and the life to come as in those of the counting house and commerce?" — Burton and Mathews. "The new system is the result of developments that have been in process for many years in the educational world. The principles of the new education have been recognized and followed in the public schools for a good while; their recognition in the Sunday-school has come tardily, but can not be any longer postponed. It is not worth while to quarrel with a necessity." — /. T. McFarland. "The Bible has something of that infinite variety thc^t meets us in nature. It is pre-eminently a Book created out of human life. It reflects everywhere this life, and its cease- less change, its exhaustless variety of experience, its deep under-tones of mystery and sorrow, the tragedies and sins and toils of man, the play and interplay of souls, the sweep of empires, the rise and growth and fall of nations. Such a Book can not be measured ofif and divided by hard-and-fast rules into uniform lessons, without two results : first, a faulty and forced interpretation of its selected passages ; and second, a superficial and unworthy conception of the Book as a whole." — Pascal Narrower. INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER THE GRADED SUNDAY-SCHOOL I. Standard of Organization I. The Purpose of Organization. Organization is simply a means to an end. Given a certain situation, the Sunday-school should adopt such form of organization as will best enable it to adapt itself to that situation and to Conditions accomplish the ends for which it exists. If the Determine school meets in a little country school-house, has Details of one teacher, one class, and an enrollment of hf- Organization ^^^^ persons, it will not be aided in doing its work by adopting the complicated organization demanded by the city school of a thousand members. But even the smallest and weakest frontier school may, in a simple or- ganization suited to its situation and its needs, recognize the fundamental principles which make its big brother of the highest educational and religious efficiency. Conditions vary so widely in different schools that it is impossible to suggest a form of organization suited to all. Each school will do best by acquainting itself thoroughly with the high- est ideals in Sunday-school work; then, having adopted a working plan suited to its situation, it may gradually advance toward the ideal. In adopting a form of organization and in planning the work, the teaching function of the school should always be kept in the forefront. It must ever be remembered that the Sunday-school exists as "the teaching agency of the Church, obeying the Master's command, 'Go, teach.' " 2 / 8 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK 2. The Ideal Standard. So far as possible, every Sunday- school should attain to the following ideal of organization: (i) The Sunday-school fully graded. (For complete statement on graded organization see pp. 13, 14.) (2) A Cradle Roll. (3) A Home Department. (4) A Teacher-Training Department. (5) Organized Adult Classes. (6) A Sunday-school Missionary Organization. (7) A Sunday-school Temperance Organization. (8) Regular meeting of the Sunday-school Board. 3. Officers Necessary to Realize this Ideal. We sug- gest as advisable, in order to realize this ideal of organiza- tion and all that it implies, to have at least the following officers : Superintendent ; an Assistant Superintendent, who shall be Director of Graded Instruction; a second Assistant Superintendent, who shall be Director of Teacher-Training; in large schools. Superintendents of various departments, as Superintendent of the Primary Department, Superin- tendent of the Junior Department, etc. ; Superintendent of the Home Department; Superintendent of the Cradle Roll; Secretary; en Assistant Secretary, who shall be Secretary of Enrollment and Classification; Treasurer; Organist; Chorister ; one or more Librarians ; Ushers ; and various Com- mittees, of which one should be the Quarterly Conference Committee on Sunday-schools required by the Discipline, and another a Committee on Sunday-school Evangelism. 4. The Relation of the Pastor to the Sunday-school. Since the Sunday-school is integrally a part of the Church, the pastor is as truly pastor of the Sunday-school as of the Church itself. Methodist Episcopal Church poHty recog- nizes this and makes the pastor the executive head of the Sunday-school, and clearly defines his prerogatives as such. This relation should be cordially recognized by officers and schools, and every facility afforded the pastor to exercise a helpful and fruitful ministry in that department of the Church which offers him his largest spiritual opportunity. THE GRADED SUNDAY-SCHOOL 9 II. The Graded School I. What is a Graded School? There are very few schools that have not from the beginning made some approach to grading. Seldom, indeed, is a school found which does not separate the gray heads from the curly locks. Not only are classes formed, as a rule, with a more or less All Schools . , ' , , Are to Some successful attempt to group together those ot ap- Extent proximately the same age, but the lesson helps Graded commonly furnished bear titles such as Inter- Schoois mediate Quarterly, Senior Quarterly, which thus recognize the different departments, from beginners to adults. Thus it would seem at first glance that the average school has been graded, both as to pupils and as to lesson material. But as a matter of fact, this is only a seeming gradation. Age alone is not a proper basis for grading pupils. As for the curriculum, since all lesson helps of the uniform series use the same lesson material for all ages, and presuppose almost entirely the same teaching methods for all, they can be said to be graded only in name. In order that a school may be properly and successfully graded, there must be, in both theory and practice, full recog- nition of the following principles: (a) The members of the school must be graded first into ^ general divisions suggested by the natural periods Completely of human life, and secondly, into classes upon Graded the basis of age, physical development, and mental School capacity. (b) The curriculum must be so planned as to suit the lessons to the mental powers, the interests, and the spiritual needs of the pupils. (c) The teaching methods used must likewise be deter- mined by and suited to the mental development and spiritual needs of the learners. (d) Promotions from class to class and from department to department must be upon the basis of a standard which has TO THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK regard both to proficiency in the curriculum, and to age and physical, mental, and spiritual development. 2. The Necessity of Grading. If the Sunday-school is to realize its highest possibilities, grading is not a matter of opinion or choice, but a necessity. This by no means de- clares other methods a failure ; "it recognizes the good already attained, while it seeks a higher good." Grading rests upon these established principles: (a) Human life is by nature marked off into certain clearly defined periods. A human being is a developing creature with needs different in different periods of his developing life. Grading is a recognition of this fact. No God First Sunday-school consists of pupils all of one age ; Human Life ^"^ther, it is made up of people of all ages, and in all stages of physical, mental, and spiritual growth. Grading is the means of adaptation to these existing facts. It is a commonplace of child-study to-day that at one period play is a dominating interest ; an another, memory power reaches its culmination; at another, biography makes its strongest appeal ; at still another, "the chivalric ideals and great altruistic principles of Christianity appeal with almost irresistible force." The aptitudes, the needs, the interests of the different periods can only be met and taken advantage of by a graded system. (b) In all teaching the mind of the learner is now the point of departure. Teaching has to do with two principals, the learner and the truth to be taught. In the HasVe^rd Sunday-school in the past almost all emphasis First to the has been placed upon the body of material to be Being Who taught. The lesson system has been planned ^tobe almost entirely with regard to the Bible. But the science of pedagogy has been coming more and more to hold that effective teaching must regard first the mind of the learner, and consider the teaching material as a means of reaching desired ends. As soon as this point of view is adopted, grading of the lesson material becomes necessary. THE GRADED SUNDAY-SCHOOL ii Only this secures the presentation of the different parts of the Bible at the time at which they severally make their strongest and most effective appeal. The application of this principle would make forever impossible the presentation to the minds of little children of lesson material which is fitted to test the intellectual acumen of college graduates. (c) The Bible itself is best studied in the order of its development. The uniform lesson system ignores both the fact that the Bible is a body of sacred literature which de- _.„ veloped slowly through long centuries, and that Different . . , , , • Parts of the ^^ ^^ ^ gradual and progressive revelation of the Bible Repre- purpose and will of God concerning men.i The sent Peri- graded system is fitted to give due emphasis to ods of De- i^Q^j^ Qf ^jjggg f^^^g^ ^ graded course of study, velopment . , t-.m i • n • i i • presenting the Bible practically m the order in which it came into existence, which order is singularly fitted to the periods of mental growth, will give to the person who takes the course a complete and connected knowledge of the Scrip- tures and their teaching quite impossible of impartation by means of the fragmentary, patch-work method of the uni- form system. 3. Objections to Grading. It may be well to consider briefly the most common objections made to grading the Sunday-school. It is objected that: (a) Grading will do away with uniformity; that is, the use of the same lesson by the whole school and by all schools throughout the world. There can be no doubt that the uni- form lesson system was at the time of its inauguration a great improvement over the previous lack of system, and that it has been attended by many benefits and advan- * " If the Bible is the history of a progressive revelation, and if, for this reason, it yields its best results alike intellectually and religiously when it is studied with due reference to the relation of part to part, and to the unfolding of the great divine plan and revelation that runs through it, then we shall give our suffrages to the graded curriculum in preference to the system of uniformity." — Burton and Mathews, Principles and Ideals for the Sunday-School, p. 130. 12 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK tages. It marked a distinct stage of advance in Sunday- school development, but it has served its day and must now give way in order that the Sunday-school may become still more efficient. We can ever afford to discard a good for a still greater good. The uniform lesson idea appeals to senti- ment, but it is easily discernible that the strongest influence in its favor at present is that growing out of the fact that it has been financially remunerative. Surely all will concede that neither mere sentiment nor financial gain should be allowed to stand in the way of the Sunday-school becoming a greater power for religion and morals. (b) Grading requires specialists. This objection, frequently made, is not valid. The untrained teacher has at least as much chance of doing good work in a graded as in an un- graded school. The lesson material making a stronger appeal to the interests of the pupils is easier to handle. Moreover, the assignment of a teacher to a certain grade makes it possible for him to become a specialist by attaining mastery in that particular field.^ (c) It is too difUcult to effect a change. The difficulties are likely to be unduly magnified. A graded system may be introduced so gradually as to occasion little notice or difficulty. When the advantages of a graded school are fully realized, ways may be found to overcome what difficulties really exist. It is only necessary that the plan be clearly understood by those intimately concerned in necessary changes, and that they be brought to realize the force of the reasons demanding the changes.^ 1" See how the primary teachers grow ; they are head and shoulders above the rest jn organization, in printed helps, in sheer pedagogic efficiency, — why? Because they have accepted a narrow location, an age limit of pupils, and maintained it through the years. They have done the same kind of work over and over again ; of course, they have grown efficient." — E. M. Fergusson. 8 " Failures have come only when the attempt has been made to force on the school some mechanical contrivance in a mechanical manner. Let the principle and plan be fuxly understood by all workers." — H. F. Cofe. 2 THE GRADED SUNDAY-SCHOOL 13 4. Plan of Graded Organization. (a) The Natural Divisions of Human Life. The great primary divisions of human life have always been recog- nized, — childhood, the period of subjection, imitation, recep- tivity; youth, the period of awakening powers; manhood, the period of developed powers. Psychology, and especially child- study, has made equally clear secondary periods which, ex- pressed in terms of age, are from one to three, three to n A,,- seven, seven to nine, nine to twelve or thirteen, Lrrading is ' . Working in thirteen to sixteen or seventeen. The age divi- Harmony sion differs with the sexes, the male sex develop- with God -j^g more slowly. Even within sex limits the periods vary with individuals, dependent upon the rapidity or tardiness of the physical, mental, and spiritual develop- ment. This fact makes the age standard alone an unsatis- factory one. These natural divisions, or periods, of human life form the basis of the organization of the graded Sunday- school. (b) The Divisions of the Sunday-school. On the fore- going basis, the graded Sunday-school has the following divisions : Age Public School Grade Cradle Roll Beginner's Department 3 4 5 Primary Department 6 i 7 2 8 3 Junior Department 9 4 10 5 11 6 12 7 Intermediate Department 13 8 14 9 15 10 14 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK Age Public School Grade Senior Department i6 ii 17 12 18 Adult Department (over 18) : a. Organized Adult Bible Classes. b. Teacher Training Department. Home Department. [Note: Some authorities would include pupils 16 years old in the Intermediate Department ; make the Senior Depart- ment to consist of those 17, 18, 19, and 20, and the Adult De- partment to include those over 20.] III. Administration of the Graded School In administration, again, to a certain extent, each school must work out its own problems. Often the inadequate facilities for school work afforded by the church building Principles to ^^''ces a modification or entire change of plans beRecog- which. Under more favorable conditions, would nized in Ad- be of the highest standard. Only general prin- ministration ^iples may be enunciated. These should be re- garded in practice to the largest extent which local condi- tions allow. I. Each department of the school should have its own room. This arrangement promotes an ideal organiza- tion and administration of the graded curriculum, and is Separate greatly to be desired wherever it is possible, al- Rooms for though in most schools, as at present situated, Departments it is, of course, impracticable. These depart- and Classes jngn^al rooms should be so planned as to allow the placing of the various grades in separate rooms. For example, the Primary room should be so planned as to be easily subdivided into three smaller rooms, one for each grade. In the Beginner's, Primary, and Junior Departments the grade may constitute the class unit, but in the Intermediate Department each grade should be subdivided into classes, thus THE GRADED SUNDAY-SCHOOL 15 placing a smaller number of pupils under the care of a teacher and allowing an opportunity for that close, personal association which is so essential during the crucial years of adolescence. The Intermediate room should, therefore, be large enough to allow a separate class room for each class. It is quite impossible for the grade or class to do its best work without a room to itself. Where this can not be, each class should be shut off by screens or other temporary partitions. In some cases, heavy curtains may be used to advantage. 2. The school should meet together for brief opening exercises. An assembly room should be used to assemble the entire school at the opening or closing of the school ses- . ^ . sion. An exception may well be made of the Service for Beginner's Department and the Primary Depart- the Entire ment. There is not unanimity of judgment on School ^j^jg subject, some advocating that each depart- ment hold its own opening and closing exercises. We hold to the former plan. This gives a sense of unity, and binds the various departments and organized classes to the school and to the church in a manner highly desirable. These exercises should be very brief, much more so than they usually are at present — as a rule, not more than fifteen minutes should be used in this way, in order that the all too brief teaching period may be lengthened as much as possible. The first essential of these exercises is promptness in beginning; the superin- tendent and chorister should be in their places exactly on time to open the school — better five minutes early than one minute late. A primary purpose of these exercises is worship, hence reverence must be cultivated. The manner of con- ducting the exercises, the hymns used, the words of the leader — all should combine to induce the spirit of reverence and worship. 3. In general, teachers should remain in charge of the same grade. The question as to whether the teacher should remain in one grade or advance from grade to i6 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK grade with the class, has been sharply debated in literature and convention. In general, there can be little question as to the advisability of the teacher remaining stationary. As stated above, it enables the teacher to become a specialist in some one particular field. Sunday-school teachers are busy people, and can neither be required nor expected to thoroughly acquaint themselves w^ith the entire field of Sunday-school instruction and life. They may, however, reasonably be ex- pected in time to become adept in the field of some one department or grade. The objection is made, that under the old system the class became attached to the Teachers teacher and thus by the bond of personal affec- Grades ^^^^^ were held to the Sunday-school. But did it always work out so happily? As a recent writer puts it : "Suppose the teacher goes into heaven, into matrimony, or elsewhere. Where will the class go? They will go, be very sure of that." Whatever weight this argu- ment has is counterbalanced by the fact that passing from one teacher to another aids in giving the pupils a distinct sense of advance, and by so doing promotes interest and effort. An exception to this general rule may be made in the Intermediate and Senior Departments. Here a teacher who has shown himself capable of interesting and influencing the boys or girls should be allowed to continue with the same class through the three grades of the department. Confidence of the pupils in their teacher, personal friendship, an inti- mate acquaintanceship of the teacher with the pupils, are at this period indispensable. These can only exist as teacher and class may be together for more than one year. But this continuance of the same teacher with the class should not extend beyond the limits of the department. How important, in view of the light shed in recent years upon the period of adolescence, that the teacher who is to be entrusted with the moral and religious guidance of young people of this age have an intimate acquaintanceship with THE GRADED SUNDAY-SCHOOL 17 the most important literature on the subject, such an ac- quaintanceship as can only be attained by giving exclusive attention to this one department! The age is, by common consent, difficult to deal with. How important, again, that a man who has come through experience to understand and sympathize with adolescent boys, and has attained power to lead and mold them, be allowed the opportunity to exercise continuously this much-needed ministry ! 4. The best possible facilities and equipment should be provided. Altogether too little attention has been paid in the past to adequate facilities for the work of the Sunday- Adeauate school. In plans of architects and committees, Building and the requirements of the Sunday-school have been Equipment to ignored or given, at the best, slight considera- be Provided ^-^^^^ Along with increased interest in the Sun- day-school and improved methods must go better facilities and more complete equipment. Sunday-school workers them- selves have a right to be heard from upon this subject, and should insist on the Sunday-school being provided for in accord with its importance to the Church and the kingdom. Some large Sunday-schools now have a building all their own, especially designed for Sunday-school work and elabo- rately equipped. This is as it should be. No longer should any Sunday-school be compelled to carry on its work in one room of a large church, and that a dark, damp, ill-furnished basement. Careful attention should be given to securing graded equip- ment, proper text -books in sufficient number, and teachers who have been prepared for their work. It would be imwise for any school to endeavor to introduce a graded curriculum without attention being paid to these essentials. Lesson Outline: I. Standard of Organization. 1. Purpose in organization. 2. The ideal standard. 3. Officers necessary. 4. The relation of the pastor to the Sunday-school. i8 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK n. The Graded School. 1. What is a graded school? 2. The necessity of grading. 3. Objections to grading. 4. Plan of graded organization. 5. The administration of the graded school. Bibliography: Burton and Mathews, "Principles and Ideals for the Sunday-school." Home, "The Psychological Principles of Education." Meyer, "The Graded Sunday-school in Principle and Practice." Topics for Advanced Study: 1. A study of some graded schools. 2. Proper age limits of the Senior Department. 3. Sunday-school architecture. Topics for Class Discussion: 1. The essential purpose in Sunday-school organization. 2. What are the elements in an ideal standard of or- ganization ? 3. What officers are necessary to realize the standard named ? 4. What is the position of the pastor in the Sunday- school ? 5. What principles are essential in order that a school may be fully graded ? 6. What reasons make grading necessary to the best work ? 7. State and answer the common objections to grading. 8. Name the divisions or departments of a graded school. CHAPTER I THE NEW IDEAL FOR THE SUNDAY- SCHOOL "Young children and scholars are the seed and the source of the Church." — Martin Luther. "No other institution of our age shows such a chasm be- tween possibility and performance as the Sunday-school. No other has such vast powers latent and unused." — William H. P. Fauncc. "It is safe to say, and this without reservation, that the most fundamental problem in America to-day is the problem of religious education, because this lies at the roots of all else — political, social, and theological." — Charles Foster Kent. "The term education must mean a gradual adjustment to the spiritual possessions of the race. Those possessions may be variously classified, but they are certainly at least five- fold. The child is entitled to his scientific inheritance, to his literary inheritance, to his aesthetic inheritance, to his institutional inheritance, and to his religious inheritance. Without them he cannot become a truly educated or civi- lized man." — Nicholas Murray Butler. CHAPTER I THE NEW IDEAL FOR THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL I. Contributing Factors I. A new realization o£ the effectiveness o£ the Sun- day-school as a religious agency. A distinctively new realization of the effective service rendered by the Sunday- school to the cause of religion is now manifest throughout The Church's ^"^ ^^^ ^^^ Other Churches. The Church has Converts awakened to the astonishing fact that while her Come from emphasis has been placed almost entirely upon the Sunday- ^dult conversion, and her evangelistic efforts in- vested almost wholly in behalf of adults, eighty- five out of every hundred of her accessions to membership have come from the children and youth of the Sunday-school. Studies in investigation of that statement have not only verified it, but have shown that, in addition, seventy-five of every hun- dred of our churches were first organized as Sunday-schools, and ninety of every hundred of our ministers came up through the Sunday-school into the ministry. Moreover, that these results are in accord with fixed and definite spiritual laws has been demonstrated by the scientific study of human nature and its development during childhood and youth, and a care- ful study of the phenomena of conversion among a consider- erable number of people of all ages and all denominations. Early youth, or the period of adolescence, as it is technically called, has without question been demonstrated to be the most spiritually fruitful period of human life. A religious leader spoke not alone for himself, but as the spokesman for the whole Church, when he said recently: "Some of us have been pessimistically bemoaning the passing of the revival, 21 * 22 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK when we need only to open our eyes to see the greatest revival of the ages going on in our Sunday-schools, where boys and girls are spontaneously awaking to spiritual realities and to a sense of their own spiritual life and relationship to God." Another describes what has been taking place as "Methodism's New Awakening,''^ and says: "It is not diffi- cult, then, to see where the hope of the Church lies. The source of supply is at her very door, under her own control, and susceptible of unlimited development. . . . Methodism's new awakening, then, is to the importance of the Sunday- school as the Church's most productive enterprise and its most precious asset." This realization of the effectiveness of the Sunday-school as a religious agency is just now more and more becoming a compelling power in the thought and pur- pose of the Church. 2. The new conception of the Sunday-school as the Church Bible School. The Sunday-school began, and, for the most part, has continued to the present day, as an insti- The Sunday- tution for children. Nearly every Sunday-school School is Not has had, as a matter of course, one or more the Children's classes of adults, but there has been no general Church Qj. aggressive movement to increase their numbers. Sometimes, in a perfunctory manner, the congregation would be urged to attend the Sunday-school, but generally the motive named was "in order to encourage the children." Without doubt the meaning and association of the term in the popular mind has been such that it never occurred to many men and women that they ought to have a place in the Sunday-school for their own sakes. Various influences have operated to change all this. It is recognized that any division between the Sunday-school and the Church itself tending to make the one exclusively for children and the other for adults is fatal to vital interests of both. If children, when they are grown, are to be identified with the Church, then the Church must have a place in their 1 Editorial in the Northwestern Christian Advocate, July 21, 1909. NEW IDEAL FOR THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL 23 lives as children. "The substitution of attendance at Sunday- school for public worship tends to prevent the child from realizing his unity with the whole Church." The Church can not do without the children. Neither can the Sunday- school do its best work for childhood without the presence of adults in large numbers as members and participants. Again, we have witnessed in recent years a revival of in- terest in Bible study. But the presence of general reading matter, and changes in home life due to modern conditions, have crowded the Bible out of its former place in the home. The Church must supply the opportunity and means for Bible study on the part of its people. The natural place is the Sunday-school. Yet again, the teaching function of the Church is being magnified. It is not enough, the leaders of the Church have been saying, for the Church to minister to the need for worship, and the need for comfort and spiritual edification; the Church must also instruct her people in ethics, morals, social duties, and good citizenship. How and where can this be done so effectively as by utilizing the undeveloped possibilities of the school which the Church already has as a part of her machinery? These and other influences have created the new concep- tion of the Sunday-school as the Church Bible school. With- out minifying or diminishing its work for childhood, its activities and its program are to be broadened to embrace the whole Church; it is to become, in fact, the Church organized for the study of the Bible. 3. A new realization of the importance of the Sunday- school as the chief agency of religious education in the Religious nation. Gratifying, indeed, to religious people Development must be the increased emphasis being placed by Indispen- leading American educators upon the importance sable to True q£ ^^^ moral and religious elements in education. Education -^^y^y. before so clearly, and never before so al- most universally, has religious development been recognized as fundamentally a part of all true education. Man is a religious 24 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK being, is the dictum both of faith and of science. Any education, therefore, which ignores religion is incomplete. No man can possibly be said to be a truly educated man whose religious nature has remained undeveloped. Curiously enough, side by side with this growing recog- nition of the religious nature, there has been going on in our own country a movement resulting in the increasing neglect The Decline °^ religious instruction, namely, the gradual with- of Religious drawal of the State from participation in all re- instruction ligious exercises. The situation, as it affects re- s" h^*!^"''^**^ ligious instruction, is thus stated by President Faunce, of Brown University: "The American State has consented to drop out of education all attempt at religious instruction, a change almost as far-reaching as the elimination of slavery from our economic life. This is the logical and inevitable result of the principle on which our Government is based, but is a result unforeseen by the founders of the Republic and at variance with all their expectations. . . . It is clear, therefore, that we are facing a problem comparatively new in the Western hemisphere, the gravity of which it is impossible to exaggerate. Through the re- lentless application of our fundamental principle of soul- liberty, it has come to pass that the American State will never again undertake the most important part of education, the development of the religious nature. . . . This atti- tude of the American State, almost without precedent in ancient or modern history, forces upon every thoughtful citizen inquiries more serious and fundamental than any questions of economic or political reform."^ What agencies, then, are there which undertake to meet the fundamental need for religious instruction? A survey of our contemporary life shows a number of these — among them the home, the pulpit, the Christian college, the Sunday- school. Concerning these principal agencies, — as to the home, there is general agreement that it has suffered a lamentable 1 The Educational Ideal in the Ministry, page 196. NEW IDEAL FOR THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL 25 decline in religious observances and religious training; the pulpit aims less and less to give instruction, and more to afford inspiration; moreover, it reaches almost no children, and comparatively few young people in their earlier teens; the Christian college does magnificent service in The Sunday- the* case of a small minority of American youth. A^one ^" ^ Such a survey reveals the fact that there is one institution, and only one, which exists defi- nitely to fulfill this function of religious instruction. The Sunday-school stands alone in its avowed and distinctive pur- pose of teaching religious truth. The fact that the Sunday-school occupies this fore- most position in relation to religious instruction, once thor- oughly grasped in all its meaning and implications, will bring it into a prominence and secure for it an estimate of worth such as it has never before had. As a matter of fact, the modern Sunday-school inherits the teaching function of the early Church. The early Chris- tian sermon was very largely a teaching discourse. Religious instruction was regarded as indispensable to the Probably the Progress and success of Christianity. So great Leading an emphasis was placed by the Church upon its Function of educational function, that in less than four cen- the Early turies Christian schools supplanted those of the Roman Empire. From that time, on through many centuries, all education was, to a very large extent, in the hands of the Church. Following the Protestant Reformation, the State gradually took over the control of education. During the greater part of the nineteenth century the Church had little participation in general education. But, as has been pointed out above, the State has now withdrawn from the field of reli- gious education, declaring that to be only the rightful function of the Church. Strange are the reverses and contradictions of history ! The position of the State has been deliberately taken and is a settled policy. The Church must of necessity see reli- gious instruction ignored or neglected, or address herself with 26 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK new vigor and intense earnestness to this work. The Sunday- school is the institution by means of which the work must be done. II. The New Ideal Stated What, then, is the new ideal for the Sunday-school, the resultant of these factors of which we have spoken? It is this: The Sunday-school an institution truly representative of the Church, making provision both for young and old, stand- ing for a vital religious life and experience, and at the same time manifesting the highest educational efficiency as the chief agency of religious education. It will be readily seen that if this ideal is to be attained, the Sunday-school must be given a much larger place in the thought and plans of the Church than it has occupied in the past. It must be regarded as the veritable right arm of the Church ; the whole organization must be strengthened and placed upon a plane where it will make an effective appeal to men of affairs, successful business men, and leaders in pro- fessional circles, and thus command the service of the highest talent in every community. This in general. In particular, certain other things demand emphasis. III. The Realization of the New Ideal In order that this ideal may be realized, these definite things are necessary: I. The Sunday-school must become, in fact as well as in theory, the Church Bible School. (a) Men and women of the Church must he brought in. It is not enough that the institution be re-baptized Bible school. Some effective means must be devised whereby the actual attendance of the adult membership of the Church may be secured in large numbers. The Organized Adult Bible Class is in many instances proving to be that means. It is to be hoped that it will be in a large way efficient in ac- complishing the desired end. It may be that in some cases NEW IDEAL FOR THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL 27 it will be necessary to suspend for a time the preaching service in order that attention be wholly centered upon Bible study for such a period as may be necessary to secure for it a place in the esteem and habits of Christian people. Preaching as an inspirational force is necessary in modern life. The Sun- day-school can never take the place of the service of worship. But this service, on which the Church has recently placed almost exclusive emphasis, might well give way for a time in order that the study of the Bible, which the Church, in theory, has always held to be indispensable to Christian ex- perience and life, may again come to its own. By any efficient means, by all possible means, let the men and the women be brought in. (b) Instruction must be made to meet the needs of all ages. Recent agitation for the graded curriculum has been almost wholly based upon the needs of the children. This is, perhaps, well, as the weakness of the uniform lesson system could be most forcibly illustrated from the standpoint of the child. But it is not enough that proper courses of study be prepared for the younger grades ; attention must be paid as well to the needs of the adult division of the school. The interests of the adult mind are varied and special ; a broad and comprehensive curriculum is needed, with opportunity for election afforded. Every school ought to have at least two adult classes; the methods and subject matter of in- struction which would attract in one might repel in the other. Many schools might have a class for college graduates taking advanced Bible study courses, using the seminar method. By careful study and attention being given to the peculiarities and needs of the local situation, effective appeal may be made to large numbers of men and women. 2. The Sunday-school must be made educationally efficient. The distinctively spiritual side of the Sunday- school has received, and must continue to receive, constant emphasis among Methodists. Its importance can not, of course, be overestimated. It is only because this is true that 28 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK we dwell more especially upon the educational aspect of its work. There can be no doubt that this has been often neglected. We have advanced considerably beyond the posi- tion of those leaders of a quarter of a century ago who declared that the purpose of the Sunday-school was evan- gelistic and not educational, but there is yet much need of progress. Neither need we fear, as some do, that the educa- tional purpose applied to the Sunday-school will lessen its spiritual efficiency, as if it could be made "more effective re- ligiously by leaving it inefficient educationally."^ (a) Emphasis must he laid upon instruction. It must not be forgotten that the Sunday-school is a school. Its teachers are instructors. Religious enthusiasm, inspirational exercises, zeal for numbers can not be made an excuse for slovenly preparation and careless teaching. Nor is exhortation to be deemed teaching. Using the hour by vague exhortation on the basis of one or two texts accomplishes little. Nothing else will take the place or achieve the result reached by wise, tactful, faithful impartation of Christian truth. It must needs be made a governing principle with the teacher that the implanting of fundamental truths of Christianity in the pupil's mind will do more in the end toward the building of strong, stable Christian character than anything else that can be done. "The truth is seed which can be trusted to germinate and bring forth fruit." We would not undervalue the element of worship in religion. It is exceedingly important. But the Sunday-school is not to be a duplicate of the service of wor- ship ; a proper division of function will strengthen both. 1 " The question reduces itself to this : Will better instruction prove less effective religiously than poor instruction ? . . . Does not a doubt of the advisability of better study and teaching of the Bible in reality approach a suspicion of the power of truth ? , . . Unless one has a supreme confidence in the power of divine truth to accomplish its mission, it is idle to attempt to teach. But if one has such confidence, and if teaching is really worth while, why not teach in the right way, and why not organize a school in ways which experience has shown makes teaching the more effective ? "—Burton and Mathews, Principles and Ideals /or the Sunday-School, p. 82/. 2 NEW IDEAL FOR THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL 29 (b) The curriculum must be so graded as to best meet the needs and requirements of different periods of life. This has been dealt with at length in the preceding chapter. (c) More attention must be given to the training of teach- ers. This surely is self-evident. If the Sunday-school is to do effective work from an educational standpoint, its teachers must be prepared for their work. Instead of the school which has a course in teacher-training in operation being the exception, the practice must be reversed and the school with- out a training class become the exception. (d) The period of teaching must be lengthened. In most schools, at the present, scarcely more than twenty minutes is allowed for the lesson. This is a ridiculously inadequate period of time in which to accomplish the end set before the Sunday-school, By some means it must be lengthened. By skillful management, thirty-five to forty minutes of an hour's session can be allotted to teaching, and no other im- portant interest of the school be made to suffer. More and more we believe it will be found advisable to supplement the Sunday session of the Sunday-school by sessions on Satur- day, or on some other week day after day-school hours, and thus provide more adequately for at least the younger members. In France the State recognizes the need for re- ligous instruction, and aids in making it possible by con- stituting Thursday a public school holiday. Lesson Outline: I. Contributing Factors in the New Ideal for the Sunday-school. I. A new realization of the effectiveness of the Sunday- school as a religious agency. 2. The new conception of the Sunday-school as the Church Bible school. 3. A new realization of the importance of the Sunday- school as the chief agency of religious education in the nation. 30 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK H. The New Ideal Stated. III. The Realization of the New Ideal. 1. The Sunday-school must actually become the Church Bible school. (a) The men and women of the Church must be brought in. (b) Instruction must be made to meet the needs of all ages. 2. The Sunday-school must be made educationally ef- ficient. (a) Emphasis must be laid upon instruction. (b) The curriculum must be graded. (c) The period of teaching must be lengthened. Bibliographiy: Haslett, "The Pedagogical Bible School." Potter, "Principles of Religious Education." Topics for Special Study: 1. Religious instruction as a function of the State. 2. The improvement of Sunday-school instruction. Topics for Class Discussion: 1. In what ways has the Sunday-school proved its effectiveness as a spiritual agency? 2. What is implied in the title, Church Bible School? 3. The relation of the Sunday-school to religious edu- cation. 4. State and discuss the proposed new ideal. 5. Discuss ways in which the new ideal may be realized. CHAPTER II THE ORGANIZED ADULT BIBLE CLASS "Only one thing will ever place the Sunday-school in such a position that it will not be a perfectly sensible, proper thing for a youth at the age of adolescence to get out of it. That is, to develop strong, virile, intellectually respectable senior and adult classes, so large in size and so well recog- nized in the structure of the school that they will command respect in the classes of the lower grades." — Wood and Hall. "The Organized Adult Bible Class is building a wall of men and women around the boys and girls that promises to keep them in Sunday-school at a most critical time in their lives. It is enlisting in Sunday-school work those specially adapted for leadership. It is ushering in the larger evan- gelistic spirit, as evidenced by the increase of membership in many Sunday-schools. It is developing a company of per- sonal workers, f6r which we have prayed so long. It is bringing to the Church a larger missionary interest and is providing a means of expressing that interest. It is uniting the men and women as never before, in an endeavor to help each other toward a higher and better life. Above all, it is bringing thousands upon thousands to know Christ, 'whom to know aright is life eternal.' May the day speedily come when every Sunday-school in the world will have its organ- ized classes for men and women !" — W. C. ^Pearce. "In the past three years we have learned of a few or- ganized classes that were lethargic, and in every case they were classes that did not work their organization. Personal activity creates interest, and if we want enthusiasm in a class (which we certainly do), then every member should have a place in the class work. This is effected by the dif- ferent committees. Every one on a committee and every one active, should be the aim of every class. Otherwise, better not organize, but go on in the old, lackadaisical way and die eventually of dry rot." — The Adult Bible Class Monthly. CHAPTER II THE ORGANIZED ADULT BIBLE CLASS I. History 1. The Organized Adult Bible Class is a definite term. We have had adult classes in our Sunday-schools ever since Sunday-schools themselves existed, but organiza- A Fixed ^-Qj^ jg ^ comparatively new feature. Within Standard of ^ \. j j r • .• i u Organization I'^cent years a standard of organization has been determined by Sunday-school authorities, and the term has come to have a certain definite and generally un- derstood meaning. 2. Genesis and growth of the Organized Adult Class Movement. The genesis of the Organized Class Movement pjjg^. is surrounded with obscurity. There is an en- Beginnings tire lack of definite information as to when and Impossible where the first Organized Class was called into to Trace existence. No special attempt has been made to discover the first class, but it is known that some adult classes were organized as early as a full generation ago. In Syracuse, N. Y., the Baraca Movement was started in 1890; in 1898 the Baraca Union was organized. In Chicago early in the closing decade of the last cen- tury sentiment favorable to the general organization of adult Beginning of classes began to crystallize. The subject was the Move- broached on many dififerent occasions, and at ment in Cook the 1903 convention of the Cook County Sunday- Co.. 111. school Association, an Adult Bible Class Super- intendent was elected, and a committee appointed to co- operate with him in behalf of organized adult class work. In May of the same year the subject was presented at the convention of the Illinois Sunday-school Association. At this time the approval of the State Association was given, 3 33 54 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK and its co-operation was secured. Meanwhile, in the State of New York, like action was being taken. That same spring the New York Association had a conference of adult Bible class workers as a feature of their annual convention. A committee was appointed to consider the subject and to recom- mend plans. The convention of the following year approved the plans which had been made and authorized the Adult Bible Class Federation for the State of New York. With this beginning, impetus was rapidly gained. Dur- ing the following months many classes were organized in different parts of the country, and various Sunday-school asso- The Move- ciations took cognizance of the new movement, ment Recog- This brought the subject prominently before the nized by the eleventh convention of the International Sunday- International school Association, held at Toronto in 1905. At this convention a resolution was adopted pro- viding for the appointment of an Adult Department Com- mittee of the International Association. The following year the Executive Committee formally called into existence the Adult Department, and urged all Sunday-school associations under its jurisdiction to do the same. The Executive Com- mittee authorized as the official emblem the little red button with the white center. The Central Committee, in January, 1907, appointed as the first Adult Department superintendent, Mr. W. C. Pearce. The plans were given definiteness by provision for a Certificate of Recognition, to be issued, on application, to adult Bible classes which had attained to a certain standard of organization. In 1907 the Methodist Episcopal Church took official cog- nizance of the Organized Movement by entering into an arrangement with the International Association Denomina- whereby denominational recognition was given to Recognition Organized classes in our Sunday-school, by the presence on the Certificate of Recognition of the signature of an official representative of the denomination. Soon after the organization of the Board of Sunday-schools THE ORGANIZED ADULT BIBLE CLASS 35 by the General Conference in 1908, arrangements were made looking to the closer affiliation of the Organized Class Move- ment with the new Board of Sunday-schools, At the Chicago Conference, May 14, 1909, arrangements were perfected whereby all organized classes of the Methodist Episcopal Church receive the Joint Certificate of the Board of Sunday- schools and the International Sunday-school Association, is- sued by the Board of Sunday-schools from its office in Chicago. From these beginnings as traced above, the Adult Bible Class Movement has had a remarkably rapid growth. Dur- ing the year 1909 a large number of classes were organized in the Sunday-schools of our own and other denominations. By January, 1910, more than two thousand Methodist Epis- copal classes had received official recognition. It is believed that organization will continue and that in time a very large proportion of the adult classes of our Sunday-schools will be organized. II. Advantages of Organization I. OrganiEation promotes class growth. It is always sure to result in marked increase. This need not be merely a temporary thing. Organization provides a working plan by which the class can be built up. Organization Furnishes a j^g^jf j^^g ^^ j^^gj^, efficiency. Of itself it has Growth° power to do nothing. It does, however, provide the means by which earnest, spiritually ambitious people can enlist others in the study of the Word and in Christian activity. The ordinary unorganized adult class merely exists. The teacher feels that his responsibility ex- tends to teaching the lesson, and he is satisfied when he has taught, in a more or less perfunctory way, those who come. Nobody feels that it is his particular business to bring in outsiders. Organize this average class, and the first effect is the generation of a new aggressiveness. A band of passive hearers suddenly becomes an organization of Chris- Z6 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK tians inspired with a new missionary and evangelistic zeal. There is hardly an adult Bible class anywhere but might be doubled in membership within a brief period, if a few people set about the work. Organization demonstrates this over and over again every month. Classes that have had an uncertain and dull existence for years have, with the en- thusiastic adoption of approved organization plans, doubled their membership within a month, and many of them have shown a like increase through succeeding months until, after a short time, instead of an attendance of six or ten or twenty, they have forty, eighty, or even, in some cases, two hundred or more members. If the class is organized as a men's class, activities may be engaged in which especially appeal to men, the teaching may be adapted to men, and by being made thoroughly worth while to them, will surely attract men to its membership. So with classes for women and for young people. 2. Organization brings the class to self-consciousness. By means of organization the class is made an integer instead of a cipher. The unorganized class may scarcely be said to have a conscious existence. Organization pro- Class Spirit vides a name, a charter, a constitution, and recog- nition by the Church at large. The class awakens to the realization that from being nobody it has now be- come somebody. A class spirit is created. With it is born a new loyalty; a certain desirable pride comes into being. "Our class" is spoken of in a way in which it was never mentioned before. All this means that the class now has within itself new powers and possibilities. From being inert and lifeless it has become active, alert, intense, self-perpetuating, with power within itself to be and to do. 3. Organization insures permanency. An unorganized class is held together very largely by the personality of the teacher. The teacher is the one center about which the class rallies. For any one of many reasons, the teacher's con- nection with a class may be severed. Too often in the past THE ORGANIZED ADULT BIBLE CLASS Z7 this has meant the end of the class. How many classes have been disbanded because of the sudden removal of a teacher ! The organized class is not dependent upon any one person. The teacher is an exceedingly important factor in the life and work of the class ; so also is the president and the secretary. Organization itself binds the class to- Creates an gether. If for any reason the teacher is obliged Additional , , , , •, , Life Center ^'^ Withdraw, while there may be great regret and disappointment, the class existence is not threatened and its work suffers no interruption. 4. Organization places a proper emphasis upon serv- ice. In the organized class, hearing and doing are linked together in true apostolic fashion. The unorganized class, as a class, exists oijly to hear the Word. Or- Inspires . . . , , . • t^ 1 a Activity gamzation provides the imperative, Do ! As never before, to-day it is being realized that impres- sion without expression is valueless. Psychologists are questioning whether there can be any real teaching with- out accompanying expression on the part of the hearer. At least it must be said that Christian activity is the necessary correlative of really successful teaching. Of course, we do not question that the teaching of the past has inspired many per- sons to go out from the Bible class session to perform deeds of kindness and mercy. The point is, that proper class organi- zation keeps service constantly in the foreground ; the means of putting good counsel into practice is always immediately at hand. Organization provides the ever-present vehicle of service, so that there is no excuse for the inspiration of Biblical teaching being wasted. Thus the adult Bible class becomes a Christian force in a world of sin and need. This is in accord with the demands of men. Men want to do, as well as to hear. Give a man a task, and you have his interest and his energies. Men have let the Church alone because the Church has not set them to doing a man's work. The organized class provides a program of work which appeals to men and readily enlists their co-operation. 38 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK 5. Organization meets a social need. In the or- ganized class this need is recognized by a Social Committee, upon which is laid the specific responsibility of pro- viding for the social life of the class. By means of social events the members become better acquainted with each other, good fellowship is promoted, and the blessing of friendship is added to the other benefits of class mem- bership. The need for social intercourse is laid deep in the very constitution of our being. We instinctively seek to supply it, and most men continue the search until the need is by some means met. It is a decided advantage if Better than , . , . . , , . , . . a Club ^ ^^ need is provided for by an organization under the auspices of the Church, that is, under distinctively religious auspices. In this case, the whole na- ture of man is ministered to, whereas in many organi- zations called into existence to provide social fellowship and pleasure, the deepest need of man, his religious need, is entirely disregarded. Then, again, the religious character of the organization assures a lofty moral ideal, an element sorely lacking in many purely social organizations. How many social clubs exhibit strikingly the need of some ethical standard and also of some influence to guard the desire for social enjoyment against excess ! The adult Bible class, which provides effectively for the expression of the social life of large numbers of men and women, is accomplishing the additional desirable end of bringing together the Church and the community. Too often it has happened that the Church, by a too exclusive emphasis upon preaching, prayer, and religious testimony, has stood as a thing apart from the community, a place to be resorted to on Sundays and special occasions, instead of being the highest expression of the complete community life — religious, intellectual, and social. Any organization subsidiary to the Church itself which promotes this end is to be hailed as a boon to the com- THE ORGANIZED ADULT BIBLE CLASS 39 munity and as a means of enabling the Church to realize its complete purpose. III. Advantages of the Adult Bible Class Over Other Organizations The organized class has certain distinct advantages over other organizations which exercise some of the same func- tions. Of these we mention : I. It possesses a sufficient chief aim. There can be no doubt as to the first purpose of the adult Bible class. This is indicated in the name itself. All other objects of its .pjjg existence are secondary to this — the study of the Influence of Bible. Surely this is a most worthy object, the Bible on Consider the place which the Bible has had in Civilization inspiring, shaping, and developing Christian civi- lization. Statesmen, historians, philosophers, educators — all alike testify to this. Hear them ! Bosanquet : "The spirit of the Bible has permeated all civilization and still beats at the heart of all progress." Kant: 'The existence of the Bible as a Book for the people is the greatest benefit which the human race has ever experienced. Every attempt to belittle it is a crime against humanity." Nicholas Murray Butler : "The neglect of the English Bible on the - part of the rising generation . . . strikes out of their conscious- ness one element, and for centuries the controlling element in the production of your civilization and mine." The study of the Bible, all must admit, furnishes an adequate purpose of existence for an organization. Indeed, it provides for a fundamental need. Our people dare not neglect the reading and study of the Scripture. They do it, not only at their own peril, but at the peril also of our most cherished institutions. How meager in comparison is the purpose about which as a center some other organizations are formed ! How empty and insignificant beside this become the high-sounding words of the constitutions of many of the or- ganizations which bid for the favor and patronage of men. 40 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK Any organization needs a supreme purpose to provide motive power. Others, in time, will languish and die for lack of an object to sustain their existence, but the study of the Bible provides the supreme purpose needed to insure perpetuity, and a center about which various minor pur- poses and activitites may be grouped. 2. It exemplifies a democratic and Christian spirit. Many organizations which pretend to a brotherhood basis are, in reality, closed to all save a select few. Professing to minister to men in the highest things, they All are Wei- y^^ hedge membership about with restrictions Members which Strongly smack of selfish spirit. More- over, the circle of official ministry and service is rigidly determined by their membership rolls. How dif- ferent it is with the Adult Bible Class ! Its invitation is as broad as that of the gospel of Christ: "Whosoever will, let him come." None are barred by the setting up of finan- cial, social, or educational restrictions. Its fellowship is not determined by calling or caste. In its vocabulary all men are brothers. It is free to assist all who are in want. To its sympathy, compassion, and aid no other commendation is re- quired than the need of a fellow-man for whom Christ died. IV. Objections to Organization Objections are sure to be raised, and are to be taken as a matter of course. In this day, argument in behalf of the benefit of organization is certainly superfluous. No move- Does the ment attempts progress in any line, or expects Church Want to accomplish anything, without organization. Men and The real question to be considered is this. Is Women? j^ desirable to gather together as many men and women as possible for the study of the Bible? With this question answered in the affirmative, there is no room for debate on the advisability of organization. We frequently hear some such statement as : "We have too much machinery now. What we need is to use what we have rather than 2 THE ORGANIZED ADULT BIBLE CLASS 41 add more." To such statements this concession may be made — organization is not to be sought for its own sake. Mere organization in itself, as stated above, will accomplish nothing. But when the importance of the cause is fully realized and a few earnest persons are deeply desirous of doing a great and worthy work through the Bible school for adult men and women, the organized class may safely be called into existence. It should be remembered that every new movement must pass through a period of criticism and trial. Such testing will only the more firmly establish it, and the more thoroughly demonstrate its right to survive. Where objections are sincere, let them be carefully met with fact and argument. When they are founded upon unworthy motives, as is sometimes the case, reveal the basis and meet the objection with the rebuke which it deserves. A certain teacher strenuously opposed organization ; a little astute ques- tioning revealed the fact that he feared organization, by in- creasing the size of his little class, would add to his labors. An objection prompted by such a reason as that would have little weight among earnest Christian workers. Lesson Outline: I. History. 1. The Organized Adult Bible Class is a definite term. 2. Genesis and growth of the Movement. II. Advantages of Organization. 1. Organization promotes class growth. 2. Brings the class to self-consciousness. 3. Insures permanency. 4. Places a proper emphasis upon service. 5. Meets a social need. III. Advantages over other Organizations. 1. It possesses a sufficient chief aim. 2. It exemplifies a democratic and Christian spirit. IV. Objections to Organization. 42 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK Bibliography: Pearce, "The Adult Bible Class." Cuninggim, "The Organized Adult Bible Class." Hudson, The "How" Book. Topics for Special Study: I. The effect of organization upon permanent class growth. Topics for Class Discussion: 1. Discuss the beginnings of Adult Bible Class or- ganization. 2. What is the effect of organization upon class growth ? 3. How does organization affect class spirit? 4. State additional advantages of organization. 5. Discuss the advantages peculiar to the Organized Adult Bible Class. 6. What are the ordinary objections to organization? CHAPTER III THE RELATION OF THE ADULT BIBLE CLASS TO THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL AND THE CHURCH "The Organized Adult Bible Class is not an outside move- ment, asking the men and the women to join it that they may receive help, but it is under the auspices of the Church, inviting men and women to invest their time, their energy, themselves, in a united effort to help each other, and to help the community in which they live." — W. C. Pearce. "The fact is, that the Adult Class is a machine for the molding of Christian public opinion, whose value and power we have not yet begun to appreciate or to use. It requires no prophet to predict that the future will see a development of it far beyond any position which it has yet attained." — Wood and Hall. "What is your class doing for the Sunday-school, for the Church, and for the community? If it is living only for itself, it is dead or dying. The end is merely a question of time. Selfishness (social or class selfishness equally with the selfishness of the individual) is death. The only way to genuinely live is to lose oneself in the larger life. An or- ganized class that does not strengthen the whole school and hearten all the workers, that does not quicken and socialize the Church, and that does not purify and uplift the com- munity life may have a fine English, Greek, Latin, or Hebrew motto ; none the less it is sounding brass and clanging cymbal. It may have a name to live, but is surely dead. For weal or woe, the Organized Adult Bible Class is a force to be reckoned with. Our hope and confident expectation is, that it will be used of God for the quickening of the Church and the enlargement of the kingdom." — David G. Downey. CHAPTER III THE RELATION OF THE ADULT BIBLE CLASS TO THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL AND THE CHURCH The Adult Bible Class is not a separate or independent organization, but is always a part of some particular Sunday- school and some Church. Out of this grows the fact that Relations of ^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^^ relations to both the Sunday-school the Class and the Church of which it is a part. These Must be De- relations need to be clearly and distinctly under- fined and stood, as also frankly recognized and acknowl- Recognized ^^^^^ ^^ ^^^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^^^^ q^j^ ^^^^ ^^^ ^^^ class be enabled to work out its true and deepest purpose, and only thus can it be the source of strength and power to the school and to the Church, which is its highest privilege. The fact that an Adult Class is an organized class makes the subject of its relation to the Sunda^^-school and the Church of special importance. So long as it remained un- organized it was merely one of the numerous classes of the school, and there was no reason for raising any question as to its relation to the school. Organization differentiates one from others and brings it at once into special prominence and into a new position. Now it has its Constitution, its officers, its own membership roll, even as the school itself has, not to speak of religious, social, and literary meetings, programs, class advertising, and a new class spirit. It will be seen that this subject of the relation of the Organized Adult Bible Class to the Sunday-school and the Church is one which demands careful consideration. 45 46 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK I. Relation of the Adult Bible Class to the Sunday- school I. General principles. Certain general principles must be recognized in the organization and conduct of the class : (a) It is required, in order to secure recognition by the Board of Sunday-schools of the Methodist Episcopal Church and the International Sunday-school Association, Principles ^^^^^ ^^^ Adult Bible Class shall he integrally a which must part of sofue Sunday-school. Rule in Or- (Jy) As thus connected with the Sunday-school, ganization ^^ ^^ subject to the law of the Church governing and Activity , ^ , , , , . n-, the Sunday-school and its constituent parts. The subject of class organization is treated elsewhere in this book. It is sufficient here to state that wherever the Discipline, or the Constitution and By-laws of the Sunday-school speak, this constitutes final authority for the class. In the matter of election of class teacher, for example, the law of the Church should be observed; the class itself may speak only with advisory voice. (c) The program and activities of the class should be so organized and carried out that unity with the Sunday-school zvill he fostered. The class should join with the main school in either the opening or the closing exercises. This is pos- sible except in very rare cases, and no exception should be made unless positively necessary. Whenever the Sunday- school has a meeting, whether of a business, literary, or social character, the Adult Class should be represented. On the other hand, the head officers of the school should always be invited to be present, and, as a rule, to participate in affairs of the class. (d) The class, hy its organisation, course of study, and activities, should fit into the general plan of the school as a whole. The whole is greater than any of its parts. The Sunday-school is, and should always be considered, the main organization, and the Adult Class contributory. The plans THE ADULT CLASS 47 of the school should come first, and whatever the class does should be in accord with them. The Sunday-school should have a carefully worked-out curriculum, and the course of study of the class should be a properly related part of the curriculum of the school. 2. Points to be guarded. A thoughtful consideration of these principles will reveal the possible danger points in the relation of the class to the school. These may be briefly suggested. If organization results in stimulating Points large growth, there will be a tendency to build up a strong, independent organization, more or less loosely connected with the school, yet going its own way, serving its own interests, living for itself, and giving little consideration to the prior rights and interests of the parent organization. Such a result, by no means altogether an imaginary one, is greatly to be deprecated. In such a case, instead of the Adult Bible Class proving a tower of strength to the Sunday-school, it would in reality weaken it. The existence of such a class would, in nearly every case, make impossible the building up of a strong Adult Class as an integral and co-operating part of the Sunday-school organi- zation, something every Sunday-school should have; it would also prevent the Sunday-school from becoming in any real sense the Church Bible School, a high and important ideal to be cherished by every school. 3. The service of the Adult Class to the Sunday- schooL The above named principles, cordially recognized and adhered to, insure that the Adult Bible Class will be a chief source of strength and power to the Sunday-school. As a part of its service to the school, it will: (a) Bring the adult work of the Sunday-school into greater prominence. In the past the emphasis in Sunday-school work has been chiefly placed upon work with children. It has been popularly exploited as a children's institution. Earnest men and women have frequently felt that they really had no place in it. They have often excused themselves by saying 48 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK that they did not wish to crowd out the little folks. The emphasis has been so largely placed upon the children's part that young men and women, perhaps a bit over-conscious A School for °^ newly attained adulthood, have felt it be- Aduits as neath their dignity to attend. The Sunday- well as for school has a necessary ministry to childhood ; Children ^^^^^ ^^^ disposed to dispute that fact. But its mission is to the whole of life. As the Church Bible School it has as large a place for men and women as for little children. The Organized Adult Bible Class will serve to make this clear to all. The adult work of the school is brought into such prominence that the institution takes on a new character in the public mind. By this means young men and women who would soon have been lost to the school are retained, while others, older people, are brought in. (b) Prove a chief means of aiding the Sunday-school to become the Church Bible School. The first need of the Sunday-school, in order to the realization of this ideal, is the actual attendance of men and women upon its sessions. This is assured by a live Adult Brought in Bible Class, The organization of one class so demonstrates the possibility of securing the at- tendance of men and women in considerable numbers that it almost invariably leads to the establishment of one or more other adult classes in the same school, and thus, if the movement is wisely and successfully directed, the first great step in the building of a true Church Bible School has been taken. Surely no one can doubt that the existence of several strong, prosperous, successful Adult Classes, recog- nized as a part of the structure of the school, will so appeal to the younger people that they will naturally go on to membership in them. Of course they must be well organized, their work efficiently and enthusiastically carried on, so that membership in them will be highly regarded ; if this is the case, the boys and girls of the school will look forward to membership as a privilege. Men and THE ADULT CLASS 49 (c) Furnish workers for other departments. Nearly all schools have difficulty in securing an adequate number of teachers and other workers. Often choice is so restricted that young people with practically no training must be placed in important positions as teachers or officers. Thoroughly furnished teachers, men and women who have taken courses of study which have placed them in possession of a knowledge of the Bible, of the principles of teaching, of the laws gov- erning physical, mental, and spiritual growth and Supplies the development ; of the Sunday-school problem in Necessary j|.g different phases, of the history and teaching Workers ^^ ^^^ Church, ought to be coming forward constantly to take the vacant places in the work- ing force of our schools. Just this necessary preparation may be given in the Adult Bible Class. There is no good reason why the Adult Bible Class may not be made a prin- cipal and altogether efficient agency in preparing men and women to carry forward the work of the school. Thus by encouraging and assisting the Adult Bible Class, the Sunday- school will be insuring the perpetuity of its own existence. II. Relation of the Adult Bible Class to the Church The local church is the unit of organized Christian ac- tivity. The Church, it must never be forgotten, existed first, and adopted the Sunday-school as a means of accomplishing The Church Certain important ends. A Sunday-school may is Larger exist, in some rare instances, where there is no Than Any Church ; it may be, indeed, the beginning of the of its Parts Church ; nevertheless it remains true that the Church stands back of the Sunday-school, and without the Church there would be no Sunday-school. The Adult Bible Class, therefore, as integrally a part of the Sun- day-school, is also a part of the Church. As a member of the Church, every interest of the Church is its interest. Its true aim is attained, not merely when its members are 4 " 50 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK increasing and its various activities are being carried on with inspiration and success, but only when, in addition, it is in- spiring the whole Church with new life and the spirit of conquest. It can not view with anything but profound solici- tude evidence of lack of vitality in any department of the Church; the manifestation of a deficiency or a weakness any- where is an invitation to the loyalty of the Adult Bible Class to step in and supply the lack. To withhold sympathetic co-operation and earnest effort from any real work of the Church is to defeat its own ultimate aim. The prosperity of the Church is its victory, and the failure of the Church is, in the end, its defeat. It follows that, as in the relation of the class to the Sunday-school, so with its relation to the Church, there is possible peril to be guarded against, as well as service to be realized. I. The danger. Organization, as has before been in- timated, tends toward independence. The danger is, that a «.u r., large class will become a Church within a The Class /-., , t i • i • Must Not Church. Impressed with its own importance, Become a and carried away by its success, it may forget Second ^j-jg limitations of its mission and usurp the func- ^^^ tions of the Church. This cannot but be a hin- drance to the Church in its endeavor to realize its own larger mission. The work of the class is to do for its members that for which the Sunday-school specifically exists. Its sphere is peculiarly that of instruction. The element of worship, for example, must in the class be subordinated to definite, sys- tematic instruction. Worship — worship in prayer, in hymn, in responsive readings — is needed by every Christian, but this need must be left to be supplied by the stated services of the Church. If the Adult Class tries to any considerable ex- tent to meet this need, it is sure to become a rival of the Church, and thus prove itself a hindrance rather than a help. THE ADULT CLASS 51 2. The service of the Adult Bible Class to the Church. It is possible for the Adult Bible Class to become a veritable right arm of power to the Church. Its peculiar activities related to the work of the Church as a whole, so that they become not at all a duplication but a specializa- tion, it accomplishes a work for the Church which can be done by no other means. If the right relation obtains, class attendance will stimulate church attendance. It may Performs a ^^^^ ^^ made a recruiting station for the Church. Definite and The invitation, "Will you join our Bible Class?" Necessary may seem a little less formidable to an outsider Service ^j^an, "Will you unite with the Church?" Mem- bership in the class brings one into sympathy with the Church. If the teacher's deeper purpose, and that of the officers, is to build up the Church, and not merely to build up the class, the class becomes one of the most serviceable means of attracting men and women to the Church. The existence of a well-organized Adult Bible Class pro- vides the Church with a training-school. The class may well be utilized as an agency for training men and women for Church work. The young people's society Trains the jg ^ training-school for young people. What Recruits about the adult men and women enlisted from the world's ranks? Heretofore there has been no agency designed especially to drill them. They surely need careful instruction. They must also be led at once into active Christian service. The Church may delegate this service to the Adult Bible Class. Persons who do not feel that they can do definite and pointed religious work are as- signed other tasks and gradually developed. It is frequently a serious mistake to bring the new convert, especially if he has previously lived an ungodly life, into too great prominence. He may be tested and proven in the work of the class. In time he may show himself worthy of the higher honors of Church office. In this way valuable workers have been discovered. Men learn with genuine satisfaction that they can be of 52 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK service. For years, it may be, they have stood back and watched a few men do all the work of the Church. Now a place is made for them; and their devotion, real, though perhaps not loudly voiced, is provided with a channel of practical expression. Thus also the pastor's force is increased. He no longer is obliged to rely entirely upon a few busy officials, but has become the general of a small army with divisions and regi- ments and each active in the fray. Various particular forms of service which the class may render to the Church are suggested in a later chapter. It will be sufficient in this connection to add the testimony of a pastor who states that ninety per cent of the members of his Church are members of the Sunday-school, and whose school has two strong classes, one for men and one for women. He says: "I believe there has been no agency so important in the building up of our fellowship as these classes. . . . Every man and woman in the Church supports the Church and the Sunday-school and every other work of the Church. . . . The Church supports the class, and the class supports the Church. . . . Our classes are not just big classes coming together for half an hour of Bible study on Sunday. We do things. Each class has its own activities, but we are all working together. We believe in the Church; that the Church is a bigger institution than the class or the Sunday-school." Lesson Outline: I. Relation of the Adult Bible Class to the Sunday- School. 1. General principles. 2. Points to be guarded. 3. The service of the Adult Bible Class to the Sunday- school. II. Relation of the Adult Bible Class to the Church. 1. The danger. 2. The service of the Adult Bible Class to the Church. THE ADULT CLASS 53 Topics for Special Study: 1. The place of the class in the social life of the Church. 2. How loyalty of class members to the Sunday-school and the' Church may be cultivated. Questions for Class Discussion: I. Why is it essential that the relation of the Adult Bible Class to the Sunday-school and the Church be clearly defined? 2 What are the general principles governing the re- lation of the Adult Bible Class to the Sunday- school ? 3. Discuss the points to be guarded in the relation of the class to the school. 4. State in detail the different ways in which the class may serve the school. 5. Define in general terms the relation of the Adult Bible Class to the Church. 6. What are the chief perils in the relation of the class to the Church? 7. What service may the class render the Church? CHAPTER IV THE CLASS TEACHER "Take heed to thyself and to thy teaching."— Paw/. "Teachers are building their hopes of success on new plans and devices, or to use a much abused term, on method. This, too, without duly appreciating, if seeing, the fact that the efficiency of a device or method depends primarily on what the teacher puts into it, and especially the deeper fact that a teacher can not put into a method what he has not within himself." — E. E. White. "As yet we have no true and effective education. The very first essential in the teacher — true love and sympathy . . . is not made one of the conditions of entering that great profession. Till this is made the primary qualification, no real improvement in social and moral character can be effected. Mere intellectual instruction, which is all that is now given, is not complete education ; it is really the least important part of it." — Alfred Russell Wallace. "Personal power! Who shall analyze it? Who shall de- termine the common elements? I shall not attempt the task. The possessor of personal power does not know what it is. He only knows that the virtue is in him. We only know that all great leaders of men have had it in a marked degree. We see its manifestations in the reactions of those who come under its influence. Thrice blessed is he who is permitted to see that these reactions are good and not evil, and that they make for 'manners, virtue, freedom, power.' " — Wm. H. Maxwell. CHAPTER IV THE CLASS TEACHER The most important factor in the success of any class is the teacher, A deficiency in any other particular may be overcome, but no class can really succeed permanently or ^j^g in any large way without having the right Teacher's sort of teacher. It is of the first importance Making of that the teacher himself should realize this. The Himself ultimate determination of any man's character, personality, and abilities is largely within himself. The teacher, as any other man, is not responsible for not having had a right environment and favorable opportunities for learning and culture in his earlier days ; he is responsible if he does not control his environment and create oppor- tunities during his mature years. Some teachers are born; many teachers are self-made. "All really superior teachers," says Philbrick, "are every day growing better." This chapter is written, not by way of discouraging any teacher, but by way of pointing out to him of worthy purpose and ambition possible directions of self-improvement. I. Personal Qualifications of the Teacher A man is of more weight than what he says. Teaching is not all of word. The spirit of the teacher, his character, his moral and spiritual ideals, the atmosphere which he The Man carries, his manner of address, the disposition Determines which he manifests — all expressed in that inde- the Message ^^^^^^ ^^^^^ personality,^ this adds to or de- tracts from his spoken word, and still continues to speak when he is silent. Blessed, indeed, is that teacher concern- l"The great teacher is the man of great personaUty, in whom nobiHty means more than attainments, and therefore the man whose personal touch upon other men is sure to be quickening and ennobling." — A. F. West. 57 58 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK ing whom it may be said, as of Lord Chatham, that "every- body felt that there was something finer in the man than anything he ever said." It will be of the greatest help to the teacher to remember that, once recognized as being in the teacher's position, his teaching is not during one hour, but during all hours ; not while standing before the class only, but while on the street, in his home, at his place of employment, and wherever business or pleasure may lead. The almost invariable testimony of those who are led to speak concerning their indebtedness to schools and school- masters is to the effect that they were influenced far more than they were taught; that the truth took hold with the grip of power upon their lives, not so much by means of spoken or written word, as through the influence of some godly man or woman in whom moral truth and spiritual beauty lived incarnate. "Character is caught, not taught," is the happy phrase of a modern educator. The first concern of the teacher, therefore, is himself; his greatest service to his class and to his Lord will be to make himself the man he ought to be. Every teacher of religion ought to hold continually before him- The Highest ggj£ ^j^^ realization that a moral failure on his Service is i i < r i • 11 in Being P^^^ means, not only the loss of his own soul, but also giving the lie to every good and true thing he has ever taught. No matter how true his teaching may have been, it is very largely nullified by the contradiction of his conduct ; his pupils will remember his acts longer than his words. Beyond the exemplification of the power of religion in a Christ-like character, manifested by a morally consistent walk and conversation, there are various secondary ways Personal ^^ which the teacher can, by his personal in- Quaiities fluence, give carrying power to the truth he Whicii Point teaches. Earnestness is always impressive. En- the Message thusiasm is the life of the soul. "The best teacher," says Swett, "is he who can best kindle hearts into enthusiasm by a spark of electric fire from his own soul." THE CLASS TEACHER 59 Again, none but will be attracted by gracious courtesy and by kindly sympathy. Cheerfulness wins. A smile, a cordial greeting, and a hearty handshake, if they bear the stamp of genuineness, will turn the key in the locked door of many a heart. A sunny disposition, persistently looking on the bright side, placing the best possible interpretation on the acts and words of men, charity in judgment — these qualities commend themselves to all. Personal neatness, cleanliness, orderliness — these adorn even religion. Modesty, not "think- ing more highly of himself than he ought to think," gentle- ness — these, combined in due proportion with firmness, ear- nestness, and self-assurance, will impart strength to teaching. Reasonable breadth of view is a sure index to healthy- mindedness, and commands respect and assent, where intoler- ance and narrowness would beget opposition and dissent. Courage, shown by a readiness to stand for the right at any cost, the endurance that never whines or complains of aches and pains, either of the body or the spirit — these compel admiration. In these and in innumerable lesser ways, it is the teacher's privilege to show forth in and through himself the beauty of the religion of Christ. "Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house." II. The Teacher's Responsibility to the Truth The office of teacher places one in the position of mediator between the truth and men. To both, therefore, he owes certain things. He owes it to the truth : I. To be intellectually alive. "Can the blind lead the blind?" How shall one teach, except he himself be a learner? Yjjg That teaching is vain which does not delve into Importance the hidden mine of truth and from its depths of Mental bring forth ever new treasures. The teaching Vitality g^gj^ Qf ^j^g j^Qg^ familiar truths should have about it an element of freshness and newness. Teaching, to be with power, must be first hand; not the repetition of what some one else has said, but the bringing forth from 00 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK mind and heart of the truth which has had re-birth in one's own soul. The teacher must, therefore, know how to study. If he does not know how, he must learn how. Few things are more important than this; it is a fundamental pre-requisite of all good teaching. Industrious application on the part of the teacher who knows how to study will always make it possible for truth to be presented in attractive form. Knowing how to study, and the diligent use of fragments of time, will make it possible for any teacher to over- come deficiencies caused by the lack of an early education. Elementary faults in grammar and pronunciation cannot but negative the effect of otherwise good teaching with intelli- gent people, and lower the respect in which the teacher is held, especially with young people. Such faults are almost inexcusable because so easily remedied on the part of those willing to study. If the teacher is really intellectually alive, his mind will be open to new truth. He will hear God speaking in the thoughts and words of the prophets and seers of his own day, as well as in those of ancient times. He will be willing to hear, consider, and often welcome a new statement of truth, realizing that every age reclothes truth in the thought- forms most intelligible to itself. Most of all, he will be con- siderate of the opinions and judgment of others. The dog- matic, self-opinionated teacher who knows it all is insufferable. 2. To respect learning. In some religious circles it has been considered a mark of loyalty to religion to cast suspicion and distrust upon learning. The teacher The Service ^^^ ^^^g ^j^jg should be reminded that the Church to Religion ^^^ been the patron of education and culture from the beginning of the Christian centuries until now, and that by his attitude he contradicts both the thought and the practice of the institution he assumes to serve. Least of all should any teacher be swerved from a purpose to secure the largest and best possible preparation THE CLASS TEACHER 6i by any popular distrust of learning. We recall the attempt of an illiterate religionist to rebuke the learned Dr. South with the words, "The Lord has no need of your book-larnin'." Quickly came the answer, "Nor has He any greater need of your ignorance." 3. To be devoted to truth. Nothing less than a deep and profound love for truth is sufficient in a teacher. "Truth is the supreme good of the mind, as holiness is that of the heart." As it is required of all who "bear the Love of vessels of the Lord" that they be pure of heart Required ^^^^ clean of hand, so must it be required in the teacher that he be single-hearted in his de- votion to truth. He should ever remember that by the relation he sustains to those who look to him for instruction he is become an apostle of truth to them. The realization of holding such an office should so inspire his being that he will never tire in his search for the inmost heart of truth, and that he will never dare to think or speak aught but what he is persuaded is true before God. It was this spirit that made martyrs of the fathers ; their devotion to truth, as God showed it to them, was such that even life itself was counted not dear in comparison. Something of that rare spirit should dominate every one who aspires to be a teacher. III. The Teacher's Responsibility to His Class I. A general statement. It has already been specifically stated that the greatest service which any teacher can render to his class is to be the man God would have him be. The teacher is deficient in his sense of moral duty who does not realize that he owes this to those whom he is called to teach. Likewise, as the teacher owes it to the truth which he represents to be devoted to truth, so he owes it to his class to be absolutely sincere in his teaching. Thus all that has been said thus far in this chapter is of application here. Beyond this general statement, the teacher's responsi- 62 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK bility to his class must needs be particularized. It is the part of the teacher — 2. To make the Sunday-school minister in the largest and most effective way to the spiritual life. It is agreed that the Sunday-school is by far the most important religious agency of the Church. For many years The Spiritual f ■ u £ ^u • ^ W u Work of the ^ large majority of the accessions to Church Sunday- membership have come from the Sunday-school. School Cen- In nearly every case the teacher has been the urs in the central factor. This is as it should be. No one else in the school comes into such close and inti- mate contact with the pupil as the teacher. If the Sunday- school fulfills its spiritual mission to the individual member, it will most certainly be because the teacher recognizes his re- sponsibility and does well his part. In the case of the younger members of the school, the teacher is dealing with them in that period of life when they are most susceptible to religious in- fluences and impressions. Unless definite religious decisions are made, great life purposes formed and deepened, earlier re- ligious impulses and activities developed, — in a word, unless the Spirit of God comes now to dominate and rule, the chances are that the person will never become a Christian. It is a time fraught with the greatest spiritual opportunity, and therefore to be most carefully and earnestly regarded. In the case of adult classes, while the opportunity may be less, the need is fully as great. If the teacher fails to make his work religiously effective, his failure becomes that of the institution whose worker he is ; through him, its repre- sentative, the Sunday-school has fallen short of accomplish- ing its greatest work. 3. To make the Sunday-school worth while from the standpoint of religious instruction. Here also it is of little practical value to set up a high educational ideal for the Sunday-school, unless the responsibility for the realization of that ideal is definitely placed. More than upon any one else, responsibility devolves upon the teacher. Religious edu- THE CLASS TEACHER 63 cators and Church leaders may enunciate an ideal standard, local officials may plan effectively for the grading of the school and may provide liberally all necessary Only the , .... , "^ . . , / , Teacher can i^dhties and requisites, but unless the teacher Make the proves himself equal to the task thus imposed Sunday- upon him SO far as his class is concerned, all School Edu- ^^^^ others have done is in vain. When it comes Effective ^^ ^^^ practical carrying out of plans for more efficient Sunday-schools, the teacher is the most important factor. The teacher must impart instruction, and do it in a manner interesting and inspirational. To too great an extent teach- ing has been the deliverance of a weekly homily on one of two or three themes. Exhortation can never take the place of teaching. The teacher may sometimes be called upon to preach, but this is not his regular work. Surely it ought not be necessary to say that for teaching to degenerate from exhortation to scolding or to religious nagging is for it to lose its power and to alienate instead of to attract. Neither is it sufficient that the particular lesson of the hour, if, for example, the Uniform Lesson Series is being used, should be the measure of the teacher's effort. To explain the meanings of the terms used, to locate the events and identify the persons mentioned, and finally, by way of proper conclusion, to find, perhaps by severe straining of the language used, in one or two verses "some all-comprehensive guidance," — this is not enough. There must be the opening up of a wider view through this particular lesson as a win- dow, the search for underlying principles that are funda- mental, the relation of a fragment of truth, or of the partial statement of this lesson, to the whole of Christian truth, and all must be related to the life of our own day and age. 4. To concern himself in the personal welfare of every member of his class. The teacher, no more than the pastor, can deal with men en masse. If his teaching is really to win them, it will be because it is backed by a 64 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK personal interest which is nothing less than love. This per- sonal interest must be genuine and sincere, not professional or perfunctory; it must be intimate, yet never curious or inquisitive; it must concern itself with the The Teacher whole compass of life, not show itself nar- Must become j-qw ; it must be constant, knowing no special a Personal , . . .. . Friend season; such an mterest can not fail to wm a response from the affections, and thus open the way of instruction to the mind and of influence to the soul. Such an interest will prevent the teacher's aim becoming too exclusively intellectual. It will bring the teacher into relation with the complete life of the pupil; coming thus to know him, he will regard him not merely as a mind to be informed, but as a man to be helped in the practical affairs of every-day life, as a human soul of many interests, needing above everything else to be built up in moral ideals and in character and to be strengthened in purpose and will. The teacher will find it of the greatest assistance in estab- lishing such a relationship as this between himself and the members of his class to meet them at other times and places than the class-room and the class hour. This association should be supplemented by intercourse on social occasions, in the homes, and, if possible, at the places of business. If the privilege is highly enough esteemed, the opportunity will be made for occasional close, earnest, heart-to-heart conversations which will be worth more than many hours of formal class instruction. A part of the teacher's obligation which is, perhaps, most likely to be overlooked, is to those members of the class who are more slow and dull of comprehension than others. It is easy to give almost exclusive attention to the alert, eager, quick-witted, ready-of-speech pupils to the neglect of those whose early education was neglected, or who may by nature be less able to express themselves fluently and forcibly than others. The teacher will remember that it is his highest privilege to aid those who need his help the most. THE CLASS TEACHER 65 Lesson Outline: I. Personal Qualifications of the Teacher. II. The Teacher's Responsibility to the Truth. 1. To be intellectually alive. 2. To respect learning. 3. To be devoted to truth. III. The Teacher's Responsibility to His Class. 1. General statement. 2. To make the Sunday-school religiously effective. 3. To make the Sunday-school educationally effective. 4. To concern himself in the personal welfare of each member. Bibliography: Trumbull, "Teaching and Teachers." Brumbaugh, "Making of the Teacher." Topics for Special Study: 1. Great teachers of the Church ; the secrets of their power. 2. Methods of personal work for teachers. Topics for Class Discussion: 1. The relation of the teacher to the success of the class. 2. The first essential in a teacher. 3. The place of influence in teaching. 4. Personal qualities desirable in a teacher. 5. The teacher's intellectual life. 6. How learning serves religion. 7. The importance of love of the truth. 66 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK 8. The place of the teacher in the religious work of the school. 9. The place of the teacher in the educational work of the school. 10, The personal relation of the teacher to the members of the class. CHAPTER V THE COURSE OF STUDY FOR THE ADULT BIBLE CLASS "Men can not be well educated without the Bible. It ought, therefore, to hold the chief place in every institution of learning throughout Christendom." — Nott. "We search the world for truth ; we cull The good, the true, the beautiful From graven stone and written scroll. From all old flower-fields of the soul; And weary seekers of the best, We come back laden from our quest, To find that all the sages said Is in the Book our mothers read." — /. G. Whittier, "Every thinking man, when he thinks, realizes, what a very large number of people tend to forget, that the teach- ings of the Bible are so interwoven and entwined with our whole civic and social life, that it would be literally — I do not mean figuratively, I mean literally — impossible for us to figure to ourselves what that life would be if these teachings were removed. We would lose almost all the standards by which we now judge both public and private morals; all the standards toward which we, with more or less of resolution, strive to raise ourselves." — Theodore Roosevelt. CHAPTER V THE COURSE OF STUDY FOR THE ADULT BIBLE CLASS I. The Bible Our Text-book The place of the Bible as the text-book of the Sunday- school is firmly fixed. Its sway is undisputed. Lesson sys- tems may come and go, but the Bible will ever remain as the one chief subject of study. It will thus remain, not by authority of Church or churchly doctrine, but by virtue of inherent worth, not only as the religious masterpiece of all ages, but also, as a modern educator has . termed it, the "pedagogical masterpiece" of the world's literature. This position was never before so freely granted to the Bible as it is to-day; never before has its place been so secure. In other times the Church required that it should be studied in obedience to decree of councils ; to-day we desire to study it because we find that it possesses the quality of inspiration, the power of life giving. The Bible contains the ideas and ideals which made Chris- tianity a world-conquering force during the first the Living Christian centuries, and which constitute it such Source Book to-day. What the Bible has done for other of Chris- ages and for other men it continues to do for tiamty ^j^jg ^^^ ^^^ ^^^ ^g p^j. ^j^jg reason men wish to study it. There are still other reasons not far to seek. The Bible is a book of life. It is not a dry-as-dust treatise on theology; it is not fanciful philosophical specu- lation; it is not made up of assertions of scientific facts, true to-day, and out-dated to-morrow; it is a book of life. Living men walk through its pages. Every chapter pul- 69 2 70 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK sates with life. On every hand we are in contact with human experience; the struggle for conquest and the strife for gain, the outpourings of the heart in sorrow for sin _. and in grief for loss. In this literature, so true The Book it , , . . , of Life ^° "^^ ^"^ human experience, we come mto the immediate presence of God. Men are here; but, better still, God is here to inspire, to strengthen, to deliver. Everywhere are evidences of His beneficent work. Through coming into touch with Him, weak men become strong, brutal men become kind, wicked men become pure. In it we find our standards and ideals all surpassed. Our deepest spiritual longings, our purest and highest aspirations, our keenest contrition finds no adequate expression until we make its language our own. Beyond any purity, any nobility, any righteousness that we are acquainted with in our best friends or in ourselves, we fashion in imagination our ideal of what a man should be, only to find our highest and best in thought surpassed by the crystal Christ of the Gospels. Its appeal is to the interests of all ages. No stories so interesting, so fascinating, so entrancing to childhood as those of heroes and patriarchs of the Old Testament. No counsel „. _ so practical, so helpful, so true to men and The Book r , ,• , i_ , j for All Ages women of life s busy noon as the precepts and teaching of Proverbs, Gospels, and Epistles. No comfort or assurance so deep and true to the aged as that of the Psalmist and of John the Beloved. To take a con- crete illustration: "The Twenty-third Psalm has a real and natural application to childhood's interests, but the applica- tion grows more and more profound with the moving years until old age beholds itself descending into the valley of deep darkness. The same is true of a large proportion of Scrip- ture passages that have endeared themselves to the hearts of men throughout the ages. . . . Understood by a child, they . . . can not be fully understood until the measure of life has been filled to the brim." COURSE OF STUDY FOR ADULT CLASS 71 As the living source-book of the Christian faith, as the Book of life, as voicing better than our own lips can frame the appeal of our hearts to God, as presenting in Jesus the ideal Son of man for all ages, as appealing to Statement *^^^ interests of the youngest member of the beginner's department and the senior member of the Adult Bible Class, the Bible will ever remain as the one great text -book of the Sunday-school. II. Guiding Principles in the Construction of a Curriculum for the Adult Department 1. The Adult Department curriculum should be a part of the larger curriculum of the school. The cur- riculum of the school should be a unit, a related whole. A Com let There should be progress from the first grades and Special- ^o the most advanced. Just as in the Intermediate ized Curricu- Department courses for adolescents are provided, lum for the go in the Adult Department distinct courses Entire School ^^^^^ ^^ ^^^ interests and needs of adults should be arranged for. Unnecessary duplication of courses should be avoided. Some subjects, treated in the earlier grades in an elementary manner, may now be taken up more thoroughly. 2. The adult curriculum should be broad in its scope, flexible and adaptable in nature. It should be recognized that the interests of the adult are both sptecial and varied. Courses to Different courses should be in progress simul- Meet the Va- taneously. The large, practical value of the elec- ried Interests tive principle should be utilized; only by this o Adults means may the interests of the varied classes be observed. By this principle, instruction may readily be suited to individual needs. Some one class may well take up a special course of study for a brief period. In arranging such a course class lines should not be too rigidly adhered to; pos- sibly members from several adult classes may desire to form a group for the study of some special course, continuing through three or six months; such an arrangement might ^2 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK well be acceded to by all concerned. Considerations of benefit from study and instruction should always take precedence over pride in numbers. Sometimes two or more classes might well combine for a period under the incentive of securing the services of a specialist in some particular course of study. 3. The adult curriculum should be made to serve the need for the training of teachers. At least one class of the school should be organized as a teacher training class. A course of study running through at Courses for j^^g^ three years should be pursued. In a large of Teachers school there may well be a Teacher Training Department, separately organized, made up of classes recruited from the Senior and Adult Departments, and having a thorough and comprehensive course of study. In smaller schools, where this may seem impossible, at least a few may be gathered together into a teacher training class. In either case the class, or classes, should be en- rolled with the Board of Sunday-schools; the course studied should be one of those authorized by the Board, and the members of the class should be encouraged to take the ex- aminations and secure the official Teacher Training Diploma of the Church.i No other need of our Sunday-schools at the present time is so general or so great as that for more teachers prepared and trained to teach the Bible and intelli- gently minister to the religious needs of childhood and youth. The Sunday-school which is not striving to meet, in some measure, this need is neglecting the first essential to im- provement and self-perpetuation. III. Determining Factors in the Choice of a Course of Study for an Adult Bible Class In deciding upon a course of study for a particular class, certain determining factors must always be taken into con- sideration. These are: 1 Full information concerning courses of study for Teacher Training Classes, enrollment, examinations, diplomas, and all particulars may be secured free by addressing the Board of Sunday-Schools, 57 Washington St., Chicago, 111. COURSE OF STUDY FOR ADULT CLASS ^z 1. The membership of the class. The age, interests, mental capacity, previous study, must all be carefully con- sidered. What would be of intense and vital religious in- Coursetobe ^^''^^t to a class of college students might be Determined dull and unintelligible to a class composed prin- by the Make- cipally of busy men in middle life who read up of the \\\x\^ and whose concern is almost altogether with practical affairs of every-day life. The average Adult Bible Class is made up of people of a wide range of age, experience, and theoretical knowledge. A course should be chosen which has an appeal to all; if the interests of a few are allowed to dominate, the class is almost sure to decrease in numbers. 2. The teacher. The experience and fitting of the teacher must be considered. No course of study will ad- minister itself. The teacher is a determining influence in Course must ^^^ success or failure of any course. A teacher be Such as may well hesitate before venturing upon un- the Teacher familiar ground. The popularity and value of Is Prepared ^ special course of study in one school is no assurance that it will be a success in another, where it is offered to a different class and where the teacher is unprepared to present it properly. The Adult Class should be allowed the liberal use of the elective principle in the deter- mination of a course of study, but no class should fail to give consideration to the judgment and wishes of the teacher. 3. The ends sought. In every case the ends desired to be attained through the course of study should Depend upon ^^ defined. These are both general and par- the Object ticular. Professor G. W. Pease states the gen- Which It Is eral ends sought to be attained through the Sun- Desired to day-school curriculum as follows :i (a) To give a knowledge of religious principles ; (b) to de- velop a keenness of ethical vision ; (c) to win the affectional nature to high ideals; (d) to develop power. The make-up 1 An Outline of a Bible School Curriculum, p. 15. 74 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK of the class or certain prevailing conditions may be such as to make some one of these ends controlling, or to suggest some other end as particularly desirable. IV. Suggested Courses of Study for the Adult Department 1. The Uniform Lessons. The very large majority of Adult Bible Classes at present use the Uniform Lessons. These have certain marked advantages for the average Adult Advantages ^i^le Class. Perhaps chief of these is the abun- inthe dance of literature upon the lesson, both for Uniform the teacher and for class members. This lesson Lessons system has been in vogue for many years, is thoroughly established and widely used, and as a conse- quence the provision made for the study and teaching of the lessons is abundant, and much of it excellent in quality. The teacher and the class who depart from this course at the present must duly consider that, inasmuch as they are departing from the beaten path they will be compelled very largely to hew their own way. Outlines and text-books for other courses may be secured, but no such abundance of material is available as makes the Uniform Lessons possible of use by the busy teacher, who can not, or will not, take a large amount of time for lesson preparation, and by the class members who constantly lament that they have no time to study the lesson. 2. Special Courses, (a) Teacher Training Courses. A number of courses designed for adult classes organized and Offi ial enrolled as Teacher Training Classes are pro- Courses in vided, as before stated, by the Board of Sunday- Teacher schools of the Methodist Episcopal Church. As Training for a one-year course, the following is offered: Adult Classes p^^^^ STANDARD CouRSE.— Text-books : "The Worker and His Bible," Eiselen-Barclay ; "The Worker and the School;" 'The Worker and His Church," Beiler. As a three-year course, the following: COURSE OF STUDY FOR ADULT CLASS 75 Advanced Standard Course. — Text-books : First Year, "The Elements of Religious Pedagogy," Pattee; Second Year, "The Study of the Bible," Walker ; Third Year, "The Graded Sunday-school," Meyer, and "Organizing and Recruiting the Sunday-school," Hurlbut. (b) Other Courses. A large number of different courses are in use in Adult Bible Classes. Some Sunday-schools have a carefully planned curriculum for the Adult Depart- ment, with courses arranged to be taken in con- ous Courses secutive order. In several instances a four years' course of study has been arranged. In many cases the teacher, most often a pastor, has designed a course especially fitted to his own class. We suggest below a num- ber of subjects arranged in groups, and in each case one or more books which may be used as texts or for reference. In the use of any of these courses considerable study and train- ing, and some degree of originality on the part of the teacher, is necessary to success. Adequate time for preparation and adaptation of material is also essential. It is hardly neces- sary to state that the actual value to be gained from any course of study will be in proportion to the time and effort put upon it by teacher and class. I. The Bible. 1. Introduction to the Bible. "The Worker and His Bible," Eiselen-Barclay. 2. The Bible as Literature. "The Literary Study of the Bible," Moulton. "The Bible as Literature," Moulton and others. 3. The Wisdom Literature. "The Wisdom Literature," Davison. "Wise Men of Ancient Times," Kent. 4. Prophecy. "Prophecy and the Prophets," Eiselen. 5. The Old Testament Priests. "Religion of the Semites," Smith. "Old Testament Theology," Schultz. 76 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK 6. The Message of Amos. 'The Book of the Twelve," Smith. "Amos and Hosea," Harper. "The Doctrme of the Prophets," Kirkpatrick. "The Messages of the Earlier Prophets," Sanders and Kent. 7. The Teaching of Jesus. "The Teaching of Jesus," Stevens. "The Teaching of Jesus," Wendt. n. History Courses. 1. History of Israel. "History of the Hebrew People," Kent. "History of the People of Israel," Cornill. 2. The Apostolic Period of Christianity. "The Apostolic Age," Bartlet. "The Apostolic Age," Purves. 3. Christianity in the Roman Empire. "History of the Christian Church," Hurst. "The Church in the Roman Empire," Ramsay. 4. The Protestant Reformation. "The German Reformation," Schaff. 5. The History of Methodism. "The Worker and His Church," Beiler. "History of Methodism" (Abridged), Stevens. 6. The Modern Missionary Movement, "Outline of a History of Protestant Missions," War- neck. "A Geography and Atlas of Protestant Missions," Beech. "Christian Missions and Social Progress," Dennis. III. Mission Study Courses. (The Young People's Missionary Movement has issued sixteen different Forward Mission Study Courses. Almost any of these are admirably adapted to the use of Adult COURSE OF STUDY FOR ADULT CLASS ^7 Classes. Information as to these courses and text -books may be secured by addressing Young People's Missionary Depart- ment, 150 Fifth Ave., New York.) Lesson Outline: L The Bible Our Text-book. n. Guiding Principles in the Construction of an Adult Department Curriculum: 1. Should be a part of the larger curriculum of the school. 2. Should be broad in scope, flexible, and adaptable. 3. Should be made to serve the need for the training of teachers. IIL Determining Factors in the Choice of a Course OF Study for an Adult Bible Class : 1. The membership of the class. 2. The teacher. 3. The ends sought. IV. Suggested Courses of Study. 1. Uniform Lessons. 2. Special Courses. a. Teacher Training Courses. b. Other Courses. Bibliography : Pease, "An Outline of a Bible School Curriculum." Topics for Special Study: 1. Teacher Training in the Adult Department. 2. Projected Courses of Study for the Adult Depart- ment. Questions for Class Discussion: I. Why should the Bible be the chief text-book of the Sunday-school ? 78 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK 2. Relation of Adult Department Courses to the cur- riculum of the school. 3. What should be the characteristics of the Adult De- partment course of study? 4. What is the office of the Adult Department in the training of teachers? 5. What consideration should be given to the member- ship of the Adult Class in deciding upon a course of study? 6. The influence to be allowed to desired ends in the choice of a course. 7. What are the advantages of the Uniform Lessons as a course of study for the average class? 8. When are other courses desirable? CHAPTER VI WHAT THE TEACHER IS ABOUT "True education is the most desirable of all that is good; and therefore should not be neglected." — Plato. "And the king reflected within himself: 'What is the use of a son neither learned nor virtuous? And what is the use of a blind eye?'" — Indian Proverb. "We aim to make full-orbed men — men of keen sense, trained intellect, warm hearts ; men rich in imagination and emotion ; men of power to resolve, to initiate, to administer, to achieve; power to see swiftly, judge accurately, decide immediately; to love deeply and hate persistently, and grow forever — men such as all the past of human history now should culminate in producing." — W. H. P. France. CHAPTER VI WHAT THE TEACHER IS ABOUT It would seem perfectly obvious that the teacher's task is to teach. But is it entirely clear what is meant by these words to teach? Has the teacher himself stopped to inquire what is involved in them? Is it not a primary need to discover just what the Adult Class teacher is about, how his work of teaching is related to education as a whole, and how best he may proceed in order to be sure of accomplish- ing a worthy result? I. What is Teaching? I. Teaching Defined. We use the word now in the sense of that which the teacher is supposed to do during the brief period that he stands before his class. We give three definitions : Hart, "Teaching is causing an- Teaching other to know." Gregory: "Teaching is the com- Defined munication of knowledge — communication is used here, not in the sense of the transmission of a mental something from one person to another, but rather in the sense of helping another to reproduce the same knowl- edge, and thus to make it common to the two." These two definitions make it clear that teaching is a process in which more than one is involved; there must be both a teacher and a learner; both must be active if knowledge, the ob- jective in teaching, is to be conveyed. This twofold aspect is brought out in the following definition from Trumbull: "Teaching is that part of the twofold learning process by which knowledge which is yet outside of the learner's mind is directed toward that mind; and learning is that part of the same twofold process by which the knowledge taught is made the learner's own." 6 8i 2 82 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK There can be no teaching, therefore, without learning; just in the same measure as the learner learns does the teacher teach. This needs to be emphasized; Trumbull was not amiss in devoting several pages of his work Teaching a fQj. teachers ("Teachers and Teaching," pp. 9-15) Process ^^ laying stress upon the fact that telling is not teaching; telling, he says, may he a part of the process of teaching, but in and of itself it never is teach- ing, and, in fact, can not be. He quotes Robert South, who describes preaching to people who are merely passive hearers as "a kind of spiritual diet upon which people are always feeding but never full; and many poor souls, God knows, too, too like Pharaoh's lean kine, much the leaner for their full feed." 2. Teaching and Education. Teaching in the technical sense, as defined above, is only a part of the larger process of education. The mistake, so frequently made in connection Education a ^^^^ ^^^ work of the public schools, of regarding Larger Proc- "lan simply as mind to be informed, must not ess Than be repeated in the Sunday-school. This concep- Teaching ^j^^^ dominated the teaching of the State schools for many decades; v/e may be thankful that there has been a decided revolt against it in recent years. From Pestalozzi^ down, many of the greatest educators have both protested against it and proclaimed a better standard, nevertheless it still holds sway in much contemporary thinking. For in- stance, a recent writer of some prominence in the Sunday- school world makes this statement, "Sunday-school teaching is hardly teaching proper, as it has moral and spiritual ends in view." This is a belated remnant of the old intellectual- istic notion of education which identified education with mere instruction. To the religious man, who regards men as spir- 1 Pestalozzi's conception of education is well expressed in these words : " Education relates to the whole man and consists in drawing forth, perfecting and strengthening all the faculties with which an all-wise Creator has endowed him, physical, intellectual, and moral." And again, " Education has to do with the hand, the head, and the heart." WHAT THE TEACHER IS ABOUT 83 itual beings, and the religious as the highest capacity of the soul, it is impossible to be satisfied with any conception of education which means merely acquisition of knowledge; any education worthy of the name must have reference to the whole of man, 3. The larger work of the teacher. The work of the teacher is not, therefore, comprehended in the term teaching, understood in the technical sense. "Teaching is a species of creation. The teacher has to do with man as The True mind, as will, as heart, as spirit. The teacher's an Educator task, therefore, is that of educating the mind to perceive clearly, training the will to act right- eously, moving the heart to feel strongly, inspiring the spirit to be like God. Only as the teacher fulfills this mission in greater or less measure does he become truly an educator. II. The Task of the Sunday-school Teacher What, now, is the Sunday-school teacher about? The institution with which he is connected exists to serve man as a spiritual being. The assumption on which it rests is that the greatest need of man is to be brought School*" *^' ^"^° ^^^^ — '^^^ largest, richest, highest life; and Teacher Has that life it conceives to be the sharing of the life Regard to of God — His character and joy." It insists Man's High- ^|^^^ ^^ ^^^^^ ^^ ^^^ attainment of this highest goal of life, the whole of man's nature must be developed, but since the secular schools place almost ex- clusive stress on intellectual development, it devotes itself to the service of those other, the most important and, strange to say, most neglected interests. It holds that to a trained and informed intelligence must be added an illuminated con- science, a righteous will, a rich emotional nature, and a sense of God. Its high purpose is to take the man whom the schools have developed as a thinking machine and make of him a patriotic and loyal citizen, a conscientious and sympathetic neighbor, a self-sacrificing and devoted father; 84 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK in these, and all other possible relationships of life, truly a creature of God. A high, noble, and magnificent task is this, than which no greater can possibly exist on earth. III. The How of the Teacher's Task 1. By teaching. By teaching in the specific sense of conveying instruction. We have by no means meant, in what we have said above, to rule out the element of instruction. The first work of the Sunday-school teacher is Instruction is ^^ ^^^^^^ -p^ ^^^^^ ^j^^ gj^^jg intelligently and to Life wisely is not only to add information to the learner's intellectual stock, but to furnish the soul with high purposes and pure motives, to illuminate and quicken the conscience, to strengthen the will in right doing, and to enrich the feeling nature. Moreover, "it must be acknowledged that the most solid results in character can not be attained except upon a broad foundation of knowl- edge. The fervent appeal, often spurning knowledge and ig- noring instruction, may seem at the time to be most effective in saving men and advancing the interests of Christianity. But all experience proves that, alike in the life of the in- dividual and in the development of the kingdom, real and permanent progress is made only when zeal rests on a solid foundation of knowledge and of the truth.''^ Biblical instruction becomes the more important inasmuch as the Scriptures have been ruled out of the public schools, and whatever knowledge of them is to be possessed must be gained in the home and in the Sunday-school. 2. By aiding spiritual development. The teacher can most effectively aid his scholars by considering that each person has a spiritual life in process of becoming. He must make it his endeavor to discover the spiritual man and, in many cases, to aid the person himself in self-discovery. To make this discovery will take intimate acquaintanceship and 1 Burton and Mathews : Principles and Ideals for the Sunday-School, p. 7. WHAT THE TEACHER IS ABOUT 85 keen spiritual insight on the teacher's part. He dare not base his judgment on mere casual or superficial indications; it will not do to attach too much importance to the person's religious utterances ; some people reveal their Nourish the ^^^^^^,^ ^^^^^ -^^ speech, many do not. The Growing , ^ , , • t • Spiritual Life teacher may be sure that every person m his class has some spiritual interests, some religious impulses and purposes, some yearnings and strivings after the divine. The teacher's task is to find this spiritual founda- tion and build upon it, or, to change the figure, to draw out the powers of the spiritual nature which exist in the way of self-expression. His constant endeavor should be to appeal to the spiritual interests of the individual, to nourish every good impulse, and to strengthen every spiritual pur- pose. Every response which the teacher secures marks a stage of growth; it may be slight, but it is of significance and importance, for it is the indication of an increasing life. Gradual growth may continue until the period of full ma- turity is attained, or it may be interrupted by one or more periods of sudden, sharp, and decisive crises — experiences in which revolutionary changes occur and decided and marked advance is made. Of course, there is at all times the pos- sibility of spiritual decline or even disaster. The point we are making is that the concept of growth constantly kept in mind by the teacher will aid him in making his work spiritually effective. In dealing with the members of the class, the teacher should value absolute frankness and honesty in his pupil above all else and seek to discourage all religious expression which lacks the ring of sincerity. 3. By utilizing the power of personal contact. No others means of inculcating high ideals, noble purposes, spir- itual desires is quite so potent and effective as that of bringing persons into association with other persons in whom those ideals, purposes, and desires live. For one thing, the pre- sentation of the Christian life in terms of words and ideas 86 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK is vague; in terms of some beautiful or heroic character it becomes concrete. President King, an educator of note, makes this a central element in his message; a characteristic statement from him is: 'T would not decry The Influence teaching, but I would emphasize that no teach- ^^^^ ing of morals and noble ideals by precept is quite equal in effect and influence to the bring- ing of a surrendered personality into touch with a truly noble Christian soul." In this is to be found an explanation of the effectiveness of many teachers whose knowledge of the Bible is deficient and who sadly lack training in methods and principles of teaching, but who do possess a vital religious life and show forth the graces of a true Christian character. Handicapped as they are by their lack, they are yet valuable and suc- cessful workers because of their rich influence upon those who are brought into close association with them from week to week. "The most conserving and inspiring of all in- fluences is love for a holy person." The teacher should consider it one of the most important phases of his work to make the great characters of the Bible live in the thought and imagination of his scholars. To do this he must himself know them intimately ; only so can he make others acquainted with them. His supreme service will be that of bringing people into intimate ac- quaintanceship and association with Christ, the source of life. He will remember that ever so precise and complete information about Christ is not acquaintanceship with Him, and he will not be satisfied until he has brought Christ as a personal Friend into the lives of the members of his class. Lesson Outline: I. What is Teaching? 1. Teaching defined. 2. Teaching and education. 3. The larger work of the teacher. WHAT THE TEACHER IS ABOUT 87 n. The Task of the Sunday-school Teacher. To bring men into the largest, richest, and highest Hfe. HI. The How of the Teacher's Task. 1. By teaching. 2. By aiding self-development. 3. By utilizing the power of personal contact. Bibliography: ' Coe, "Education in Religion and Morals." King, "Personal and Ideal Elements in Education." Home, "Psychological Principles of Education." Topics for Special Study: 1. Modern conceptions of education. 2. The place of religion in education. Topics for Class Discussion: 1. What is meant by teaching? 2. Why is "telling" not teaching? 3. Distinguish between teaching, technically defined, and education. 4. When is the teacher truly an educator? 5. Discuss the task of the Sunday-school teacher. 6. What is the function of instruction as a part of the teacher's work? 7. How may the teacher aid in spiritual development? 8. Tell of the spiritual value of association. CHAPTER VII FORMAL STEPS IN THE TEACHING PROCESS "A teacher with good method and Hmited knowledge will do better work than one with full knowledge and poor method ; without method he is not a teacher at all, no matter how much subject matter he knows." — Roark. "The strength of an army does not consist in the number of men alone, as Xerxes discovered long ago, but in the kind of men, in their strength and courage, in their power of united action. Our knowledge is really serviceable to us only as it is combined into connected, compact masses ready for varied use. The purpose of the school, then, is not simply to accumulate knowledge, but also to arrange and connect, to organize and energize the facts learned, to bring them into potent combination; just as a general first enlists re- cruits, then disciplines them into soldiers, and organizes them into an effective army. The facts are indeed the materials out of which our intellectual house is to be built, but we are concerned not only about getting these materials into the structure of the mind, but about the plan and order there is among them, and whether the walls are loose and shaky, or firm and solidly built." — McMurry. CHAPTER VII FORMAL STEPS IN THE TEACHING PROCESS Given a certain Bible lesson to be taught during a cer- tain hour, how is the teacher to proceed to teach this lesson to the class? In a particular case, what are the formal steps in the teaching process? Modern education is indebted to Herbart, a German phi- losopher and educator, for the enunciation of principles which are everywhere recognized as of the first importance. Ac- cording to Herbart, the formal steps in the teach- Prlncipies ^"^ °^ ^ particular lesson may be thus briefly and simply stated: i. Preparation; 2. Presenta- tion ; 3. Association and Comparison ; 4. Generalization ; 5. Practical Application. McMurry illustrates these steps by an analogy taken from the work of the farmer: "i. The soil is plowed, harrowed, and made ready for the seed. 2. The grain is sowed upon the ready soil and raked in, 3. The growing grain is culti- vated and the weeds destroyed. 4. The harvest is brought in. 5. The grain is used for practical purposes of food."^ I. Preparation The lesson is to be introduced by a preliminary discussion, in which the object of the teacher is to discover common ground between himself and those whom he is attempting to teach, and between the truth which he desires Discover a ^q communicate and those to whom it is to be Contact communicated. Coleridge said, "We can not make another comprehend our knowledge until we first comprehend his ignorance," to which saying Trumbull adds the comment : "So long as we suppose a scholar to know what he 1 How to Conduct the Recitation, p. 16. 91 92 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK does not know we shall refrain from causing him to know that, and in consequence we shall be unable to cause him to know anything beyond that — anything to the understand- ing of which that is a pre-requisite." The necessity for this step is based upon the principle that a new idea can only be received and understood by the mind by the assistance of some idea already possessed. The unknown is always interpreted in terms of the known. This step, it will be readily recognized, is of the greatest importance in teaching a new or strange class. The edu- cation and training of the class members, their occupations, their general intelligence, — all must be ascertained in some way before the teacher is prepared to proceed ; otherwise he is in danger of speaking to them in an unknown tongue. As the teacher becomes more intimately acquainted with the class, this step becomes correspondingly less important. One of the most common and most persistent dangers in teaching is that of using words, technical terms, and figu- rative expressions which mean one thing to the teacher and something very different to the scholar. It is of especial importance that there shall be a mutual understanding of theological terms in constant use. A little inquiry on the part of the Adult Class teacher of the members of his class is likely to reveal an astonishing haziness surrounding such words as gospel, law, atonement, justification, conversion, repentance, holiness, adoption, miracle, Pharisee, eternal life, sin, — all terms in most frequent use in Sunday-school teaching. II. Presentation In any particular lesson the first step should have re- vealed pretty definitely what the members of the class know upon the general subject of the lesson. The of New Ideas second Step has been described as "bringing in fresh thought or knowledge to lay by the side of that which is already possessed." As a usual thing, it is well at this stage to read the lesson. Afterward the dif- FORMAL STEPS IN TEACHING 93 ferent facts, truths, ideas of the lesson are presented to the minds of the learners. The purpose at this time should not be to present the largest possible number of new ideas. Indeed, it is often advisable to pay no attention to some of the ideas of the chapter or section. Merely to exhaust the lesson by bring- ing out every possible teaching which it contains is a poor ambition. The teacher must exercise choice and select cer- tain principal ideas. His choice should not be arbitrary, but governed by the following principles : (a) Those ideas should be selected which the previous preparation has revealed may he most clearly and effectively presented. Regard should be had, of course, to relative im- portance; also to the special moral and spiritual Choose needs of the members of the class as these are Presented^ known through the teacher's acquaintanceship with them. Some local or national event of re- cent occurrence may have rendered a particular teaching of the lesson especially opportune — such possibility for enforc- ing an important lesson should not be overlooked. (h) Regard should he had for continuity of teaching. That is to say, this particular lesson should be related to preced- ing and following lessons. No lesson from the Bible should Establish ^^ treated as entirely separated from the book Connection of which it forms a part ; it should also be re- Between lated to the teaching of other books. As a rule, Lessons ^^^y ^^^ particular lesson is a part either of a certain definite course of study, or is one of a series of lessons through which there runs some continuity of thought. To relate this lesson to what has gone before will reinforce the effect of previous teaching, serve to make clearer the present truths, and by association aid remembrance. For lack of the observance of this principle a series of lessons too often remains in the learner's mind as a meaningless medley rather than as a hymn of many verses each uttering a distinct truth of its own, yet all on one common theme. 2 94 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK The manner of presentation is important. The teacher of children will often present the truths of the lesson in story form ; adults who have long passed the story period are yet not unaffected by manner of presentation ; the very words which come from the lips of one teacher as dull and prosy fairly glow and burn their way into the heart as presented by another. III. Association and Comparison This step aims to make clear what has been presented by associating it and comparing it with what the learner al- . . ready knows. Association furnishes the ties by Acquaints which the Stranger is firmly fastened in the mind, the Mind while comparison acquaints the mind with the with the new idea. This step taken, the new idea is no New Idea longer external and strange, but now the mind's own familiar possession. This step is fundamental and important, for the mind always acts by way of association; the known is always used to interpret, explain, classify the unknown. We invariably describe a strange object by telling what it is like. In the process of thought, association of ideas proceeds according to two laws, that of Similarity and that of Contiguity ; that is, one object in thought may suggest another like itself, or it may suggest another which at some previous time pre- ceded or followed it in experience. An endless procession of ideas, much of which we are only dimly conscious of, passes through the mind in accord with these two laws. The teacher should familiarize himself with the ordinary processes of thought of which this is but a suggestion. This outline statement may serve to emphasize the im- portance of making use of association in teaching. As a means of doing this the various forms of illus- lUustration Oration will be most serviceable; indeed, just here is found the most important use of illustration, which has been termed "the chief and central power in the teacher's art." Under illustration is included simile, meta- FORMAL STEPS IN TEACHING 95 phor, contrasts, parallel instances, objects as illustrative ma- terial, and incidents from experience. In the teaching of the lesson the teacher will find it helpful to group various ideas and truths together, as (a) similar, as (b) contrasted, or as (c) representing some prin- ciple of continuity. IV. Generalization This is the period of the harvest. At this stage the general principle which grows out of the particular facts or statements of the lesson is brought forward. This step involves pro- Advance ceeding from the particular, through reflection, from the to the general. Particular to To illustrate just what is involved in this the General g^^p . j^ childhood we make a series of ob- servations as regards fire. The fire burns the wood in the stove. The fire in the grate burns the coal. The gas flame burns the moth. The fire in the field burns the dry grass. After a number of such particular observations, we probably make the generalization. Fire burns all materials. Somewhat later a wider experience causes us to correct this too sweep- ing generalization. Likewise, lying back of all the facts of which our experience is made up are general truths not at first recognized. Gradually by comparing, contrasting, re- arranging like groups we are able to formulate from the large number of particular facts certain general truths which we term principles or laws. Exactly the same thing must be done in the teaching of a lesson. Unless this step of formulating a general principle is taken, all that has preceded is comparatively useless. The various particulars which have been presented remain In the mind as an unorganized mass without significance. "Who does not know teachers who unceasingly cram their pupils with individual facts, having but little regard to their true meaning and their relation to the significant general truth which may be derived from these facts, in themselves entirely insignificant?" (De Garmo.) 96 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK Generalization is a process of induction. The importance of induction, as contrasted to deduction, in Bible teaching may well be emphasized in this connection. In popular Bible study and in average Sunday-school teaching The Impor- deduction has had relatively much too large a Induction place. Let us first make clear the meaning of these terms. Induction, as should be already un- derstood from what has been said above, is the ascent from particulars to the general ; drawing a conclusion from a number of observed facts. Induction is the method com- monly used in science ; it is pre-eminently the method of scientific discovery. Observation after observation, fact after fact is set down, and finally, on the basis of these, a con- clusion is reached in the form of a law. Deduction, on the other hand, is the laying down of a general statement as a law and seeking for particular facts which will substantiate this law as true. This is much the simpler and easier process. The old, familiar Deduction method in Sunday-school teaching was to state quently Used ^ doctrine or a rule of conduct, and cite Biblical examples and texts in proof. Other teachers, not so well versed in doctrine, perhaps, contented themselves by making general statements and then citing lesson verses in substantiation. The weakness of this procedure may easily be seen. Persons may bring to the Bible almost any sort of preconceived notion and find some Biblical statement which may at least be made to lend color to it. Induction, which seeks -first to discover exactly what the Bible says, not in one instance only, hut in a large number of instances, and then on the basis of this to reach a conclusion, may readily be seen to be a much more true and valuable method. The common fault in this step of generalization is that of reaching a general conclusion on the basis of too few particulars. The teacher should constantly guard against this. It is the fallacy of snap judgments which in actual life are often so unjust. If a new member of the class fails twice FORMAL STEPS IN TEACHING 97 in succession to answer a question, some fellow member is almost certain to say, He never studies his lesson, or. He knows nothing about the Bible. This fallacy has led to many false views in Biblical interpretation. For The Danger instance, many people have taken the conversion in enera- ^ p^^j ^ standard and have held that all ization . , conversions should conform to this strikmg type, without taking into account at all the narrative which the New Testament gives concerning the conversion of Matthew, John, James, Peter, Philip, Nathanael, and various others. The teacher should enforce the principle that no one has a right to make sweeping generalizations unless he has taken into account many particular cases. Jumping at conclusions and the impromptu utterance of general statements on im- portant subjects are entirely out of place in a class for Bible study. V. Practical Application "The sermon is done?" asked a late comer, anxiously, meeting the minister at the door of the church. "The ser- mon has been spoken," said the minister; "it remains to be done." Most important of all is the final step Translating jj^ ^|^g teaching process, putting to practical use into Conduct ^'^^^ ^^^^ ^^^" learned. This final step involves the application of the general principle, newly derived, to new particulars. We mean by this not so much making the application or applying the moral, as these phrases are commonly used, as translating the theory into practice in the every-day life of the learner. Emphasis should con- stantly be laid upon the fact that all instruction in the Sunday-school is vain unless it actually modifies conduct. It is not for the purpose of supplying facts or information, nor merely for increasing and deepening the feeling Hfe; it is for the purpose of supplying basic moral and ethical prin- ciples which may guide action and control conduct during the week. 98 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK A rich field for the practical application of Biblical prin- ciples of righteousness is to be found in every-day life as related to sharp practices in business, to social and industrial conditions, and to prevalent ethical standards. The teacher's responsibility is to make clear the point of connection between the principle and particular forms of conduct, and then encourage the pupil to make the application for himself. While bearing in mind the application of the principles to the lives of the members of his class, the teacher will guard against voicing an application which may be taken by any one person as aimed at himself. This is almost certain to put the person on the defensive, resulting in an attitude in which the truth has little chance to reach the heart. Any man resents what he interprets to be an attack in public upon him. K the teacher feels that he ought to apply the truth to some particular practice or act of the individual, let him go to that person when he is alone. As a rule, if the principle is made plain, people may be trusted to make the application themselves, and it comes with all the more force if it is their own discovery. VI. General Comment on the Formal Process The five steps in the formal process of teaching a lesson ought to be made the familiar possession of every teacher. The plan is not presented with the thought that it will be rig- idly adhered to in the teaching of every lesson, rather that it will serve as a working plan — a guide, by the wise use of which the teacher will be aided in planning how to teach the lesson. Concerning this McMurry well says : "Now, it is evident that no plan based on these principles will furnish a ro\yal road to success in teaching. Success along this line depends upon industry, adaptability, and con- tinuous practice. . . . (Moreover) it is not intended that this plan and these principles shall make a slave of the teacher, but that by a hard-earned mastery of their details, and by a successful application of them to the concrete ma- FORMAL STEPS IN TEACHING 99 terials of study, he gradually works his way out into the clear daylight of conscious power." Lesson Outline: I. Preparation. II. Presentation. III. Association and Comparison. IV. Generalization. V. Practical Application. VI. General Comment on the Foraial Process. Bibliography: McMurry, "How to Conduct the Recitation." Brown, "How to Plan a Lesson." Pattee, "Elements of Religious Pedagogy." Topics for Special Study: 1. The life and influence of Herbart. 2. The use of induction and deduction in Bible Teach- ing. Topics for Class Discussion: 1. Why is Preparation so important a step in the formal process of teaching? 2. State the principles which should control in the Presentation of a lesson. 3. What is the meaning and significance of Associa- tion as a formal step in teaching? 4. Explain what is meant by Generalization. 5. Compare induction and deduction, and discuss the dangers in each as related to the teaching of the Bible. 6. What is involved in Application as the final step in the teaching process? CHAPTER VIII INTEREST AND ATTENTION "There are a good many things which you would like to have in a scholar which, after all, you can get along with- out ; but attention is not one of these. A scholar may lack knowledge, he may lack brightness, he may lack a good dis- position, and yet he may be taught by you. But while a scholar lacks attention, teaching him is an impossibility." — Trumbull. "There is a curious microscopic creature of the ponds, called the amoeba, the very name of which signifies constant change. Simple as its life is, the changes that take place in it are typical of the life processes in all the higher animals, and even of the processes of the growth of the mind. What does this speck of jelly (or protoplasm) do in order to live? It has a power, in the first place, of stretching out a part of itself toward any object that may serve it as food, extemporizing a sort of mouth. The second power which the amoeba has is that of retaining the valuable parts of the food material, by which means it maintains its life, repairs organic waste, and grows. The mind has two similar powers. It stretches out toward that which answers to its hunger or its 'interest,' and so supplies itself with the materials whereby it lives and grows. This act of 'stretching out toward' an object presented to the mind we call attention." — Mark. CHAPTER VIII INTEREST AND ATTENTION The lesson period in the Sunday-school is so brief, so entirely inadequate, in fact, that every teacher must inquire as to how the minimum of time may be made to yield the largest possible return. Immediately the question Waste Qf waste suggests itself. Admittedly the largest Inattention waste in all teaching is through inattention on the part of those taught. A most important problem for the teacher is, therefore, how to secure and retain most effectively the attention of all the members of the class. One who has never given thought to the question may readily test for himself in the study of this book the im- portance of attention. Does this subject at the present mo- ment have your undivided attention? While you A Test of ,. . ,. ^ /, Attention were readmg the precedmg sentence were other matters calling successfully for a part of your attention? At times are you fully "absorbed" in the study, while at other times you find it necessary to re-read a sen- tence or perhaps an entire paragraph because, while your eye passed over it, your thought was upon something entirely apart from it ? Do you carry away any abiding impression when the paragraph you are studying fails to receive your close and un- divided attention? Is your attention easily turned away from a subject upon which you are studying? A consideration of these questions will show that it does not do for the teacher, even of the Adult Class, to assume that attention will be freely and constantly given. Many public speakers and many teachers make this mistake and expend much effort in vain when even a casual study of the 103 2 104 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK subject of attention and methods of gaining and holding it would render their work much more effective. Interest and attention are so closely bound together, con- stituting, indeed, inseparable parts of one mental state, that they may well be considered in the same chapter. I. Interest Interest has been styled the motive power of attention. Considered from the standpoint of psychology, interest is very largely the product of attention. We become interested in the things to which we give attention. It may Relation of ^jg^ ^^ g^j^j ^j^^^ jj^ general our interest in a Attention subject is in proportion to the attention which we give to it. It would seem, therefore, that logically the treatment of interest should follow, rather than precede the treatment of attention. In practice, however, the Adult Class teacher confronts persons who have a large stock of already acquired interests, some personal, some pro- fessional, some social, some political, some purely intellectual, and so on. The merchant, for example, is interested in the tariff, in certain processes of manufacturing, in sources of supply; the workingman is also keenly interested in the tariff, only from a somewhat different standpoint ; the young col- legian may have absolutely no interest in the tariff, but he is interested in the question as to whether soccer football is to be substituted for the more deadly variety. These illus- trate only a few of a large number of interests possessed by the members of a class.^ If the teacher is to gain and hold the attention of the class, he must appeal to these already existing interests. Any allusion to them will engage the instant attention. 1 " An adult man's interests are almost every one of them intensely artifi- cial; they have slowly been built up. The objects of professional interest are most of them, in their original nature, repulsive ; but by their connection with such natively exciting objects as one's personal fortune, one's social responsi- bilities, and especially by the force of inveterate habit, they grow to be the only things for which in middle life a .nan profoundly cares." — William James. INTEREST AND ATTENTION lOS The study of a class for the discovery of the pe- culiar interests of its members is important. The keen The and astute teacher will make this a matter of Discovery close observation and, in time, without having of Interests seemed inquisitive or curious, will know the dominating interests of a large number of the class. This knowledge may be used in accordance with two principles : 1. Attention may be gained by associating that which is not in itself interesting with that in which an interest already exists. Means of association are various ; the asso- ciation may be in terms of time, of likeness, of The Use of . .. .^ -^ , . ^ ^ ' , ' Association Similarity of circumstance, of common relation to a third object, or in any other of numerous ways which ingenuity may suggest. James gives, in effect, the following statement on this process: Begin with the line of the person's native interests and offer him objects that have some immediate connection with these. Next, step by step, connect with these first objects and experiences the later objects and ideas which you wish to instill. Associate the new with the old in some natural and telling way. The two associated objects grow, as it were, together; the in- teresting portion sheds its quality over the whole ; and thus things not interesting in their own right borrow an interest which becomes as real and as strong as that which was used as the starting point. i 2. New interests may be built up on the basis of already existing interests. Inasmuch as attention is the father of interest, it will readily be seen that perseverance in the use of the first named principle will result not merely 1 " Interest in things present can be extended to things of the same class in the past. From picture to story, from story to biography, from biography to history; from a battle as an outward event to the issue involved, and finally to political or ethical principles; from our national heroes to the heroes of the Bible and of Christian history, these will represent the principle of extending interests and so extending attention." — George A. Coe. 3 io6 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK in gaining attention for the time being, but actually in the creation of new interests. The teacher's business is to use the present spontaneous interest as a means of creating new, deeper, and more vital interests. Merely to make Creation ^ temporary use of already existing interests and Interests ^'^^'^ ^^ ^^^^ ^^ the building up of new and worthier interests, is to neglect one of the high- est means of service. An illustration of how this is actually accomplished, more or less familiar to all, may be found in the work of our missions to the Chinese in our cities. For purely material reasons the Chinaman desires to learn to read. This in- terest is seized upon by the teacher, who teaches him the rudiments of reading and then sets him to work on such sentences as, "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him might not perish, but have everlasting life." Gradually a new and spiritual interest is created. The effectiveness of this prin- ciple may be abundantly shown from the literature of medical missions in foreign lands. II. Attention I. What attention is. The mind may be likened to a central station through which passes an endless procession of ideas. The mind attends somewhat to every one of these Ideas At- ideas present in consciousness, although the com- tended and mon remarks, "I was hardly conscious of what he Unattended was doing," or, *T was hardly conscious of what m Conscious- j^^ said," may serve to show that in many cases the mind attends almost not at all to many of the ideas actually present in consciousness during a specified time. But the mind is always, to a greater or less extent, focused upon some one idea; that is, is attending with interest and energy to some one idea; that one idea, there- fore, may be said to receive the attention of the mind. It has been thus defined: "Attention is a concentration of 2 INTEREST AND ATTENTION 107 consciousness upon any idea." (Adams.) "Attention is the mental attitude in which the thought-power is actively bent forward or fastened upon some object of thought or per- ception." (Gregory.) The teacher should note that attention is not a passive state. Silence must not be mistaken for attention. Atten- tion is active; it involves effort and exertion. Its importance rests upon the fact, often overlooked by the Attention is teacher, that knowledge is not something which to Teaching ^ ^^^ ^^ passed over bodily from the mind of the teacher to the mind of the learner. Every thought, every idea is an original creation. The crude materials in the form of sensations are all that can be communicated. The receiving mind must take these sensations and from them reconstruct the idea; it is only, therefore, as the mind of the learner is actively attentive that the teaching process can go on. No teaching without attenion, should be a familiar axiom to every teacher. 2. Kinds of attention. (a) Spontaneous Attention. (Sometimes called Involun- tary, or Attracted, or Passive Attention.) There is a certain kind and amount of attention which can not possibly be refused. No matter how engrossed one may be Attention ^^ ^^ interesting subject, attention is involun- Effort"* ^^^'^^y attracted by a brilliant flash of light- ning, by the scream of a child in pain, by the shouts of a crowd of street revelers, or by the sensation of hunger or thirst. There are different varieties; the at- tention which the infant bestows upon the sunbeam playing on its crib is very different from that which the hunter gives to tracking the game to its lair or that of the curious woman listening to the excited conversation of two neighbors in an adjoining yard, yet all three are examples of spon- taneous attention. Based, in childhood, wholly upon instinct, it broadens with the development of the individual so that in mature life whatever interests or delights or satisfies claims io8 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK spontaneous attention. It is always given without effort, and with it the mind is eager and alert, needing not at all to be spurred to action. (b) Voluntary Attention. (Termed also Active or Com- pelled Attention, or Attention with Effort.) This kind of at- tention is so named because it requires an effort of will, something of a struggle in order that it may be with Effort given. It is willed concentration upon something not in itself interesting or attractive, for the sake of a conceived good or desired end. It lacks the life and vitality which characterizes spontaneous attention and, while not always so, it is likely to be mechanical and powerless. Two things concerning voluntary attention should be noted: the power thus to attend is acquired — young children do not have it, and while it is exceedingly valuable and may be acquired by any one by diligent effort, many people never come to possess it; it is almost momentary in its duration — it can not be maintained longer than for a few seconds, and so long as it is depended upon it must be constantly renewed; that is, the mind must be brought back to the point repeatedly ; a succession of acts of will is required in order that atten- tion may be maintained. After this description of the two kinds of attention, it scarcely needs to be said that the teacher's dependence for satisfactory result must be largely upon the first named, or spontaneous attention. To be able to appeal to it is to insure that all will be able to respond, and that the work of teach- ing will proceed more smoothly, more pleasantly, and much more effectively. 3. Methods of attracting and holding the attention. (a) Command and entreaty. We name this method first because it is the method most often used and because it is of the least importance. A semblance of attention may usually be gained in an adult class by an earnest entreaty, by asking it as a favor, even by commanding it in stern tones, or by snapping the fingers. With some members of 2 INTEREST AND ATTENTION 109 the class it will be more than the appearance of attention, but at the best it can only be attention of the voluntary type, and unless this appeal is followed immediately by a presen- tation that has inherent power to hold the at- AttenUon tention thus gained, the pupils' minds will be again wandering within a moment, and the last state of that teacher will be worse than the first. To retain that which has been commanded the subject must be made so interesting as to arouse spontaneous attention. Occasions sometimes arise when it is necessary to recall attention to the presentation after it has been distracted by some unusual cause, but as little dependence should be placed upon this method as possible. The judgment of the psychologist con- cerning its use is that the more you have to use this method "the less skillful teacher you will show yourself to be." (b) Removal of causes of distraction. This method is negative, but deserves notice. Frequently there are little things, easily remedied, which are continually distracting the attention, such as a creaking door, a rattling win- InattenUon ^ow, noisy chairs, an unsightly article of furni- ture, the passing of papers or of the contribution basket during the study period. The earnest teacher can not afford to overlook even the smallest causes of inattention. (c) Connect the subject with life interests. The common statement would be. Make the subject interesting. Probably there is no teacher but appreciates the importance of the injunction; what he desires to know is, how a Attention subject may be made interesting. Here we recur Interest ^° what we have said above on the use of asso- ciation. The teacher should cultivate ingenuity in associating the subject matter of instruction with the dominating interests of the members of the class. The teach- ing of Jesus affords many examples of how this may be done. In addressing people He almost invariably began with a figure of speech taken from their daily life and occupation. "Behold, a sower went forth to sow." "I am the Vine, ye no THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK are the branches." "He that entereth not by the door into the sheep-fold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber." The transition from the point of contact to the truth which He desired to convey was immediate and unforced. The religious teacher has a de- cided advantage over the secular instructor at this point; it is especially easy to relate religious instruction, both with the common affairs of life and with the great and vital in- terests of life. (d) Offer change and variety. The human mind has an instinctive desire for change and variety. While this is especially noticeable in the young, it inheres throughout life. Not only so ; we have seen that it is a Instinctive characteristic of attention, especially of the vol- Change untary type, that it can not be continually sus- tained. These two reasons make it imperative that if attention is to be retained the subject be made to exhibit constant change and variety. There should be variety in method of teaching and reci- tation. Routine should be shunned. Change frequently from the declarative form of sentence to the interrogative. Ques- tion in different ways. Address direct questions to the in- attentive. Speak sometimes in the third person ; sometimes in the first. Frequently bring in brief, apt illustrations. Se- cure co-operation from members of the class. Assign definite tasks in advance. Have one member bring in parallel state- ments ; another illustrate a point ; another read an apt quo- tation ; another establish geographical relations. Show different aspects of the truth presented. If in the lesson it is stated in the abstract form, search for con- crete examples. If the lesson has concrete examples of con- duct, seek in other literature for an abstract, philosophical statement, for an apt proverb, for a poetical putting of the truth. "Above all, make sure that the topic shall run through certain inner changes, since no unvarying object can possibly hold the mental field for long." INTEREST AND ATTENTION in See to it that constant progress is made with the lesson. Never stop too long on one point. Never allow any one person especially interested in some one particular phase of the lesson to unduly prolong the discussion; while he is intently occupied the interest of a score of others may be flagging. "Attention is more easily caught and kept by a moving than a stationary sign." The teacher should become adept in such simple arts as frequently changing the speaking tone, suddenly raising and again decidedly lowering the voice ; changing posture and attitude; varying gestures. These useful devices, natural to some, must be gradually acquired through effort by others. (e) Appeal to curiosity. By this means, again, the oppor- tunity is afforded of utilizing a natural instinct. Interest may always be aroused by "whetting the appetite of curiosity." This should be done in the formal step of prepa- Curiosity ration. The intimation of hidden causes, raising a question as to reasons, hinting at the mysteri- ous, appealing to the desire for knowledge, are some of the means which may be used. (f) Present an example of attention. An inattentive teacher can not expect to have an attentive class. The source of inattention in the class may often be traced to a lack of interest on the part of the teacher. Beecher The Influence jg ^^^^ ^^ ^lave instructed the janitor, if he ested Teacher ^^^^ discovered a sleeping auditor, to go into the pulpit and awaken the preacher. The teacher may well place dependence upon the contagion of enthusiasm. If his preparation of the lesson, his whole attitude toward teaching, his presentation, all show his interest in the sub- ject, his faith in the truth, and his desire to impart instruc- tion, this will go far toward winning and holding the interest and attention of the class. 4. Acquiring the power of attention. Both for him- self and for the benefit of his class, the teacher should magnify the importance of acquiring the habit of attention. 112 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK It should be impressed even upon the Adult Class that "the power of learning and a man's power of using his knowledge depend more upon his ability of fixing and con- Attention tinning his attention on what he sees or hears auirement * • * than upon any other mental habit or quality." The teacher can perform a distinct service to his class by emphasizing the value of voluntary attention. Lesson Outline: I. Interest. 1. The principle of association. 2. The building up of new interests. II, Attention. 1. What attention is. 2. Kinds of attention. (a) Spontaneous attention. (b) Voluntary attention. 3. Methods of attracting and holding the attention. (a) Command and entreaty. (b) Removal of causes of distraction. (c) Connect the subject with life interests. (d) Offer change and variety. (e) Appeal to curiosity. (f) Present an example of attention. 4. Acquiring the power of attention. Bibliography : James, "Talks to Teachers," pp. 91-115. Fitch, "The Art of Securing Attention." Hughes, "How to Secure and Retain Attention." Gregory, "The Seven Laws of Teaching," pp. 28-47. Topics for Special Study: 1. Methods of acquiring new interests. 2. Means of developing the power of attention. INTEREST AND ATTENTION 113 Topics for Class Discussion: 1. Results of the test of attention. 2. What is the relation between interest and attention? 3. What are native interests? Acquired interests? 4. Discuss the use of the principle of association. 5. How may new interests be built up? 6. Define attention. 7. The importance of attention to teaching. 8. Name and differentiate between kinds of attention. 9. What is the value of enforced attention? 10. Discuss the various methods of winning attention. CHAPTER IX ILLUSTRATIONS IN TEACHING "He is the best teacher who turns our ears into eyes." — Eastern Proverb. "Neither book nor any product of human skill, but life itself yields the basis for all education." — Pestalozzi. "If a man's sermon is like a boiled ham, and the illus- trations are like cloves stuck into it afterward to make it look a little better, or like a bit of celery or other garnish laid around on the edge for the mere delectation of the eye, it is contemptible. But if you have a real and good use for an illustration, that has a real and direct relation to the end you are seeking, then it may be ornamental, and no fault should be found with it for that." — Beecher. "Happy the teacher who has inherited by nature or at- tained by art a facility in forming clear and simple illustra- tions. He may lack many other useful qualifications, but with this one he can scarcely fail to be interesting and in- structive. It needs but little examination to show us that all great orators and popular writers excel in this power of illustration. Take any of the great speeches of Burke or Webster, even the most argumentative, and they will be found to sparkle all through with illustrations, sometimes given in full-wrought figures, but more frequently in fit words or phrases which suggest picturesque analogies and resemblances as full of beauty as of light." — Gregory. CHAPTER IX ILLUSTRATIONS IN TEACHING Illustration is first aid to understanding. Literally, to illustrate means to make luminous, or to throw light upon. It is one power of mind "holding up a lighted torch to the workmanship of another." The light must tration Is come from some idea that is already in the possession of the mind. The teacher's task is to bring the truth which he desires to make clear into asso- ciation with some familiar idea. There are various ways in which this may be done. I. Kinds of Illustrations Illustration may be either verbal or material. I. Verbal illustrations. Under this head comes every- thing in the way of examples, parallel instances, comparisons and contrasts, stories and anecdotes. In order that the teacher may be apt in illustration it is needful that he understand and know how to use certain rhetorical forms of the largest service. Most important of these are : (a) The Simile. The simile, consisting of an expressed comparison, is the simplest kind of illustration. It is ex- ceedingly helpful to the teacher. Whenever he is able to use an apt simile he may be sure that he is The Simplest teaching effectively. Some familiar examples are : Illustration "The Ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away." "For the Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two- edged sword." "But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day." "I will be as the dew unto Israel." When the comparison is elaborated the simile becomes a parable. 117 2 ii8 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK (b) The Metaphor. The metaphor, like the simile, is based upon comparison, but differs in that while the simile uses a distinct symbol, usually the word like or as, to indicate The most ^^^^ there is comparison of ideas, the metaphor Forcible omits any such, and assuming a likeness, applies Form of II- to One of them the term which denotes the other, lustration j^. ^j^^g leaves more to the hearer to discover and acts more directly as a mental stimulant. As a stronger figure it is more forcible than the simile. It is accounted the most effective form of illustration. The average person delights in hearing metaphorical speech. Examples are: "Judah is a lion's whelp." "Israel is an empty vine."' "Ye ser- pents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damna- tion of hell?" The metaphor expanded becomes an allegory. Any one of the forms of illustration thus far mentioned should have certain qualities: (i) It must be based upon something thoroughly familiar. The teacher who uses objects seen in foreign travel or objects read about in technical scientific treatises as a basis of com- parison is not illustrating for the reason that Essential the Strange object is less known than that which Qualities of jg compared to it. For instance, a teacher might Illustrations ^^^ ^^^^ ^^^ ^°^^ °^ Christ shining through a darkened and unlovely life illumines it as the light of the sun shining through the iridescent dome of the Taj Mahal reveals its gloried splendor. The comparison is good except for the fact that to most of the members of an average class the words Taj Mahal convey nothing in- telligible. How much better to use in a similar comparison the art-window of a well-known church ! (2) It should have more than one unit of resemblance. There should be enough of likeness so that the resemblance is readily apparent and is real, not fancied. If the resemblance is merely a matter of the teacher's imagination, it will have no force with the class. Such are commonly spoken of as far-fetched illustrations. ILLUSTRATIONS IN TEACHING 119 (3) It should present no striking dissimilarity. Two ob- jects may have one or more qualities in common and yet be so unlike in other more important ways as to make a com- parison ludicrous. In using metaphors the teacher should beware of mixed figures. Persons who naturally think in figurative terms are sometimes likely to be careless in forming their figures, "Let us cultivate this branch of our vineyard," exclaimed a teacher in a fervent moment. An oft-quoted example is the following, "We see now that old war-horse of the Democ- racy waving his hand from the deck of the smoking ship." (c) The anecdote. Brief incidents in story form may be very effectively used by the teacher if care and discrimination are employed in their selection. Not uncommonly a story does more by way of turning away thought from sto^ries^ the subject in hand than by way of illuminating the truth. In Sunday-school teaching illustrative incidents should be brief, pointed, true to life, and have an evident application to the immediate truth which it is de- sired to convey. 2. Material Illustrations. Under material illustration comes everything in the way of object teaching by the use of pictures, maps, diagrams, models, statuary, coins, and of the blackboard. Lawyers well realize the power- Forms of £yj effect which may be produced upon a jury Teaching ^^ *^^ display of a firearm, a torn garment, a jewel, or a baby's shoe. Any object which will translate an abstract idea into concrete form, or give reality to a thought which it is desired to impress, is valuable as an aid to teaching. Especially in a small class, where all are in close enough proximity to the teacher to see readily, pictures and illustrated books may often be used to good effect. The stereoscope is now being effectively employed by many in teaching the geography of Palestine. Object teaching is frequently exemplified in the training of the prophets and in their teaching of the men of their genera- 120 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK tion, Jeremiah watched the potter at his work while the vessel that he made of clay was marred in his hand; "So he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it." Then the word of the Lord came to him saying, "O house of Israel, can not I do with you as this potter?" (Jer. i8:i-ii. See also Jer. 13: iff; 19: iff; 24: Iff.) A blackboard should always be within reach of the teacher. The writing of an important word, setting down a brief summary or conclusion, noting the successive steps in an argument, a ready sketch outlining the form of some object or portraying graphicall}^ some movement is often of immense help. Many teachers who imagine they can not use the black- board at all would, with a little practice, find that they could utilize it in many simple ways to good advantage. II. The Importance and Uses of Illustrations I. Their importance. The importance of illustrations in teaching can hardly be overestimated. A preacher of won- derful power over an audience, when asked as to his secret, replied, "I see pictures." Races in their infancy The General gpeak in pictures. He who can incorporate them Illustrations ^^^^° ^^^ Speech is sure to have the attention of his hearers. "The truths of number, of form, or of relationships in position were all originally drawn from objects, and to present these truths to the learner in the concrete is to let him learn them as the race learned them." (Spencer.) Illustrations, therefore, may be a means of converting life into truth. Everywhere there is interest in action, life, ob- jects, the things of sense. Robert South said that illustra- tions made the truth plain by "sliding it into the understand- ing through the windows of sense." It is especially true that with men and women of untrained minds the power of observation is stronger and more active than that of reasoning. It is difficult or perhaps impossible for them to ILLUSTRATIONS IN TEACHING 121 follow a close argument, but anything which appeals through observation to judgment or conscience has influence and weight with them. Thus argument to be effective must make use of concrete facts. 2. Uses of illustrations. The uses of illustrations may now be briefly stated : (a) To catch and hold the attention. By means of an illustration which appeals to some common in- The Specific terest the attention may be immediately arrested. lustrations ^^^ ^^ quicken the imagination. The service of imagination must often be invoked as an aid to learning, and it can best be awakened by illustration. (c) To kindle the emotions. The emotions are of highest importance as an aid to moral and religious appeal. The conscience may, with many, be more readily aroused through the emotions than otherwise, and the emotions in turn may be more readily kindled through illustrations than in any other way. (d) To aid reasoning. An argument may only be made to take hold of the understanding by means of some familiar illustration. Rufus Choate is said to have spent two hours on a point which to almost every one in the courtroom was perfectly clear within the first five minutes. Only when he talked about leather was he sure that one pig-headed juror understood. Without that one man he could not win his case. (e) To assist memory. Illustrations are easily retained, and serve as a means to recall that truth with which they are associated. A minister relates this conversation between his sexton and a poor woman who had drifted into the church on a previous Sunday. Sexton: "What did the min- ister preach about last Sunday?" Woman: "Ice." Sexton: "Well, what about ice?" Woman: "He says ice is cold." Sexton : "O, come now, he must have said something more sensible than that." "So is some people's hearts," replied the woman, laconically. 122 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK 3. The Misuse of illustrations. To amuse and enter- tain is to be distinguished from teaching. In Sunday-school teaching illustrative incidents should be brief, pointed, true to life, and have an evident application to the im- Illustration mediate truth which it is desired to convey. No good effect can possibly attend the telling of a story which is related simply because it is a "'good story." What might be altogether in place in an after-dinner speech has no place in the class-room. There may very easily be too many stories. De Quincey speaks of a lecturer as being in his "anecdotage." Teachers sometimes reach the same stage. Some illustrations have been so often used that they are trite, and can only be compared to a thread-bare texture, a faded drapery. Such may make otherwise good teaching seem commonplace. Again, any illustration which seems labored, which has to be dragged in, which is artificial or sensational, hinders rather than aids the teaching process. III. Finding Illustrations 1. Use original incidents. First let it be said that the matter of securing illustrations must be a process of finding. Ready-made illustrations fit no better than ready-made clothes. The illustration taken over bodily from a printed Find Your collection is almost sure to be handled awkwardly trations ^^^^ ^° require to have a place made for it in- stead of fitting naturally into the narrative or argument. That which is taken from the teacher's own experi- ence or out of the life of those who are being taught has a freshness and spontaneity which no borrowed incident can have. 2. Cultivate the imagination. Let the teacher insist on his own mind furnishing him with rhetorical Figures figures. If required to do so, the mind will respond, and that which at first seemed extremely difficult will in time become natural. 3. Use observation. Be always looking for illustrations to enrich the next Sunday's lesson. God's illustrations of His ILLUSTRATIONS IN TEACHING 123 own truth are scattered about everywhere, and the open eye of His teacher may soon be trained to discover them. Find- ing illustrations is largely a matter of persistently looking for them. An excellent device is for the teacher Eyes open ^^ carry about with him a small notebook for the special purpose of noting every analogy, every conceived comparison, every incident which can possibly be of future use in teaching. Another equally good plan is for the teacher to secure a Bible either interleaved or with a wide margin and note in it as they occur to him thoughts, incidents, and quotations which illustrate or have a bearing upon any Scripture passage. In time, by diligent use of such a plan, the teacher will have an original treasury of illustra- tions and quotations invaluable to him in his teaching. Lesson Outline: I. Kinds of Illustrations. 1. Verbal illustrations. a. The Simile. b. The Metaphor. c. The Anecdote. 2. Material illustrations. II. The Importance and Uses of Illustrations. 1. Their importance. 2. Their uses. a. To catch and hold the attention. b. To quicken the imagination. c. To kindle the emotions. d. To aid reasoning. e. To assist memory. 3. The misuse of illustrations. III. Finding Illustrations. 1. Use of original incidents. 2. Cultivate the imagination. 3. Use observation. 124 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK Bibliography: Spurgeon, "The Art of Illustration." Beecher, "Yale Lectures on Preaching," Vol. I, pp. 154-180. Trumbull, "Teaching and Teachers." Topics for Special Study: 1. The metaphors of the Bible. 2. The object teaching of the prophets. Topics for Class Discussion: 1. What is an illustration? 2. The comparative value of the simile and the meta- phor. 3. Necessary qualities of effective rhetorical figures. 4. The use of stories in religious teaching. 5. Effectiveness of material illustrations in adult classes. 6. What makes illustrations necessary in teaching? 7. The most important uses of illustrations. 8. How may illustrations be misused? 9. How are illustrations to be provided? CHAPTER X OPEN SECRETS OF SUCCESSFUL TEACHING "I have heard men find fault with a discourse for what was not in it; no matter how well the subject in hand was brought out, there was another subject about which nothing was said, and so all was wrong; which is as reasonable as finding fault with my ploughing because it did not dibble the holes for the beans, or abusing a good cornfield because there are no turnips in it." — Spurgeon. He must pour out upon them the results of his reading, his thought and experience, with unsparing prodigaHty, for- getful of himself and his own reputation; even willing, like a true mother, to give up his own mental being if he can only see the life of other souls springing into power under his hand." — Martin B. Anderson. "To form a man is a fine art, a perilous undertaking. In this art do not venture the infallibility of a systematic geometry, and do not expect from it the supreme tranquillity of finely wrought demonstrations. In the prosecution of this art there will be contest, the unforseen, brusque transitions, whims, failures, recoveries, inertia, the miracles of free and active nature. There will be all the tumultuous ebb and flow, the bursting into harmony, and the degenerating into chaos which are in man as well as in the sea." — Marion. CHAPTER X OPEN SECRETS OF SUCCESSFUL TEACHING I. The Teacher's Preparation of the Lesson The first and greatest secret of successful teaching is preparation on the part of the teacher. Nothing will take the place of careful, intense, extensive, thoughtful preparation of the lesson. Here, as almost everywhere else Preparation jj^ jjf^^ genius is principally capacity for hard i^ZelssLT work. The teaching which seems most natural, most spontaneous, and most effective in reaching minds and hearts is, as a rule, that which has behind it the most extensive and laborious preparation. Few things are more important than that Sunday-school teachers should be brought to feel that their work is so important that anything else than adequate preparation, both general and particular, is inexcusable negligence. Sunday- school teachers are busy people; if they were not they would be unworthy a place as teachers in the Church of God. The almost invariable excuse of lack of time really means, "I consider other things more important." Any teacher who has a proper conception of relative values will so arrange his daily schedule as to secure time for preparation. It is of first importance to practice regularity: lesson preparation for the teacher should be as fixed and regular a part of the daily regime as one's meals. Lesson Preparation g^^^jy should be guaranteed by fixed habit. The terofHabV ^'^^^ chosen should be such as will allow mental freshness and vigor. The farmer or merchant whose daily occupation requires much physical activity finds it extremely difficult to hold the mind to close study dur- ing an evening hour. For many people, to sit down in 127 ^ 128 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK the evening after a day in the open air or on one's feet in the store means to be nodding within a few moments. This tendency may usually be overcome if the purpose is sufficiently strong and persistent. If it may not be, let an hour earlier in the day be set apart. One can better afford to transfer some part of the daily occupation to the evening hour than to forego systematic study in lesson preparation. When is the teacher thoroughly prepared to teach the lesson? Here, again, there is need for a higher standard. It is not enough that the teacher has familiarized himself with the general content of the lesson and de- Necessity of cided on what are the outstanding truths which Preparation ^^^ ^^ ^^ taught. Said Goethe, "Nothing is worse than a teacher who knows only as much as he has to make known to the scholar." The teacher should be a living fountain of truth. No amount of preparation of particular lessons will suffice to make him this. Some time must be regularly given to general preparation. The founda- tions of his knowledge should be continually broadening. A wide range of studies not directly bearing upon any one lesson, but more or less closely connected with Bible teaching as a whole, such, for instance, as the geography of Palestine, the history of the Assyrians, Babylonians, and Egyptians, the history of the Christian Church, ancient religions of the Orient, archaeologj'-, the history of Biblical interpretation, the Bible as literature, will greatly enrich his teaching and make him more and more a teacher of power and influence. No unreasonable amount of time is demanded for this. Hamilton W. Mabie tells that Henry Ward Beecher, who did not care for soup, read Froude's "History of England," twelve octavo volumes, in two years, by regularly devoting the interim be- tween the announcement of dinner and the bringing on of the second course to this purpose. In the way of preparation of the particular lesson in hand, the teacher should study not only the section which is to be taught, but its context, its connection with the book 2 OPEN SECRETS OF SUCCESSFUL TEACHING 129 as a whole from which it is taken, parallel passages, chrono- logical and geographical connections. He should come to the class hour having so mastered the lesson in all its details that he feels thoroughly familiar with it. It Adequate should not be necessary for him to lean upon Pr^a^ition ^"^^ printed teaching help. The place for these is at home, not in the class-room. He should stand before his class with only his Bible. His teaching should be not upon the basis of any external authority, but from within his own mind and heart. Only that teaching is with power which is direct and spontaneous. The following directions may well be regarded by the teacher as rules governing preparation : Begin lesson prepara- tion not later than Monday. Give thirty minutes Rules for ^ ^^^ ^g ^^^ absolute minimum, better an hour, Preparation ^° ^^^^ work. Use some part of this time each week in general preparation. During all your preparation hold both your lesson and your class constantly before you. II. A Lesson Plan Every lesson, if it is to be taught successfully, must be carefully planned in advance. The making of this plan is an essential part of the lesson preparation. Having first possessed himself of the lesson, studied it until Each Lesson j^^ f^^jg ^j^^^ [^ js his own, the teacher should PUnne?^^ then raise the question, What am I to try to do with this lesson? Here is the class I am set to teach; this is the lesson I am to teach them; how can this lesson be made of largest service to this class? The teacher dare not leave the lesson plan to the chance questions of the hour, to the hobbies and idiosyncrasies of two or three members of the class, or to the impromptu suggestions of his own mind. To do so is almost to guarantee that the real teaching opportunity of the hour will be lost. It is only the train that has a definitely arranged schedule that 9 130 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK is sure to make good time. How frequently it happens that the close of the lesson period finds the teacher only fairly started on the lesson, oftentimes with the lesson presentation unfinished, or perhaps as often engaged in a profitless dis- cussion of some pet topic only indirectly connected with the lesson. This is the result of failing to arrange or to carry out a lesson program, and one that might be easily obviated by due attention to planning the lesson. No teaching program should be arbitrarily adhered to. The teacher should not be slavishly bound to any plan, how- ever excellent. He should always be free to allow an in- cident of the hour or a manifestation of special interest to emphasize or point some particular phase of the lesson. A wide-awake teacher will discover some of his finest oppor- tunities in such ways. The lesson period is so brief that every moment must be made to count. A wise teacher will catch the attention with the first sentence. The success of the first five minutes goes far toward deciding the character of the A Lesson whole hour. A good impression at the start will Plan utilizes ^i^ke Up for some deficiencies later. On the other Moment hand, an unfavorable impression created in the first moments is exceedingly difficult to over- come. So also with the close. The final and abiding im- pression is largely determined by the last moments. The lesson, to be most effective, must be cumulative. The strong- est impressions should come last. III. Lesson Movement Promptness is an essential virtue of the successful teacher. A slow beginning invites a lazy recitation. Tardiness creates the impression of a lack of interest, while prompt- Pron^to"e^ss* "^^^ begets interest. Minutes lost at the begin- ning of a lesson can not possibly be regained. Promptness in beginning must be reinforced by rapid and constant progress. Prayers should be short; class exercises OPEN SECRETS OF SUCCESSFUL TEACHING 131 brief and spirited. There is no time for long speeches on the part of class officer, teacher, or scholar. Frequently too much time is taken by pointless talk and fruitless discussion. It takes courage and tact to silence the man who talks on and on, saying nothing, but in some way it must be done. The recitation must not be allowed to drag at any step. Directness should characterize questions ; all statements should be pointed. "We must go to work without circuitousness or unnecessary circumstance. . . . The equator need not be approached by a dissertation on the cocoanuts that grow in tropical countries." No subject should be suffered to become dry. Aim at thoroughness, but remember that any truth is many sided and capable of being variously stated. Animation is a decided aid in teaching. While not natural with all, it may be cultivated. It meets the instinctive desire for change; the animated teacher is always considered in- teresting. The life and movement exemplified by the teacher is imparted to the truth he teaches, and by this means the truth itself is made to live. IV. Artful Questioning Questioning occupies a prominent place in all teaching. The adult teacher, no matter what his chosen method may be, will find skillfully put questions of much use in quickening interest, arousing attention, and stimulating the The Service cental activity of the members of the class.i in Teaching^ Socrates said that he asked questions in order to "bring thought to birth." This is its object in the adult class. With children questions are used for the purpose of aiding memory by repetition. The adult class should be beyond the need for this use of questions. For the purpose of inspiring thought, securing the restatement of 1 "The true stimulant of the human mind is a question, and the object or event that does not raise any question will stir no thought. Questioning is not therefore merely one of the modes of teaching, it is the whole of teaching; it is the excitation of the self-activities to their work of discovering truth, learning facts, knowing the unknown. — Gregory. 2 132 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK knowledge in new forms, aiding the individual to make the application of the truth of the lesson, drawing out the best that is in the various members of the class for the benefit of all, skillfully put questions will be of the largest value. Questioning is subject to common abuse. The use of printed questions read from a lesson help can not be too strongly condemned. It can not be anything but formal, stilted, dry, and lifeless. Instead of awakening Questions interest, such questioning puts to sleep whatever interest may have existed. Questions to be of value must have in them some element of surprise, at least that of their form of statement being unknown until they have been asked. The asking of questions, the answer to which is perfectly obvious to all, is likewise objectionable. It is too bland and childlike a proceeding for an adult class ; it does not command the respect of the intelligent; questions should compel thought. Too often this sort of questioning is intended to hide a lack of real information on the part of the teacher, which it never succeeds in doing. An occasional exercise in which simple questions intended to bring out the facts of the lesson are asked with rapidity and spirit, allowing all who will freely to respond, is of service in breaking up formality, inducing the timid to take part, and in fixing in the mind the essential facts. It may also serve to awaken a class which, made up of active people not accustomed to much study, has become dull and drowsy as the result of being for a time quietly seated. Skill in rapid-fire questioning, as it is called, must usually be acquired by the teacher through practice. Too much reliance on questioning tends to suppress spon- taneity in the class ; some are likely to feel that they may not venture a statement unless directly called upon. It is much better for the teacher to encourage by occasional requests and by direct suggestions the contributions of all members of the class upon the subject under discussion. OPEN SECRETS OF SUCCESSFUL TEACHING 133 V. Class Co-operation It has become so familiar and is regarded so worthy of acceptation as to be considered axiomatic in good teaching, that it is what the individual does for himself and by himself under the teacher's guidance that really educates Co-operation him. J, S. Mill declared that it must be regarded on the Part of ^g ^^^ ^^^y ^^^sis of education that the secret Is Essential ^^ developing the faculties is to give them much to do and much inducement to do it. The con- stant endeavor of the wise teacher, therefore, will be to secure the co-operation of every member of his class. It will not do merely to tell the class members to study the lesson. Even if they were inclined to do so, many would not know how to proceed. The teacher must include each member in his own plans for lesson preparation. He must not only make clear how he wants the lesson studied, but also consider what each can do and assign a possible task to each. The tact and discernment of the teacher will be tested in utilizing to the fullest extent the peculiar abilities of each person in the class. Regard must be had for in- dividual interests. Some member who could not possibly be induced to bring in a statement of Biblical teaching on a particular subject might be quite willing to illustrate a lesson truth by an incident from the daily newspaper. If some one member has marked literary tastes, set him to reinforce a teaching of the lesson by a^ quotation from some modern poet. Another member will almost surely be found to have a fondness for history; let him bring in items of historical information concerning a city or some locality connected with the lesson. Set various members to seeking illustrations from contemporary life. Ingenuity will devise some way of linking each lesson to the interests of a number of class members. Ample time should be reserved for outlining and assigning the work to be done by the members by way of preparation. The teacher may not say that he can not secure the co- operation of the class. If assignments are made with dis- 134 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK cernment, if the teacher points out definitely what he wishes done, if he is not discouraged with meager results at first, but perseveres, assigning, if necessary, very slight tasks, and kindly but persistently insists on a response, results may finally be achieved with any class. A secret of success in securing the co-operation of the class, in this as in any other form of activity, is to be gen- erous in appreciation. Praise is a most effective aid as truly in dealing with adults as with children. Praise ^j^ earnest word of commendation of the mem- Effort ^^^ ^^^ ^^^ done well is not only an encour- agement to that one to try again, but it is much more effective as a spur to the negligent member than any amount of scolding or complaint. A hearty, cordial, grateful "Well done" from a respected teacher will incite an entire class to renewed efforts. To be thus effective, praise must be sincere, worthily bestowed, and devoid of flattery; but when it meets these conditions, there are few things which have greater power of producing desired results. VI. Review As a means of aiding instruction, review is of prime importance. At the same time, it is true that there is no element of the teacher's work so undervalued or so poorly used by the average Sunday-school teacher. Reviews Many make no attempt whatever to use review as a part of the weekly lesson, while the ordinary quarterly review is about the most dull and uninteresting exercise imaginable, looked forward to by the teacher with dread, and by the class with indifference. This situ- ation is the outgrowth of a system of lesson selection which encourages fragmentary treatment, and of superficial and fragmentary preparation on the part of the teacher. Let us consider briefly the nature of a real review, reasons of its importance, and how it may be rendered effective. OPEN SECRETS OF SUCCESSFUL TEACHING 135 A review is more than a mere repetition of words; it is the re-thinking of thoughts ; not merely a viewing over again, but gaining a new view of the same thing.i The review of a lesson involves, therefore, not merely a Defined rehearsal of the simple facts of a lesson, but a consideration of them in the new light gained from a view of all. A still larger meaning and value at- taches to the quarterly review. The lessons before considered singly, and as isolated, now may be seen to complement one another, or to fit together in such a way as to take on new significance and to enforce some new and larger lesson. Thus defined, the importance of the review is not far to seek. It is recognized as indispensable to the complete study of any subject. To neglect it is to fail to take the final step by means of which a series of loosely o™Review* connected lessons may be gathered up into one concentrated truth of largest significance. Re- view is important also (i) to aid the memory, (2) to test the student's grasp of the lesson, or series of lessons, and (3) as a means by which the teacher may test the effectiveness of his own work. Unless he uses some such means, he is very likely to assume that members of the class understand and appropriate teaching which, in fact, they do not compre- hend at all; thus his work is much less effective than it might otherwise be. Some form of review may be devised, no matter what method of teaching is used. One of the most successful teachers the author ever knew was a college professor who used the lecture method exclusively. The first five or six minutes of every lecture hour was used in requiring some l'*To attain the desired end the process of knowing must be repeated, and each repetition, within limits, makes the fact or principle clearer. It is this principle that gave vital meaning to the historic maxim of the Jesuits, to wit : Repetitio viater studiorum. Repetition is the mother of learning only when the acts of learning are repeated. The mere repetition of words, so long the weakness of the old-time schools, was much better fitted by the maxim, Rep- etitio mater stupidoruni." — White. 136 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK student to give a resume of the lecture of the preceding day. None of the class knew in advance who was to be called on; failure to be able to give the report was accounted a serious lapse, consequently every student reviewed the pre- vious day's lecture thoroughly before coming to class. The review may well take the form of a written exercise or examination occasionally. More and more the Sunday-school must make use of the written examination in all grades. If the teacher has considered the lesson as a whole, and has given attention and study to the line of thought and teaching running through a series of lessons, to the cumu- lative teaching of the series, if he has not been lost in a maze of details — if his teaching has been the rearing of a temple and not a mere heaping together of stones, then the review may readily become in his hands the culmination of all that has gone before. VII. Avoidance of Common Mistakes In the Sunday-school teacher's work it is often the little foxes that spoil the vines ; some one or two defects, slight and for the most part easily remedied, utterly spoil the effect of what would otherwise be excellent work. We Common ^^^ j^^j.^ ^j-^jy point out a few of the common Failure. mistakes; the only additional word necessary is, Avoid them. In some cases it will be noted that we have stated as a mistake the converse of what we have above given as a help to success. In other cases, the mistake is one not so much of teaching as of class management, and can be overcome only by means of tact and skill in handling people. Some of the most common mistakes in Adult Bible Class teaching are : 1. Tardiness. Loss of time in beginning. Slowness. Long-windedness. 2. Failure to cover the entire lesson. The hour passes with only one-third or one-half of the lesson treated. OPEN SECRETS OF SUCCESSFUL TEACHING 137 3. Allowing lengthy discussion, especially on topics or doctrines which incite controversy. 4. Allowing one or more persons in the class to assume right of final authority by always having the last word and expressing their opinion as authoritative judgments. 5. Calling exclusively on a few who are more ready of speech than others. This is likely to be interpreted as favor- itism. Some will conclude that they are not expected to take part. 6. Too much exhortation. An over-fondness for preach- ing. 7. Harshness in judgment. A failure to exercise Chris- tian charity. Criticising too sharply. 8. Narrowness and intolerance. Condemning all who do not agree in opinion. Imputing base motives as a reason for non-agreement. 9. Harping continually on one doctrine. Forcing a hobby into every lesson. Lesson Outline: I. The Teacher's Preparation of the Lesson. II. A Lesson Plan. III. Lesson Movement. IV. Artful Questioning. V. Class Co-operation. VI. Review. VII. Avoidance of Common Mistakes. Bibliography: Kellogg, "How to be a Successful Teacher." Trumbull, "Teaching and Teachers." Topics for Special Study: 1. The art of questioning. 2. The function of the review. 138 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK Topics for Class Discussion: 1. The importance of general preparation. Of particu- lar preparation, 2. The value of a definite lesson plan. 3. The significance of lesson movement. 4. The use of questions in the Adult Class. 5. How may class co-operation be secured? 6. The meaning and importance of review. CHAPTER XI METHODS OF INSTRUCTION "The method which has prevailed for the most part is the sermonette method. In the average Smiday-school class self-activity on the part of the pupil has been at a minimum, oftener at zero. In all other educational institutions, from the kindergarten to post-graduate fellowships, the principle now mainly depended upon is 'learning by doing.' Instead of coming into the Sunday-school last, it ought to have come into it first, because it is pre-eminently the method of Chris- tian education, as the Great Teacher Himself said. The Sunday-school teachers who have been most effective have always been those who got the pupils to doing something about the lessons themselves." — L. C. Barnes. "Recitation is the oldest art in education. It goes back to the very birth of teaching, and the true father of teaching was Socrates. I wonder if his dialectic method is not too much in disregard? Yet it is really the one sure way of teaching. And what is there in it? Just two things: First, to make clear to a whole class or single pupil what are the things he does not know about a particular subject. Sec- ondly, to make clear to that pupil what is the particular scrap of knowledge he does possess, and then on that little, tiny piece of knowledge rescued out of oblivion to build other knowledge, and thus out of the pupil's own striving to de- velop still more knowledge." — A. F. West. CHAPTER XI METHODS OF INSTRUCTION. What method of instruction may the Adult Class teacher use with best result? We shall treat four principal methods, the recitation method, the discussion method, the lecture method, and the topical method, as appHed to the teaching of the Adult Class, and then present some general sugges- tions on the subject of method. I. The Recitation Method This is the method most commonly used in all Sunday- school teaching. The members of the class are supposed to study in advance the lesson designated for a Recitation of particular Sunday. During the lesson hour the Lesson^"^ teacher draws out the facts and truths of the lesson by questions, correcting one answer by another, and adding comments. Often he may supplement the pupil's statement by his own. With conditions the most favorable, good things may be said for this method. With ample lesson helps of good quality, and a disposition on the part of the members to thoroughly inform themselves and get the largest possible amount of good out of the lesson, they are sure to be bene- fited. Again, ample opportunity is afforded for self-expression on the part of the class. The members are expected to respond freely to questions asked and are thus stimulated to express in their own words the thoughts of the lesson and the ideas of the lesson writers. As it usually works out, however, not much can be said in commendation of this method. It is easy for the teacher to slight preparation. He is likely to consider the asking of 141 2 142 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK questions on the lesson as a matter requiring not much skill or previous preparation, so he neglects to prepare any in advance. He depends upon the chance inspiration of the moment to prompt questions, and if this fails, falls back upon, or, in teaching at its worst, habitually relies upon, the printed questions of the lesson help. The recitation under these conditions either becomes haphazard, superficial, and profitless, or dull, mechanical, and lifeless. The preparation of questions on a lesson requires an intimate knowledge of the class and the most careful thought and skill. For a teacher to depend on the printed questions of the lesson help is inexpressibly wooden. On the part of the class, this method is likely to result in slight and inadequate lesson study. There is not sufficient stimulus to inspire thorough preparation. Impromptu questions are replied to by superficial answers ; mechanical questions are met by parrot-like replies which quote without thought the language of the book. Usually the questions are simply thrown out and are answered prin- cipally by two or three persons who, because of age, long membership in the class, or a ready tongue, feel called upon to do most of the talking. If this method is used by the teacher, it should be with a full realization of its shortcomings and dangers and a purpose to do all possible to make it worth while. In some classes where the members desire to become accustomed to teaching, this method is used, each person in turn acting as teacher. Such a plan may inspire better lesson preparation. It is well to have an element of mystery by not following exact rotation, but allowing each leader to appoint the teacher for the next Sunday, the class not knowing who is to teach until he takes his place. II. The Conversation Method By this term we mean the method of instruction which encourages the free play of conversation between the teacher and the class, the function of the teacher becoming largely METHODS OF INSTRUCTION 143 that of a leader who guides the discussion, endeavoring by his statements and questions to stimulate the thought of the class and correct and supplement their thought by his own. Thought ^^^ ^^"^ "^ ^^^^^ interchange of thought is to aid Guided and the pupils to discover the truths of the lesson Developed for themselves. He acts the part not simply of by Questions ^ q^j^ master, but of a teacher. The outstanding example of this method of instruction is, of course, Socrates, whose persistent use of this form of dialectic made him one of the most famous of the world's teachers. Jesus also taught in this way. The Gospels give only very brief and summary accounts of His teaching, but in several instances enough is narrated to show that He made most skillful use of this method. An instance is His conversation with the lawyer, narrated in Luke 10 : 25-37 : Student of the Law: What shall I do to gain eternal life? Jesus: What is written in the law? What is your under- standing of it? Student: To perfectly love God and my neighbor as myself. Jesus : You have answered right ; do that and you shall live. Student: But who is my neighbor? Jesus: I will tell you a story. (Relates a supposed case.) Of the three men, the priest, the Levite, and the Samaritan, which was neighbor to him that fell among thieves? Student : He that showed mercy on him. Jesus : Go, and do thou likewise. Note that in this conversation Jesus not once answers directly the lawyer's question; He makes the student answer his own question, and simply bids him do that which out of his own mouth has been defined as supreme duty. There could hardly be a more effective form of teaching than this method at its best. But that it may be at its best there is required a combination of rare gifts on the part of the teacher and of interest and ability on the part of the class 144 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK members which is not often found. Its advantages are not few. It involves expression on the part of the class members. The teacher will not stop short of getting an answer which shows that the student has a grasp of the truth and is able to formulate it intelligently. The value of such an exercise to the student is very great ; the truth becomes his own, and conditions are most favorable for his retaining it. The able and skillful teacher comes into a close contact with the pupil; he discovers the state of his pupil's knowledge upon the subject, his methods of thinking, and ability to draw proper conclusions, and even his inner motives and purposes. In this close contact he is able to guide thought, mold and strengthen right purposes, and rectify motives. The method also has shortcomings. It lays upon the mem- bers no requirement of preparation or study in advance of the class hour, hence preparation is easily slighted. Some few parts of the lesson are likely to receive exclusive at- tention ; it is easy to extend the discussion to an unprofit- able length and to become involved in controversy over unim- portant points. Unless the teacher is skillful in questioning, the conversation is likely to be superficial, pointless, and to degenerate into profitless talk. In cases where the class can not or will not take time for lesson preparation, this may be the best method of in- struction to use. Whenever the teacher decides to use it to any extent, he should make a study of the art of ques- tioning and refuse to be satisfied until he has acquired skill in framing questions, in following up a subject, and in drawing out a pupil. In achieving this, a close study of the Socratic method will be of the largest help. III. The Lecture Method The lecture method of instruction is being used more generally at the present than ever before ; in numerous large classes it is employed exclusively. In classes of a very large membership it is almost necessary to use this method to METHODS OF INSTRUCTION 145 a greater or less extent. In this the teacher delivers an address upon the lesson; the class members take little or no active part. To many this is undoubtedly an attractive fea- ture. Busy working people, with little knowledge An Exposi- of Biblical subjects and little opportunity for in- tion of the forming themselves, especially may welcome the L-cssonby * . . i- , , the Teacher Opportunity of attendmg a class where they are sure of not being asked questions and conse- quently compelled to exhibit their lack of knowledge. A lecture class with a teacher of some reputation has an espe- cially good opportunity for advertising, and under many cir- cumstances may build up a larger attendance than if con- ducted in any other way. It has other advantages. A large number of people may be placed under the instruction of an able teacher, instead of being distributed among a number of inferior teachers. With a really good teacher, it is assured that what is said will be worth while ; there is no opportunity for profitless controversy, and habitual time-killers are silenced. The teacher who has given long and earnest study to the Bible and to other religious subjects is afforded an opportunity to present in a satisfactory manner the results of his study. The method also makes it possible to make use of local leaders of prominence who are specialists upon certain subjects. The pastor may be called on to dis- cuss subjects or to present brief courses at intervals, and thus the pastor and the class are brought into a closer re- lationship. The lecture method is, however, subject to the disad- vantage of not requiring previous study and preparation by the class. What is intended as a concession to over-busy people becomes to a certain extent a concession to spiritual indolence. In proportion to effort expended by the class members, so is the benefit derived. Merely to come together to hear a formal address means little by way of develop- ment or learning for the class. Here, again, we repeat that 10 2 146 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK mere telling is not teaching.^ There is little room for confi- dence that people who can not secure some time for lesson study will have sufficient interest or give such heed as to carry away from a class lecture any appreciable amount of instruction. Again, the method makes no demand of expres- sion of the pupils. That which is not expressed, even though it be heard with interest and attention, is soon lost. It is also to be taken into consideration that the use of the formal address makes the class session something of a rival to the preaching service of the Church, which can not but be very unfortunate. For some classes this method is undoubtedly the best. Every large Sunday-school might well have at least one lecture class. Other classes might have occasional lectures, or brief lecture courses at intervals. IV. The Topical Method By this we mean that method by which the teacher assigns from time to time topics to be prepared upon by chosen members of the class and reports, either written or oral, pre- sented at a designated time. We use this desig- Papers Pre- nation instead of the term Seminar Method, be- pared by the ^ause the latter in most people's minds is asso- lected Topics ciated only with advanced college or graduate courses. The prerequisite for the largest success in the use of this method is a class of interested, studious people who are willing to give time to study and investiga- tion, and who have the ability to go to source books and work out a presentation of a subject for themselves. It is also a decided advantage if the teacher is competent as a Biblical student, able to map out a course, arrange topics, refer the class members to the best helps, and criticise and supple- ment their presentation. The class also must needs have access to a good library. With a small class of eager-minded ITo expect that this (teaching) should be done by preaching or force of lungs, is much as if a smith or artist who works in metal would expect to form and shape out his work only with his bellows." — Robert South. METHODS OF INSTRUCTION 147 people results of the largest worth can be accomplished by this method. It is admirably fitted to give to a class a mastery in subjects of the largest importance. Persevered in, with continued industry on the part of a class of ambitious young people, it will in time make Biblical scholars of the class members. This method might undoubtedly be used with happy result much more largely than it has been in the past. V. General Suggestions I. Method should be suited to conditions. The method of instruction to be used will depend upon the actual condi- tions as regards the class, the teacher, and the course of study. The make-up of the class alone may be Method to be ^^^ deciding factor; the training and ability of Determined by Conditions Determined , , ,, r i • the teacher may narrow the range of choice as to method, and, finally, the methods must needs be suited to the course of study ; the topical method obviously is not at its best when the course of study is the Uniform Lessons. 2. Methods should be varied. The successful teacher avoids ruts. He is not tied to any one method. If the recitation method or the discussion method seems best suited to his class he uses that, but from time The Best in ^q ^jj^g introduces variety by having an occa- All Methods .111 ^1 • • 1 ^ • r to be Used sional address on the prmcipal topic of some lesson, or a lesson exposition by some well-known speaker, or by assigning special topics in advance to be reported upon by certain members of the class, or papers to be read upon the most important subjects. No one method of instruction has all the good qualities ; each may be modified by combining its principal features with some of the more important elements of other methods. For instance, the teacher using the recitation method may occasionally turn aside from formal recitation to develop some phase of the lesson by questioning, following one question by another until 148 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK he has discovered how much or how Httle the pupil may know upon the subject, leading him to discover the larger truth, or the familiar truth in new relations, and to state it in his own way. Again, he may occasionally assign topics of special importance to be reported upon by certain members of the class; a brief report on some particularly interesting and important topic connected with the lesson might well be made a feature of almost every lesson hour. At intervals the usual order might be entirely changed and some one be brought in to present the lesson in the form of an ex- pository address, or some special subject be presented. What- ever method be used, avoid monotony. Variety, variety, variety is the secret of interest. 3. Look well to the spirit of the class room. Be sure that it is cordial and open. Encourage free discussion. Make certain that no one is afraid to venture an opinion. Let the members of the class discuss great and funda- AU Are to . 1 . • ^1 ^ ^1 • Take Part mental questions ; urge them to express their own opinions. If there is a member of the class whose opinion varies from your own, do not fear to let him speak. Do not attribute all differences of opinion and all views and interpretations contrary to yours to the evil one. No one person or creed has a monopoly of truth. Interest in many classes is held at the dead level of monotony by stale and stilted statements of truth. Ingenuity will devise many simple ways in which formality may be broken up and all encouraged to take part in the class discussions. Slips of paper bearing on them the figures I, 2, 3, 4, and so on, may be circulated, and as the lesson proceeds the class members be expected to take part in numerical order. At another time they may be asked to respond in alphabetical order according to the first two letters of their surname, as Ba, Be, Ca, Co, and so on. A few such simple exercises will go far toward promoting a spirit of good fellowship and encouraging all to make their contribution in thought and word. METHODS OF INSTRUCTION 149 4. Connect the lesson with life. Make the closest pos- sible connection between the lesson and contemporary life and the actual lives of the class members. Encourage them Th Lesson ^° bring in illustrations and examples from cur- Must be rent happenings. Refer events occurring in polit- made of ical, commercial, and industrial circles to prin- Practical ciples enunciated in the Bible. As a lawyer goes to his law books for precedents and decisions bearing upon particular instances, as a physician searches his record books for cases with similar symptoms, set the class to seeking for parallel cases in Biblical history. Strive con- stantly to discover principles in your Biblical study, and then insist on the class applying the principle in daily practice. Such a method will effectually do away with separation be- tween the Sunday-school and life and between religious teach- ing and life, both of which have been so much decried in recent years. Lesson Outline: I. Recitation Method. II. Conversation Method. III. The Lecture Method, IV. The Topical Method. V. General Suggestions. 1. Method should be suited to conditions. 2. Methods should be varied. 3. Look well to the spirit of the class room. 4. Connect the lesson with life. Bibliography: Burton and Mathews, "Principles and Ideals for the Sunday-school." See, "The Teaching of Bible Classes." Topics for Special Study: 1. The Socratic method. 2. The use of the topical method in Sunday-schools. ISO 1 HE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK Topics for Class Discussion: 1. The advantages and shortcomings of the recitation method. 2. The benefits of the conversation method. 3. The proper use of the lecture method. 4. When may the topical method be used to advantage? 5. Discuss possible modifications of methods. 6. Give other important suggestions on method of in- struction. CHAPTER XII THE EVANGELISTIC AIM IN TEACHING "I would that nobody should be chosen as a minister, if he were not before this a schoolmaster." — Martin Luther. "Education is more than a transforming process ; it is a creative process." — Brumbaugh. "I would educate human beings who with their feet stand rooted in God's earth, in nature, whose heads reach even into heaven and there behold truth, in whose hearts are united both earth and heaven, the varied life of earth and nature, and the glory and peace of heaven, God's earth and God's heaven." — Froehel. "As a scientific age we have been studying, as no pre- ceding age has ever studied, God's method of working in the external world, and we have become deeply impressed with the way in which law and growth prevail in the divine method. Now, this is well-nigh revolutionary of much of our religious thinking and feeling. It simply means that, almost uncon- sciously to ourselves, we have, to a considerable extent, changed our view of what constitutes the characteristic marks of the divine working." — Henry Churchill King. CHAPTER XII THE EVANGELISTIC AIM IN TEACHING I. The Meaning of the Term Evangelism Jesus was both a Preacher and a Teacher. We find Him frequently addressing large numbers of people ; the Gospels make it clear that much of His time was occupied in teaching Jesus the ^ small group of disciples. In one sentence of First Chris- his Gospcl, Matthew associates these two methods tian Evan- of work. He says : (9 : 35) "And Jesus went gelist about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom," This same statement brings out the fact that Jesus was likewise an Evangelist. Matthew says He was preaching the ojayyiXiov — Latin, evangelium ; English, evangel. The preacher of the Evangel is the evangelist. The evangelistic aim was con- trolling in both His preaching and His teaching. The teacher as well as the preacher may "do the work of an evangelist." This suggests that the terms evangelism and evangelistic properly have a larger content than they commonly have in the thought of many of our people. It is greatly to be re- gretted that these words, so closely related to Evangelism the gospel from the very beginning, have in and Reviv- modern times become identical with a particular Synonymous "^^^hod of religious work. With many no dis- tinction is made between evangelistic and revival- istic. In point of fact, there is a wide difference. Revival- istic relates entirely to a method. Evangelistic is the expres- sion of an attitude of mind and of heart. The revivalistic 153 154 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK method must not be suffered to monopolize the evangelistic aim, which should be controlling in all methods of religious work. II. The Evangelistic Aim What, then, is the evangelistic aim? Expressed in term.s of a person, it is this : To make the Spirit of Jesus con- trolling in the lives of men. Another has expressed it thus, "To bring men into actual communion with the What living God — into sharing His character and joy." Pur^o^e^r"™ The most common expression of it among Meth- odists is probably this, "To get men converted." That this end may be and is attained by means of the re- vival, there can be no doubt. Our contention is that it may be and often is attained by the teacher who has the proper conception of his task and the right attitude toward his work. All education at its best has this aim. Said Froebel: "Edu- cation should lead and guide man to clearness concerning him- self and in himself, to peace with nature, and to unity with God; hence it should lift him to a knowledge of himself and of mankind, to a knowledge of God and of nature, and to the pure and holy life to which such knowledge leads." III. What is Required in a Teacher That the teacher may pursue the evangelistic aim witli faith in the outcome of his work, it is demanded that he have right views of religious experience, and especially of conversion. The prolonged, careful, and exact sion Ex^eri- ^^^^y ^^ ^^^ phenomena of religious experience ences can in recent years has demonstrated that it is quite not Conform unreasonable to expect all persons to pass through to One Type exactly the same form of conversion experience. Modern psychology reveals indisputably that varieties in re- ligious experience have their basis in temperamental differ- ences. All men do not have and can not have identical THE EVANGELISTIC AIM IN TEACHING 155 religious experiences, because all men are not the same tem- peramentally.i One's experiences of every kind, religious in- cluded, are determined by the laws of our own being, by what sort of men we are, psychologically considered. Surely wise Christian workers can not close their eyes to the fact that oft-times the very revival which resulted in bringing some into a joyous new experience and life proved to be a source of disappointment to others who failed to gain the experi- ence which they desired, which they had been led to expect, and which in many cases doubtless was represented as in- dispensable to a real Christian life. Beyond the recognition that there are different types of religious experience, it is essential to realize that one type no more evidences the presence and the working of the Divine than does another. Many have held tenaciously God Works ^Q ^j^g j(jg^ ^^^^ jj^ Qj.(igj. fQj. ^j^g Divine Presence in More Than ^ . -.iii -j j One Way ^^ "^ Unmistakably evidenced conversion must be sudden, striking, and accompanied by highly- wrought emotional states. Does God only speak in the storm? Is He not the God of the plains as well as of the hills? Does He not speak in the still small voice even as in the thunder? If a man is led gradually but ever more and more to conform to the Christian ideal until finally the fruits of the Spirit unmistakably show forth in his life and con- duct, who shall say that he has not been moved by God? "Can the fig tree, my brethren, bear olive berries? Either a vine, figs?" Is it not still true that "by their fruits ye shall know them?" This was the one sure test proposed by the Master Himself, and it still holds. To-day we have come 1 " The type of conversion depends at all times upon the make-up of the in- dividual mind. Some persons can, and others can not, have such experiences. One mind by reason of its " bent " moves through a series of emotional explo- sions toward a goal which another reaches by a calm and steady progress. It is useless to debate the question which of these is to be preferred, for such matters do not depend upon preference. Each has something good, too, which the other has not, and each tends toward faults from which the other is rela- tively free. Neither should prescribe itself as a standard."— G. A. Coe. Z 156 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK to understand the ground of these differences and to know that it lies largely at least in our own make-up. "Our God fulfills Himself in many ways, Lest one good custom should corrupt the world." IV. The Teacher's Special Opportunity The teacher's greatest opportunity will exist therefore in relation to certain individuals. Teaching as an evangelistic agency makes its strongest appeal to persons of a particular type. Those persons are present in every class of any size, and concerning them it is the duty of the teacher to pray ^ ^. , and believe that his teaching of gospel truth will Teaching the , , ,, , ^ >. , , • « Most Effect- ^^ to them the power of God unto salvation, ive Evangel- He is to regard himself as evangelist by appoint- istic Agency nient of God to these souls; he is to have them with Some continually in mind and on his heart, in his preparation and in his teaching; he is to look for a response to the truth to which he gives utterance and encourage every expression of an awakening spiritual life. This may be shown by an increased interest in the study, by a new readiness to participate in the discussions, by a new desire to render some helpful service, or in any one of numerous ways ; but in whatever way it is manifested, it is to be The Teach- regarded as significant and important and tact- ^^i-^-*^^^°"" fully dealt with. Out from our Bible classes sibihty as an -^ Evangelist there ought to be coming constantly men and women to unite with the Church as a public pro- fession of a new life of discipleship. The labors of the teacher whose work is dominated by the evangelistic aim will be crowned with such blessed result. V. The Wider Evangelism Evangelism pertains not alone to those who are not Chris- tians. One part of Jesus' program was teaching in the syna- gogue religious people. It is an essential part of Christian THE EVANGELISTIC AIM IN TEACHING 157 evangelism to make the Spirit of Jesus controlling in the lives of His followers. The work of evangelism is not com- pleted when a person has accepted Christ as his Master. It is to go on until the disciple is as his Lord. Not C^^n-^"* The evangelistic aim will make it impossible for cerned the teacher to be content with merely formal in- Exciusively struction in religious subjects for his part, or with with the ^jjg merely formal acceptance of correct opinions and theories of the Christian life on the part of those whom he teaches. Evangelism places the emphasis upon life. It is not satisfied until the disciple shows that in him the truth lives again. Indeed, modern educational theory holds this when it declares that education is development, not mere instruction ; that it has reference to the whole be- ing, not merely to the intellect. But what is with education a modern theory has been the very heart of Christian evan- gelism from the beginning. "Not every one that saith unto me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven." A mighty evangelistic task thus confronts the teacher who realizes that men and women in his class who have named the name of Christ are living lives of not one whit higher ethical quality than their neighbors who make no religious profession. The evangelistic aim moves the teacher to ad- dress himself to the tremendous task of making the life and the Spirit of Jesus regulative in the lives of those who look to him as teacher, regulative not in one way, but in all the varied and complex relationship of our present-day lives. VI. The Service of the Evangelistic Aim to Teach- ing The evangelistic aim gives warmth and fervency to teach- ing. If teaching is to be effective it can not do without the element of feeling. If the service of feeling to religion has been overestimated in some quarters, it has been under- estimated in others. Cold, pitiless logic may be intellectually 158 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK convincing; it can never be life-giving. It does not provide the atmosphere in which high resolves are made, bonds of habit broken, and new life-purposes born. Christian evan- gelism is ever fervent in spirit. Some one has Feeling is In- g^j,^ ^j^^^ "Evangelistic fervor is the spirit of the to Religion Christian propaganda." It is the spirit of the Christian propaganda because it is the spirit of Christ. Surely no one can study His life sympathetically without realizing that a great fire burned in the heart of Jesus. No man can partake of Christ's heart of compassion, His yearning for the lost, His devotion to the Father's pur- pose and will without also sharing His fervency of spirit. My contention is, that no teacher can come close to Jesus Christ and share with Him His evangelistic aim without having his own heart set ablaze and a fervency imparted to his teaching which will make it doubly effective. Lesson Outline: I. The Meaning of the Term Evangelism. II. The Evangelistic Aim. III. What is Required in a Teacher. IV. The Teacher's Special Opportunity. V. The Wider Evangelism. VI. The Service of the Evangelistic Aim to Teaching. Bibliography: King, "Personal and Ideal Elements in Education:" Chapter, Christian Training and the Revival as Methods of Converting Men. Coe, "The Spiritual Life." Topics for Special Study: 1. Types of conversion experience. 2. Jesus' methods of appeal to men. THE EVANGELISTIC AIM IN TEACHING 159 Topics for Class Discussion: 1. The evangelism of Jesus. 2. The distinction between evangelism and revivalism. 3. The purpose of evangelism. 4. The prerequisites of evangelistic teaching. 5. The limits of the evangelistic appeal of teaching. 6. The scope of evangelism. 7. How the evangelistic aim adds to the effectiveness of all teaching. CHAPTER XIII THE TEACHER COME FROM GOD u "The world is weary of new tracks of thought That lead to naught — Sick of quack remedies prescribed in vain For mental pain: Yet still above them all one Figure stands With outstretched hands." "Thus the Master Teacher becomes unveiled before us in His work. He is the very soul of moral earnestness. He seals His teaching with His life. His whole heart is in all His work. His own behavior shows us how devotion and sin- cerity may be supreme and pure. And His teaching ministry makes us see and feel and know that truth and love and immortality, which stand supreme in Him, may be freely shared by us. So perfect are His ideal and example and art. In all the teaching realm He is the teaching Model for all time. Heaven help us, having caught some visions of His teaching skill, to walk in fellowship with His teaching ways !" — C. S. Beardslee. CHAPTER XIII THE TEACHER COME FROM GOD . The title Teacher, than which none was more honorable or more truly esteemed among the Jews, is applied to Jesus more often in the Gospels than any other. The disciples Jesus was came only gradually to their unshakable con- Most Often viction that He was the Messiah and Lord, but Addressed from the very beginning of His ministry they, as Teacher ^^ people generally, were ready to acknowledge Him as a Teacher. As many as fifty times within the brief compass of the four Gospels Jesus is thus addressed. It remained, however, for Nicodemus, himself an honorable coun- selor of whom much good may be said, to add that quali- fying statement which so aptly expresses the profound judg- ment of many who have given earnest attention and study to His teaching, "We know that Thou art a Teacher come from God." We can think of no special line of study for the teacher of to-day which would be more fruitful in results of the highest character than a serious, prolonged, and detailed study of the qualities, characteristics, and methods of Jesus, the Teacher come from God. The greatest teachers of our age, as those who have preceded them, freely pronounce Him to be the Master Teacher. Let the teacher, then, study the teach- ing of Jesus in all its phases and details. He need not fear that close, systematic, scientific study will detract from his religious faith in Jesus as Christ and Lord. Rather from such a study he is sure to come with his strongest faith deepened, his spiritual convictions intensified, and his rever- ence, loyalty, and love for his Master strengthened. 163 2 i64 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK We can present within the limits of this chapter scarcely more than an outline, which may serve as suggestive of lines along which such a study may proceed. I. The Preparation of Jesus for His Work as Teacher The existing information on the early life of Jesus is meagre, but the few details which we have are both im- portant and full of suggestion. These, together with the light reflected from the period of His active Years of ministry, are sufficient to clearly indicate that arat^on ^^^' ^^^ ^^^^ early years of silence and obscurity were being used as a time of prolonged and intense application in preparation for those which were to come later. Meditation, serious and profound; study, earnest and dili- gent; prayer and communion with the Father, constant and unceasing — such was His preparation for teaching. His medi- tation bore fruit in those sententious utterances which brought from astonished acquaintances the exclamation, "Where hath this man this wisdom?" His study resulted in His famiharity with the traditions of the elders. His thorough acquaintance with the Rabbinical modes of interpretation and exegesis, and in His mastery of the Old Testament, so complete that He was able instantly to quote from it at will. His prayer and com- munion had at the beginning of His ministry become with Him a fixed habit, which made of Him an example to all who should come after Him. His life program may be briefly expressed in these words. Thirty years of preparation for three years of active ministry. Brumbaugh has well said: "What a flood of light this throws upon the relative significance of preparation and of performance of life serv- ice! Most of us would reverse the order. He understood what all of us must come to understand more fully, that we must pay the price in effort and time if we are to reach the point where we can render large and efficient service to the race." 2 THE TEACHER COME FROM GOD 165 II. Qualities of Jesus as a Teacher As we study the teaching of Jesus, certain of His qualities stand forth with pecuHar prominence. 1. His courage. Never the slightest trace of fear can be detected in Him. He trimmed His teaching to suit no occasion. He stood in awe neither of man nor of human institutions, customs, or traditions. He addressed He Knew , , , . , , no Fear governors and kmgs ni the same cahn, even tone with which He conversed with the peasant. He rebuked sin in the mighty with the strongest and sternest denunciation, while He spoke with pity and forbearance to the weak and outcast. He absolutely refused to weigh con- sequences as related to His physical safety. He expressed no need of human counsel or defense, and eschewed the aid of weapon or bodyguard to buoy His sense of safety. He quailed before no torture. He deliberately chose the way which He knew would end in martyrdom, and had no fears in death when the expected came to pass. 2. His freedom from prejudice. The judgment of Jesus was absolutely clear, perfectly balanced. Not the slightest trace of bias, favoritism, or prejudice can be detected in speech or action of His. East and West, Jew He Recog- ^^-^^ Gentile, rich and poor, the privileged and nizedno False , i i n Distinctions ^ common, master and slave, all were on a plane of equality in His sight. He knew no boundaries of class, clan, or race. A citizen of an obscure province, untraveled, and without benefit of much associa- tion with the learned and cultured of His time, yet no trace of. provincialism can be detected In His action or H^is words. He was free to treat every question on Its merits, to meet every man as a brother, to act ever, from the clearest motives. "In Christ there Is no East or West, In Him no South or North ; But one great fellowship of love Throughout the whole wide earth." i66 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK 3. His confidence in men. Jesus imparted His teach- ing to men in the confidence that His words would not be in vain. He knew what was in man. He saw the full mean- ing of sin in the human heart as none other in Men ^^^^ ^^^- "^^ ^^^ "°^ deceived by fair appear- ances nor tricked by the duplicity of deceitful men. In spite of all this, He believed in men and with supreme confidence He laid freely before them the riches of His truth. The full force and meaning of this is realized only when we consider that Jesus based the progress and triumph of His kingdom on the reception or rejection of His message by men. He invoked no external means in behalf of its extension ; He neither offered rewards nor threatened penalties ; He disavowed the use of compulsion of any sort. 'The calm confidence with which He rests on moral means is the grandest tribute that has ever been paid to human nature." 4. His perfect assurance. From the first all hesitation, doubt, experimentation was behind Him. He spoke like a man confidently sure of Himself. "See if you can detect Him betraying anxiety or timidity or uncertainty He Spoke anywhere. See if He ever seems to be feeling Authority ^^^ way, as though in the dark; . . . revis- ing a verdict, as though He had misjudged; knitting His brow as though nonplussed . . . He never seems tentative, as though unclear. He never appears solici- tous, as though unsure. . . . Certainty in Him was ele- mental." (Beardslee.) This quality in Jesus made a quick, profound, and abiding impression upon the men of His time. It was such a decided contrast to the teachers and methods of His day. "For He taught them as One having authority, and not as the scribes." People wait to-day for the teacher in whose utterance the authoritative note is sounded. Not the boastful, bom- bastic cocksureness founded in ignorance and conceit, which confounds rather than convinces, and repels rather than at- THE TEACHER COME FROM GOD 167 tracts. Of that we have too much. We mean the unas- suming, gentle certainty which though quiet is intense and though humble is profound, and which convinces because it gives utterance to the deep convictions of a truly thoughtful mind and an earnest heart. III. Some Characteristics of Jesus' Teaching 1. Intensity. A marked intensity and urgency character- ized all the teaching of Jesus. His utterances were never hasty; with Him there was always time enough, but never a moment to waste. Indolence, ease, apathy He Earnest' would not excuse or condone in a disciple. Only an enthusiast could be His follower. The call was the highest, it required immediate obedience; the busi- ness was most important, it required first attention; the cause was supreme, it required undivided affection. "No man, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God." (Cf. Luke 9: 57-62.) 2. Brevity. We can not but be impressed with the brevity of Jesus' teaching. It must be borne in mind that the Gospels are but summaries, but even so everything goes to show that nothing which He said could be called His Teach- long-drawn. He never wasted words. He came the Pomt ° directly to the point. He never tolerated con- troversial argument. He dealt with the supreme issues of the soul. He treated of conduct, of character, of sin, of duty to man, of responsibility to God ; His teaching swept through the height and the depth, the length and the breadth of life and death, of heaven and earth and hell, yet for literary terseness His utterances stand unequaled. 3. Nearness to life and nature. For the illustrations to point His discourses Jesus went to nature and to common life. He of all men lived closest to the heart of nature. The green fields and the springing flowers, the seed and the tree, the vine and the fishes, the night and the storm, the clouds and the lightning, the wind and the rain, the i68 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK sunrise and the sunset, the rent garments and the bursting wine-skins, the net and the fish, the eggs and the serpents, the pearls and the pieces of money, the wheat and the wine, the corn and the oil — all these and many others He Lived in ^, e r • j_ ^t j • Fellowship Were the means of enforcmg truths and mipress- with Nature ing spiritual lessons upon the minds of men. and Common He dealt with commonplace and familiar things, ^^'® but His teaching itself was never common. There is a distinction here. Many teachers after Him have used common objects in such a common way that their teaching has been wholly commonplace. Not so with the Master. The commonest things of life in His hands took on meanings most profound. He sensed the deeper relation- ships. To Him the commonest objects — a bird, a flower, a little child, were doors opening into the holy of holies. To Him. the commonest acts were steps toward profoundest con- sequences. To His sense of God every beneficent event in nature revealed the Father's love and care. To Him nothing was common or profane; even if it seemed common, it had divine relationships ; even though it showed itself evil, it was the degradation of good and had within itself the possibility of recovery. "His speech was always simple, but it was unfailingly, incomparably profound. . . . His walk was in the very midst of plain men's daily life. But He had eyes to see." IV. Some Particulars of Jesus' Method I. His appeal to the will. In these days, when the importance of the will in the formation of character is being made clear as never before, it is of peculiar in- His Empha- ^grest to note the constant appeal which Jesus Doing made to the will. This is central in all His teaching. He appealed not primarily to reason, as the Greek, nor to the emotions, as the Roman, but to the will. He placed first emphasis, not upon understand- ing, nor upon feeling, but upon doing. At the conclu- 2 THE TEACHER COME FROM GOD 169 sion of the wonderful sermon which has been well called the Great Charter of the New Kingdom, He said, "Whoso- ever heareth these words of Mine and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, who built his house upon a rock." (Matt. 7:24.) His word to those who would be His dis- ciples was, "If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me." (Luke 9:23.) To Him the way of obedience was the way of knowledge: "If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine." (John 7:17.) 2. His use of induction. Almost invariably in His teaching Jesus began with the concrete instance and pro- ceeded from that to the abstract principle. With Him the simple preceded the complex, the particular led He Began ^^p ^.^ ^^^ universal. Beginning with some com- wjth the , . , ,,..,. Particular ^^*^" object thoroughly familiar, or with some concrete fact out of their own experience. He skillfully led His hearers to perceive and to enunciate for themselves the principle which He would inculcate. Says Beardslee : "To show God's care. He points to flowers. To show God's grace. He heals the blind. To teach humility. He points to a blushing child. To show fraternity. He eats with publicans. To demonstrate immortality, He mentions Abra- ham. To show how honor may shine in lowly deeds. He washes His disciples' feet." 3. His use of questions. Very much of Jesus' teach- ing was conversational. Recall how many of the priceless statements of truth which the world will never let die were spoken in informal conversation with one per- Conversation ^°"- ^^ Seemed to consider a class composed of one member as of ideal size. He never dis- missed a class because there were too few present to claim His effort and attention. He seems to have preferred deal- ing at close range to addressing crowds. In these personal interviews He made much use of direct questioning. With marvelous tact and skill He drew from the person expressions 2 170 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK of spiritual need, confession of moral shortcomings, the very truth which He desired to apply, and a profession of personal adherence. (As a striking example, study John 4:5-42.) Would you see teaching at its highest estate? Be- hold Jesus sitting surrounded by a little group of people engaged in quiet conversation, all perfectly at their ease. He encourages every one to speak his mind, listens patiently to every expression, replies to every honest inquiry. The one who is in error He corrects out of his own mouth. The one who is seeking enlightenment He instructs by his own words. There may be disputation, but it never lasts long. There may be prejudice; it is always dispelled. There may be opposition, intense and able ; whatever the situation, at the end of the conversation Jesus is ever the victor, 4. His use of positive principles. Jesus' teaching was in the language of positive assertion. The word of the law had been negative. How strikingly the difference is brought HeFormu- ^^^ ^" ^^^ Sermon on the Mount, in the repeated lated Positive sentences, "Ye have heard that it was said to Principles of them of old time. Thou shalt not . . . but I Conduct g^y yj^^Q y^y^ Thou shalt!" Jesus gave expression to positive principles ; His thought was that positive guidance in right ways is of more value than the prohibition of evil con- duct ; that it is of greater worth and assistance to guide people in right doing than to command them to refrain from evil. In this, again, succeeding ages have followed Jesus afar off. How much of the world's teaching has been akin to that "of old time," negative in form ! Too often the Church has concerned itself more with negations than with positive counsels. Parents have limited their instruction of their children to a category of "Don'ts." To-day as never before the wisdom of Jesus' method is realized and His example is being followed. V. Final Words Beyond all that has been stated as to the manner and method of Jesus' teaching, it must needs be said that He THE TEACHER COME FROM GOD 171 was the Master Teacher because of what He was. John makes a statement of immense significance in this connection when he says of Jesus that He was "full of truth." He taught with effect and power because He and the truth He taught were one. He was the truth. Milton never more truly sang than in this, "He who would be a true poet, or would speak in laudable things, ought himself to be a true poem." Which statement Channing supplements by these words : "I affirm that the efficacy of the Christian religion lies chiefly in the character of Jesus. Christianity separated from Jesus, wanting the light and comment of His char- acter, would have done comparatively little for the world. Jesus with His celestial love is the life of His religion." Lesson Outline: I. The Preparation of Jesus for His Work as Teacher. H. Qualities of Jesus as a Teacher. 1. His courage. 2. His freedom from prejudice. 3. His confidence in men. 4. His perfect assurance. HI. Some Characteristics of Jesus' Teaching. 1. Intensity. 2. Brevity. 3. Nearness to life and nature. IV. Some Particulars of Jesus' Method. 1. His appeal to the will. 2. His use of induction. 3. His use of questions. 4. His use of positive principles. V. Final Words. Bibliography: Beardslee, "Teacher Training with the Master Teacher." Brumbaugh, "The Making of a Teacher." 172 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK Topics for Special Study: 1. The conversations of Jesus, 2. Jesus' use of parable in teaching. Topics for Class Discussion: 1. What were the titles used in addressing Jesus? 2. Which was used most often? Why? 3. How much time did Jesus give to preparation for teaching? How much will you give? 4. Cite instances in which Jesus shows courage in teaching. 5. How is His freedom from prejudice shown? 6. How did He show His confidence in men? 7. What did the people mean by their statement, He teacheth with authority? 8. State and illustrate the characteristics of Jesus' teach- ing mentioned. 9. What is the importance of the will in character formation ? 10. Discuss the place of conversation in Jesus' teach- ing. 11. What was Jesus' relation to the truth which He taught ? CHAPTER XIV RELIGIOUS WORK OF THE ADULT BIBLE CLASS "The great defect in our whole system of religious edu- cation lies in a radical oversight or omission; namely, the failure to perceive that moral and religious education must include moral and religious action, and that it is the duty of the Church not simply to give direction to the work of instruction, but to give direction to the activities of those under its care as well. . . . Our purpose ... is to help the teachers in our Sunday-schools to give some current guidance to the moral and religious activities of the members of their classes. It raises the question, 'In view of the truth of the lesson, what practical things ought we to do during the coming week in fulfillment of that truth?' It enables the teacher at the close of each lesson to say to the class, 'Well, now, we have learned such and such truths from the lesson to-day; now, what immediate use can we make of these truths? How can we carry them out during the week? What shall we do?' And then, having raised these questions, not to leave the whole matter indefinite, but to go forward and put the members of the class upon specific lines of moral and religious practice. The constant word should be, 'We have learned; now let us do.' For otherwise our knowledge will condemn us." — /. T. McFarland. "Seize the very first opportunity to act on every resolu- tion you make, and on every emotional prompting you may experience in the direction of the habits you aspire to gain. . . . No matter how full a reservoir of maxims one may possess, and no matter how good one's sentiments may be, if one has not taken advantage of every concrete opportunity to act, one's character may remain entirely unaffected for the better. . . . When a resolve or a fine glow of feeling is allowed to evaporate without bearing practical fruit, it is worse than a chance lost ; it works so as positively to hinder future resolutions and emotions from taking the normal path of discharge. There is no more contemptible type of human character than that of the nerveless sentimentalist and dreamer, who spends his life in a weltering sea of sensibility, but never does a concrete, manly deed." — William James. 2 CHAPTER XIV RELIGIOUS WORK OF THE ADULT BIBLE CLASS I. Doers of the Word The Organized Adult Bible Class that really justifies its existence will be a power for righteousness and godliness. It will realize that it exists to serve the interests of the kingdom of Jesus Christ. It will be earnest and Motto of the active in all good works, for it will constantly "l^erve."' P^^^ ^"^^ practice the religious teaching which it receives. It will translate theory as to what ought to be done into examples of right living; it will trans- mute high sentiment and strong emotion into concrete deeds of mercy and kindness. The importance of this can not be overestimated. It is based upon fundamental principles. For one thing, we do not really learn anything unless we express it in word or deed. We do not make any truth our own until No Impres- -^ j^^g become a part of us by being performed, sion ^without , i , • , , • i ao-i Expression ^^' ^* ^<^^^t given Utterance m word. ihe ex- pression is a part of the process of acquisition." Again, to arouse emotion, to appeal to the conscience, with- out making sure that the emotion and sense of obligation are carried to their conclusion in action is to undermine the person's power to act in the future. Positive harm may thus be done by the repeated statement of moral and religious truths, by appeals and exhortations, where no opportunity is given for response in appropriate action. An example of this evil may be seen in the weakening of character from the reading of novels which appeal powerfully to the sentiments and emotions, but provide no channel of useful expression. 175 2 176 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK It therefore becomes an essential part of the teacher's task to make of the class a school of practice. Here is the weak- ness of much of our teaching. It consists of constant im- pression without demanding the corresponding The Class necessary expression. "The teacher who makes Practice "° Special effort to secure adequate expression of knowledge and thought falls as far short of his duty as the trainer of an athletic team who would see that his men had proper food in quality and quantity and that they observe the hygiene of digestion, but who would require of them no definite, carefully directed exercise." (Roark.) No doubt it is much easier for the teacher merely to give utterance to the truth and to tell what ought to be done, but the teacher must realize that if he stops short of getting the thing done he is by that much failing to teach. The success, therefore, of the teacher in securing this ex- pression in word and deed is the real test of his work. Too long we acted as though facility in exciting feeling was the In this is measure of successful teaching. Now we ..ire the Test of come to realize that the real significance and Successful worth of emotion and sentiment is in their power Teaching ^^ move the will to act. If they stop short of that they are barren and unfruitful. The most vital require- ment made of the teacher is not that he shall stir the emo- tions, or even that he shall inform the mind, although both are necessary, but rather that he shall provide the will with motive, so that the man who feels and who likewise knows shall go forth to do the right and the good. II. Religious Work Within the Class The class itself naturally presents the primary sphere of religious activity. We suggest a number of definite and im- portant forms of religious service : Cultivate a spirit of good fellowship. Love is the tie that binds. Nothing else is quite so attractive in a class, as in the Church as a whole, as a spirit of genuine brotherliness. 2 RELIGIOUS WORK OF ADULT BIBLE CLASS 177 It need not be much talked about ; indeed, real sympathy and fellowship are better shown by acts than by words, but each should make it his earnest and continual endeavor to de- velop a class comradeship, an atmosphere of genial, open, sympathetic fellowship that will bind the class together in the bonds of Christian friendship. Make the class a means of spiritual growth to every member. This is not altogether the teacher's part. More depends upon the teacher than upon any one else, but the class officers and, indeed, every member shares this responsi- bility. The class sessions and the class fellowship both may be made the means of deepening and strengthening the re- ligious life and experience of many. See to it that the at- mosphere which prevails in the class room is such that it will seem the natural thing for significant spiritual decisions to be made, great purposes to be born, strong resolutions to be formed. Bear ever in mind that unless the class, through its Bible study and its general activities, is building up its mem- bers in true Christian character, it is failing to realize a fundamental and principal aim. Private devotional study of the Word should be empha- sized. Few things indeed so nurture and strengthen the re- ligious life as systematic Bible study. The Morning Watch — a few moments at the beginning of the day given to Bible stud)^ and prayer — has been signally blessed in the lives of thousands of young people. Encourage the members to bring their Bibles to the class session. Class Bible study never amounts to much until the members are sufficiently in earnest to use their own Bibles during the class hour. Encourage church attendance. The members of the class should by all means be regular attendants upon the preaching services of the Church. This should be made a matter of class loyalty. In large classes it may be well to keep a record of Church attendance in order that absentees may be urged to attend. The stated service of the Church should always be announced in the class and an invitation 178 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK given to attend. Make these announcements as varied and attractive as possible. Class prayer-meeting. Many of our classes have a prayer-meeting of their own preceding the Sunday-school session. This may be called either a prayer-meeting or a class-meeting; if the latter, it may well be accounted one of the stated class-meetings of the Church. Such a meeting may do much to deepen the devotional spirit of the class, and especially to aid and strengthen those who are young in the religious life. Visit the sick. Careful attention should be given to the visitation of members of the class who are ill. Inquiry should be made at the class sessions as to whether any of, the members are sick. If there are, careful attention should be given to the matter of regular visitation. Unless plans are made systematically and certain members appointed to represent the class, unintentional neglect may result. If the case is one of severe and prolonged illness, the class should offer its services for attendance upon the sick-bed. The class may well offer to provide the services of a nurse when this is desirable. In other cases, volunteer attendance by members of the class would be more appreciated. Where a death occurs among the members of the class, all possible kindly service should be rendered. The class should make it its business to demonstrate that there is no spirit of fraternity, no bond of brotherhood so strong, so true, and so prac- tically helpful as that which prevails in the Church of Christ and in the Organized Bible Class as a part of the Church. Sometimes, where the illness is not too severe, the regular class session may be held with the sick member. Arrange- ments having been previously made, the class may proceed to the home in a body, hold a brief session of Bible reading, song, prayer, perhaps even lesson discussion, and then repair again to the regular meeting place for the remainder of the session. Such a service may be a means of the largest religious helpfulness. RELIGIOUS WORK OF ADULT BIBLE CLASS 179 Provide a library. The class may well provide a Reference Library for its class room, to be freely at the disposal of the teacher and all the members of the class. Where the Sunday-school does not have a library, either a general library or a reference library for officers and teachers, it may be better for the class to devote its energies to secur- ing either one or both for the benefit of the school as a whole. Where this twofold necessity of a properly equipped school is provided for, it is well for the class to build up a library of its own. To begin with, such a library should contain one of the best Bible dictionaries, a set of good commentaries on the Bible as a whole, a work on Biblical geography, one on Biblical theology (both of the Old and the New Testament), a volume of Lesson Notes of the current year; or, if the class is pursuing some special course, books dealing specifically with the subjects of the course, and the few books which have been published on the Adult Bible Class. Beyond this the scope of the collection may be gradu- ally broadened until in a comparatively brief time the class may have a library that will be of the largest practical value to the class in its work. III. Religious Work for the School Next to work within the class itself, opportunities for helpful religious service will be presented in connection with the Sunday-school. Every active Adult Bible Class will be a real strength to the Sunday-school work as a whole. In the way of definite means of helpfulness, we suggest: Encourage the workers. The Adult Bible Class should fulfill the function of a Boosters' Club. It should constantly talk up the work of the school. If an officer or teacher appears discouraged, proffer a word of hearty cheer. If any department of the school is weak, strengthen it. Some of the teachers may have especially difficult classes to deal with; commend their earnest efforts and their perseverance. Does the superintendent need assistance? Offer him your i8o THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK aid. Let the Adult Bible Class stand behind all the work of the Sunday-school, to strengthen and develop the whole. In some cases the Organized Adult Class has taken the re- sponsibility of organizing and carrying on a Home Depart- ment where none existed before. In other cases, some other branch of the work has been placed under its care for a time. Provide a corps of substitute teachers. Many schools have great difficulty in securing a sufficient supply of teach- ers ; when a regular teacher is absent, his class is unprovided for. Where the need exists, let the Adult Class select from among its members a number of those best qualified to teach ; arrange a definite schedule designating certain members to serve on the first Sunday of the month, others on the second, and so forth, and place this list in the hand of the superin- tendent. Make it a matter of class loyalty to be prepared when one's services are needed. Every Organized Adult Class should be a training-school for Sunday-school v/orkers; this plan helps toward that end. Organize a "Big Brothers" group. In almost every Sunday-school some boys may be found who are greatly in need of the sympathy, the fellowship, the counsels, and the love of a big brother. Some of them are fatherless lads; others come from homes where fatherhood means little, or it may be less than nothing. Here is an opportunity for service of the highest worth. Let each member of the group be assigned a boy with whom to become acquainted and to whom he will agree to be in every possible way a true "big brother." The possibilities of this plan are almost unlimited. Organize a Boys* Messenger Service. This plan in some one of various forms has been adopted and is being used with excellent results by a number of our classes. It is best to take boys of the intermediate age. Details of the plan may be worked out by the class. In some cases a distinctive cap has been provided, also a badge; a regular time designated when the messengers are subject to the call of the leader for any service in behalf of the class, the RELIGIOUS WORK OF ADULT BIBLE CLASS i8i Sunday-school, or the Church. Advertising may be dis- tributed, invitations sent out, or any one of numerous serv- ices performed by such a band. Best of all, the boys are employed in useful activity for the Church, are brought into fellowship with Christian men, and trained in habits of vol- unteer service for a worthy cause. IV. Religious Work for the Church The Adult Bible Class will find many of its opportunities for the most fruitful service in connection with the Church and its activities. In addition to the help which the members of the class may render to the Church as individual mem- bers, there are many things which the class may do as a class. The following ways of working are for the most part examples of what has been done by active classes : Hold special meetings for men. The average evangel- istic meeting is attended more largely by women than by men. It has been found that men will attend a meeting announced as for men only more readily than any other. A week's meetings for men may be made a means of reach- ing many non-church goers. In many places a weekly prayer- meeting for men on Sunday afternoon or some week-night has been the means of accomplishing much good. Conduct evangelistic meetings. The pastor may be glad to have the class get behind a series of evangelistic meet- ings ; announce them as under the auspices of the class ; take charge of the advertising, the music, and the finances ; make itself responsible for active personal work in inviting people to attend, and persuading them to commit themselves to the Christian life. Increase the attendance at the weekly prayer-meeting. Too often the pastor is the only one working for the suc- cess of the mid-week service. The class can do much in its behalf. Build up the Sunday evening service. A dozen people working enthusiastically to increase the attendance and in- i82 thp: adult worker and his work terest of this service could in many cases revolutionize it. Take charge of a Church bulletin board. This should be done under the direction of the pastor. To provide at- tractive announcements for all regular services is a large task for one. A committee from the class can easily attend to it. Publish a local Church paper. In many places this can be made of great benefit to the Church. Make a class contribution to the new church. This may be in the form of some distinctive gift, as an art win- dow, a bell, the pulpit furnishings, a pipe organ, a piano, or in the form of a class subscription. Supply new Hymnals or Bibles. Many Churches are in need of a stock of new Hymnals. Others need Bibles for the pews. What more appropriate service for the class than to supply Bibles for the use of the congregation? Assist the minister in pastoral work. The duties of pastoral visitation, especially in a large church, become onerous. The pastor will appreciate being assured that he may call on the class to visit the aged, the infirm, the poor occasionally. It will relieve him, and do the class good. Take a religious census. Every Church should have an accurate record of the families living within the parish, number in the family, ages, and Church affiliation. This information may be used to very great advantage both by the Church and the Sunday-school. The class might well assume responsibilty for taking the census and for keeping the record up to date. Furnish church decorations, such as palms, ferns, and cut flowers, for the pulpit. Care for the children. A young woman's class might well take charge of a creche in the church parlors, where mothers may leave their young children in good care while they attend Church. Many mothers are entirely deprived of the privilege of Church attendance and of social pleasure because of having no one with whom to leave their children. RELIGIOUS WORK OF ADULT BIBLE CLASS 183 V. Additional Forms of Religious Activity There are many other specific ways in which the x\dult Bible Class can do effective religious work. We suggest a few which seem to us to be of special importance: Hold regular religious services in the county jail. An important and oft neglected field of service. Provide music in hospitals. A Sunday afternoon serv- ice of Christian song in a hospital will bring comfort and cheer to many a lonely and depressed heart. Conduct religious services in the county infirmary. These institutions are often entirely without Protestant re- ligious services. Conduct gospel meetings in schoolhouses. There are many neglected rural communities where the grown people attend no Church and the children are deprived of Sunday- school privileges. Maintain a class quartet, double quartet, or chorus. A class musical organization will have many opportunities to render appreciated service in religious meetings. Supply literature to a frontier school. The mission- aries of the Board of Sunday-schools organize yearly scores of schools in frontier communities which are entirely with- out resources. If they are to be maintained, supplies must be furnished them. Many an Adult Class could easily under- take to provide for one such school.^ Support a Sunday-school missionary. The Board of Sunday-schools keeps a corps of missionaries in the field constantly, organizing new Sunday-schools and aiding the weak schools. One missionary in the first nine months of his service organized forty-one new schools. All are doing excellent service. Their work is of the utmost importance, caring for communities religiously destitute, providing re- ligious instruction and spiritual guidance for children and iThe Board of Sunday-Schools, 57 Washington St., Chicago, 111., will gladly furnish additional information concerning these phases of its work, upon application. i84 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK young people who would otherwise be uncared for, and planting the Church of Christ in new fields. What more noble service could a strong and prosperous Adult Bible Class perform than to assume in whole or in part the sup- port of a Sunday-school missionary?! Form a federation of Adult Bible Classes in a town or city. In this way the power of a single organization will be multiplied, and the united strength of all may be utilized in behalf of religion and righteousness. Such a federation may engage in a temperance campaign, or father a union evangelistic movement, or make a combined effort to enlist the adult people of the community in the organized classes of the various Sunday-schools. VI. The Importance of Leadership in Religious Work The success of the class as a positive religious force will depend very largely upon the teacher and the chief officers. The teacher must be more than an instructor. His work, as The Measure stated above, is not done when he has taught of Results is well, nor even when in addition he has pointed with the out the necessity of an active religious life. He Leaders -g called to be a leader as well as a teacher. This responsibilty is shared by the president of the class, whose functions are not exhausted in presiding over the formal meetings of the class and in discharging some per- functory executive duties. The class is a company in a great army, and these two officers are to lead their force into the fray, so inspiring and so directing that their efforts will be effectual. The average class is willing to be led, but lacks initiative and seeks active direction. There is a vast supply of un- utilized religious enthusiasm, sentiment, and energy in our 1 Write the Board of Sunday-Schools, 57 Washington St., Chicago, 111., for particulars concerning the work and the support of Sunday-school missionaries. 2 RELIGIOUS WORK OF ADULT BIBLE CLASS 185 Adult Classes. Here the officers of the class are put to a vital test. Do they have the ability to call out this interest and energy and to direct in religious channels? Many classes are even going so far as to say to their leaders : Now we are organized. What can we do? It is for the resource- fulness of the officers to show itself equal to the opportunity and the demand and to direct the class in ways of prac- tical Christian service. Nowhere can a ready-made program for any particular class be found. We have shown in this chapter what has been done by some classes. All, however, has been presented by way of suggestion, not as a formal program. It remains for the officers of the class, having measured their resources and realized their opportunities, to make their own plans and carry them into effect. Lesson Outline: I. Doers as Well as Hearers. II. Religious Work Within the Class. III. Religious Work for the School. IV. Religious Work for the Church. V. Additional Forms of Religious Activity. VI. The Importance of Leadership in Religious Work. Bibliography: Reisner, "Workable Plans for Wide-Awake Churches," Chapters II, IV. Topics for Special Study: 1. The place of religious activity in the growth of character. 2. What is the significance of the statement: No im- pression without expression? 3. What are the tests of successful teaching? 4. The value of friendship in religious work. 5. State some possible forms of religious work within the class. i86 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK 6. How may the class aid the Sunday-school? 7. What religious work may the class do for the Church ? 8. Name other forms of religious activity. 9. To what extent does the religious activity of the class depend upon the leaders? CHAPTER XV WINNING MEN TO PERSONAL ALLE- GIANCE TO CHRIST "Reaching one person at a time is the best way of reach- ing all the world in time." — H. C. Trumbull. "I cared not v/here I went or how I lived or what hard- ships I went through, so that I could but gain souls to Christ." — David Brainerd. "The longer I live, the more confidence I have in those sermons preached where one man is the minister and one man is the congregation ; where there 's no question as to who is meant when the preacher says, 'Thou art the man.' " —H. W. Beecher. "Early in my Christian life I made the resolution that whenever I was in such intimacy with a soul as to be justi- fied in choosing my subject of conversation, the theme of themes should have prominence between us, so that I might learn his need and, if possible, meet it." — H. C. Trumbull. CHAPTER XV WINNING MEN TO PERSONAL ALLEGIANCE TO CHRIST I. The Importance and Need of Personal Work In the thirteenth century it was reported against the Waldenses by the papal inquisitor that "He who has been a disciple for seven days looks out some one whom he may Personal teach in his turn, so that there is a continual Work not increase." In every century it has been remarked ^®^ that one of the first evidences of the Christian spirit is the seeking out of some other soul, that to him the blessing of the gospel may be brought. It was so in the first century. How strikingly this is shown in the nar- rative of the first chapter of John's Gospel. Andrew "first findeth his own brother Simon . . . And he brought him to Jesus." Next Philip becomes a disciple by the personal invitation of the Master. Immediately he turns aside from the joy of the new fellowship long enough to find Nathanael and press upon him the invitation to discipleship. This old method of winning men, the very first method, in fact, ever made use of by the Christian propaganda, singularly owned and blessed of God whenever it has been wisely used, has in recent 3^ears been rebaptized with the new name, personal work. What this term signifies is well expressed by S. M. Sayford: "The work itself consists in directing the attention of men to Him, and, with discretion, urging them to accept the invitations of the gospel and order their lives by its teaching." The peculiarity which distinguishes this from other forms of winning men is that in this method interest and eflfort is centered for the time being upon one man in the endeavor to win him to Christ and His service rather than being directed to an audience 189 2 190 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK of many. Both preaching and teaching are the ministry of one to the many; personal work is the ministry of one to one. It brings two persons, one a Christian, the other not, into close personal relationship, a hand to hand, heart to heart contact, the one striving to win the other to allegiance to his Master. It surely needs no argument to show that this is an obligation which every Christian owes to the man on the outside. Not every Christian is called to preach. Nor is every layman called to teach. But every dis- The Obhga- ciple is called to use his power and influence Christian ^^ behalf of winning others to Jesus Christ. The Master Himself makes it the duty of every follower of His, and when once this has been made plain no truly loyal disciple can refuse to enter upon the service. How neglected this service is ! How commonly men fail here! How skillful many Christians are in avoiding the sub- ject of personal religion in business relationships, in social intercourse, and even in their homes ! An official Servlce^*^ ^ member of the Church once came to this writer as a pastor and said: "I wish you would go and call on a family on Street. The man works under me at the shops. His wife is a Methodist. He has a little girl that is not in Sunday-school; he himself is a backslider." "He has just come, has he?" "O, no," some- what reluctantly; "he has been working under me for six years, but I always just supposed he was a Catholic." Six years of daily, close intercourse and never a word spoken for Jesus Christ ! It may be set down as absolutely necessary that if your Bible class is a success in winning men and women to the service of Christ, it will be because some one in the class does earnest personal work. It must not be left entirely to the teacher. The teacher should set the example. Un- less the teacher does it, the class will not be likely to en- 2 PERSONAL ALLEGIANCE TO CHRIST 191 gage actively in it. Let the teacher follow up his teaching with private conversation and earnest personal entreaty. Let members of the class likewise take up the work. Thus the class may be made an efficient soul-saving agency. II. Points for Consideration 1. Difficulty. 'The members of the class, when urged to undertake this service, are likely to make much of the difficulty of it. It is very common for Christians to say that they can not do personal work. As a matter Not too Diffi- q£ £g^.^^ there is no special difficulty connected Other Thfnes ^^^^ ^^' Exactly the same form of effort enters largely into all the affairs of life. Especially in business men make use of it. "The merchant is obliged to employ the commercial traveler to personally solicit patron- age from the men to whom he carries his samples as he travels from town to town. . . . Note, too, the vast amount of personal solicitation done through business cor- respondence — cards, circulars, and letters sealed under letter postage and personally addressed, in order to command the personal attention of those whose patronage is desired." Still another striking illustration may be noted in current political machinery and methods. A certain fraternal benefit association urges personal work in this wise: "To bring in one other member each year involves no herculean labor. It involves no expense, no neglect of one's business, nor even a sacrifice of one's leisure moments. It merely re- quires the exercise on some friend of the persuasive force that nearly every man has if he will trouble himself to use it." Surely that which is so universally used in the common affairs of every-day life can not be said to be too difficult to be employed in the supreme matter of religion and the soul's welfare. 2. Disinclination. As a matter of fact, the difficulty of the work is often urged when the real obstacle is un- willingness to do one's full religious duty. Let this be made 192 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK plain. Let us not mince our words here. If we are unwilling or too spiritually weak and helpless to talk upon subjects of supreme moment in order to bring our fellow class members face to face with questions of life, of death, and Its Neglect a q£ eternal destiny, let us frankly confess it as a Defect moral and spiritual defect, needing as any other weakness to be overcome in order that we may be strong, true Christians. With some, naturally timid or reserved, it will require an earnest purpose and persistent effort. It is worth it. 3. Excuses. Suffer no excuse. An excuse is never justified in a good cause. Some will say they fear to do more harm than good. Discretion and good judgment, of course, must be used. Be sure, however, that Obstacles those who have a disposition to fear that they will make a mistake are the very ones who, if they do undertake the service, will exercise such care and common sense as to make no serious blunder. Then, like anything else, this is a work which must be learned largely by experience. It would be a great mistake for any one to wait until he felt confident of his ability to do the work in just the right way. Others, again, will excuse them- selves on the ground of esteeming a sinner's personality too sacred for them to interfere. This is an excuse of fair ap- pearance, but it may be a very specious one. Certainly a sinner's spiritual interests are too sacred for a Christian not to interfere if he is in danger of losing his soul ! 4. Methods. (a) The method of friendship. No other form of per- sonal work will take the place of, nothing else will ac- complish so much as the influence growing out The Word of ^f friendship. The first obligation of the Chris- a Friend will . . , , . , , t t r Carry the Day ^^^^ ^^ ^° '^^ ^^'^^ ^°^^ °^ ^^^ "^^ OUght tO be. If he is this, personal association with him will be a constant means of Christian grace. Almost the next obli- gation of the Christian, certainly one of his highest privi- PERSONAL ALLEGIANCE TO CHRIST 193 leges, is that of cultivating the acquaintance and friendship of some who are not Christians. If when he has won the confidence and friendship of one not a Christian, he speaks from time to time with him on the deeper themes, and, watching for his opportunity, at just the right moment urges gently but firmly and persistently a surrender to the will of God, his is sure to be the supreme victory of the winner of souls. (b) The secret service of prayer. A high estimate must be placed in this work on prayer as a means of accomplish- ing definite results. In several thousand of the Baraca and Philathea Bible Classes the Secret Service has Things are 1)Qqxi introduced, and every day at noon from "Wrought by ^ , , , . , , Prayer ^^^ ^^ twenty thousand young men and women are asking God for the salvation of unconverted members of these classes. The founder of the movement, Mr. M. A. Hudson, declares that in one year over seven thousand men are known to have been converted in these classes largely through the use of the Secret Service pledge. The form of the pledge is as follows : MY SECRET SERVICE (Matt. 6: 13, 14) 1. I pledge to pray for the unconverted mem- bers of our Bible class every day at noon, or as soon thereafter as I remember this pledge. 2. I pledge to make a list of those to whom I will speak, and to work and pray for them. 3. I will meet the Secret Service members once a month and pray aloud with them, and do all in my power to help bring members to Christ within the next six months. (Signed) (Dated) (c) The letter. Much good may be accomplished by an occasional friendly letter urging the claims of the Christian 13 2 194 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK life. This method has distinct advantages. Often it takes the man when he is ofif his guard. He has no opportunity for excuse or defense. The appeal may be made without interruption. A letter should in no case be A Letter written to one to whom you would not be will- asoul '^^^ *° speak on the subject. It should not be taken advantage of as a substitute for personal conversation. Careful attention should be given to its con- tents; it should be reasonably brief, gentle, and loving — an entreaty rather than an exhortation. A study might well be made of Paul's letter to Philemon as a model. "How it breathes affection and sympathy and tender entreaty ! . . . Study this letter and have your heart saturated with its spirit. You will then know how to write 'words that touch' to your unsaved friends." (d) A Personal Workers' Group. In many of our classes let a Personal Workers' Group be organized to take up the study of the subject and to devise and Class Oreani- ^ ^^^ practical plans of work. This is zationforPer- , . , , . , , , sonaiwork ^^^ ^" ^^^^ thmg to do, but it has been done successfully and it ought to be done in more of our classes.! 5. Secrets of success. (a) Tact is of infinite worth. Tact in method of approach may save the day, while lack of it may lose the case at the very beginning. Tact considers the temperament Common ^^ ^^^ individual. To some one may speak Sense m . , , . , , , Action ^^t" ^"^ Utmost freedom, to others only most gently and guardedly; some require rebuke in the name of the Lord; many more a word of loving and sympathetic entreaty. (h) Earnestness counts. Says Spurgeon : "If a man is to be a soul-winner, there must be in him intensity of emo- IThe International Committee of the Young Men's Christian Association publishes numerous pamphlets on Personal Work. Among other titles are these: Personal Work: How Organized and Accomplished, Mott-Ober; Christ as a Personal Worker, Messer. 2 PERSONAL ALLEGIANCE TO CHRIST 195 tion as well as sincerity of heart. You may repeat the most affectionate exhortations in such a half-hearted manner that no one will be moved either by love or fear. I Enthutkism°' believe that for soul-winning there is more in this matter of earnestness than in almost any- thing else." (c) Know your man thoroughly. It is important not only to have a business or social acquaintance with him, but to know his surroundings and something of his history. Other- wise you draw your bow at a venture and most Acquaint likely accomplish nothing. Know his inner li."-; X°T^\^^'*^ discover his ideals and his ambitions; penetrate the Real Man , to his secret longmgs. The man you see on the street, in the place of business, or even in the class room may not be the real man at all. You must know the man as he is before you are in a position to help him. (d) Look well to your motives. Have you a real personal interest in this person whom you assume to help? Or, are you doing the work because some one urges you to do it? Or, is it a matter of a passing emotion with you ? Question j)Qgg y^yj. activity arise out of a deep, abiding Your Own consecration of your life to God, or are you Soul "^ 1 • -I moved to this by some temporary enthusiasm.-' The sort of personal work that arises from a temporary religious ecstasy which impels people to go and speak to others almost indiscriminately, asking them baldly if they are saved, or exhorting them on a street corner to "come to Christ," has aroused much prejudice against the form of Christian service of which we speak and often, undoubtedly, does more harm than good. (e) Have patience and persistence. "More men are' won by siege than by attack." This is not a battle Not the which we may expect to win in a moment or ^^y°* in a day. Eternal issues are involved. Have patience. Never lose faith. Never give up. It may be well to allow your friend to think that you have given up, but all the while be waiting for the opportune time 2 196 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK to renew your appeal. The time will come when, probably with a surprising suddenness, the surrender will be made. (f) Your dependence is in God. S. M. Sayford relates how he was won to a Christian life through the persistent effort and prayers of Mr. E, R. Graves, a commercial traveler. The young merchant met the proposal of the The Battle knight of the grip to put his name on a private but God's^'^^' P^'^y^^ l^st with the statement that he had de- termined not to be a Christian, and that any mis- sionary who expected to pray him into the kingdom was taking too big a contract. The salesman simply replied, "I confidently expect my prayer to be answered," and it was. As illustrative of how one man's dependence upon God brings about great results, Mr. Sayford goes on to say that after he had been won through the prayers of Mr. Graves, he in turn led C. K. Ober into active Christian work, who in turn influenced John R. Mott to enter into work for young men, and John R. Mott became the founder under God of the World's Christian Student Federation, a world-wide organi- zation of Christian college students. III. The Effectiveness of Personal Work In evidence of the effectiveness of personal work, we offer the testimony of two men, both of them widely known because of eminent service to the cause of Christ. One is Henry Clay Trumbull, who says: "In this (superintending The Most ^ Sunday-school) I found that I could do most of Service ^"^ ^^^^ ^^^ ^^ charge by appealing to the in- dividual when he and I were alone together, rather than by my most effective appeals from the desk or by my most attractive endeavors to impress the school as a whole. . . . For three years I was privileged to be in active army service (as chaplain). There, again, the Chris- tian work that told was not that of address to a collection of persons, but the man-to-man appeal of the chaplain to the single officer or soldier, when no one else was within sight PERSONAL ALLEGIANCE TO CHRIST 197 or hearing. . . . Later (in Sunday-school work) I ad- dressed gatherings of persons in numbers from ten to fifteen to five or six thousand each. . . . Later, I have been for more than twenty-five years an editor of a religious periodical that has had a circulation of more than a hundred thousand a week during much of the time. Meanwhile, I have pub- lished more than thirty different volumes. Yet looking back upon my work in all these years, I can see more direct re- sults of good through my individual efforts with individuals than I can know of through all my spoken words to thousands upon thousands of persons in religious assemblies or all my written words on the pages of periodicals or of books." The second is the statement of J. O. Peck, known in his day as a great preacher and one of Methodism's most suc- cessful pastors : "So great is my conviction of the value of personal effort as the result of a life-work of winning souls, that I can not emphasize the method too strongly. If it were revealed to me from heaven by the archangel Gabriel that God had given me the certainty of ten years of life and that as a condition of my eternal salvation I must win a thousand souls to Christ in that time; and if it were further conditioned by this, that I might preach every day for the ten years, but might not personally appeal to the unconverted outside the pul- pit, or that I might not enter the pulpit during these ten years but might exclusively appeal to individuals, I would not hesi- tate one moment to make the choice of personal effort as the sole means to be used in securing the conversion of the one thousand souls necessary to my own salvation." Lesson Outline: I. The Importance and Need of Personal Work. II. Points for Consideration. 1. Difficulty. 2. Disinclination. 3. Excuses. 198 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK 4. Methods. 5. Secrets of success. HI. The Effectiveness of Personal Work. Bibliography: Sayford, ''Personal Work." Trumbull, "Individual Work for Individuals." Mahood, "The Art of Soul- Winning." Topics for Special Study: 1. The personal work of Jesus. 2. The use of Scripture in personal work. Topics for Class Discussion: 1. What is personal work? 2. Historic uses of this method of winning men. 3. The Christian's obligation to engage in this service. 4. What is to be said of the difficulty of personal work ? 5. Explain the disinclination of Christians to engage in it. 6. Consider some common excuses. 7. The value of the method of friendship. 8. What are other methods? 9. State the most important secret of success. CHAPTER XVI PRACTICAL FORMS OF SOCIAL SERVICE "Is not this the fast that I have chosen : to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke? Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? When thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh? Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thy healing shall spring forth speedily; and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of Jehovah shall be thy rear- ward. Then shalt thou call, and Jehovah will answer; thou shalt cry, and He will say, Here I am." — Isaiah. "The distinctive marks of the movement are the brotherly spirit which unites the members, and the simplicity, reality, common sense, and mutual helpfulness that characterizes its work." — Sadler. "We should never let our young people feel that they had finished when they had acquired certain information out of the Bible. We should open their eyes to see the thousand op- portunities about them for serving other people, and we should impress it upon them that Christianity aims to increase the value of one's life by enlarging its usefulness. And it is not sufficient that we should simply tell the members of our classes these things, but we should show them how they may increase the value of their lives through service. It is a positive and amazing revelation to many that at their very doors are many opportunities for relieving suffering, for help- ing the weak, for encouraging the downcast, for restoring the fallen. We are just coming to realize that Christianity covers the whole scope of life, and that Christian duty requires us to do what we may for the betterment of the community in which we live, and for the removal of physical and moral dangers, making the world safer and more wholesome for those who live in it." — /. T. McFarland. CHAPTER XVI PRACTICAL FORMS OF SOCIAL SERVICE I. What is Social Service? Social service is simply putting into practice Jesus' new commandment, "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another." To accept this as beautiful teaching Social Serv- ^^ "°^ enough; the organized class is an ex- ice is Chris- cellent means by which to insure that it shall tian Love in be put into practice. Through its distinctively Action religious work the class may forward its benefi- cent ministry to the inner life, but for its own sake as well as for the help it will be to soul ministry, service to the bodies of men and activity in behalf of their economic and social welfare should not be neglected. If we love men as Jesus loved them we will minister to them as He ministered to them, only in broader ways because centuries of advancing civilization have made possible even greater ministry than He exercised. "Greater things than these shall ye do." He healed the diseases of a few, we may prevent the en- croachment of disease among the many by insuring that sanitary conditions are what they should be and chat pre- ventative measures are made use of; He raised the widow's son from the dead, we may provide hospitals with free bed wards in which the poor and the unfortunate shall have such skillful medical treatment that for many widows' sons the hand of death shall be stayed ; He fed the multitude for a day with bread, we may see to it that employment is open to men in which a sufficient wage is given to supply bread for all the days of all their years ; He cast out demons from a few, we can see to it that such evils as the licensed saloon, the brothel, the impure book, and the lewd play cease their 201 - 202 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK baneful activity in turning thousands of our fellow-beings into human demons. This is work for Christ. It is just such service as He Himself delighted in, and such as He ex- pected His Church would approve and engage in. To do this is to come back to the teaching of the prophets and to the practice of Jesus, nor is it aHen to the former custom of the Church. The founder of Methodism, John Wesley, was active in word and deed in behalf of temperance, the education of the masses, poor relief, savings ; he actually established among the first Methodists loan funds, free medical dispensaries, employment bureaus, friendly visit- ing, and homes for the aged. More and more we are coming to realize that the Chris- tian religion covers the whole scope of life and that our Christian duty is not fulfilled when we have performed those duties commonly described as religious. The Christian's re- ligious duty is not to himself alone, nor merely to the spir- itual welfare of his family and intimate associates; rather it extends to the community and to society at large, and is fulfilled only when he has done what he can in behalf of all the higher interests of his fellow-men. He of all men should be able to say, I am a man and nothing that concerns humanity is foreign to my interest and care. II. The Church and Social Service The teacher and officers of the class should familiarize themselves with the position of the Church on the social problems and needs of our day as voiced in the statement adopted by the General Conference of 1908. Hav- The Social jj^g ^^^^ ^j^jg^ ^j^^y should endeavor to impress »(lethodism "poi^ the class the importance and need of social service, and enlist the class as a whole and as individuals in definite forms of social activity. We can not do better than quote here a section of that authoritative statement: "The Methodist Episcopal Church stands: For equal rights and complete justice for all men in all stations PRACTICAL FORMS OF SOCIAL SERVICE 203 of life. For the principle of conciliation and arbitration in industrial dissensions. For the protection of the worker from dangerous machinery, occupational disease, injuries, and mor- tality. For the abolition of child labor. For such regula- tion of the conditions of labor for women as shall safeguard the physical and moral health of the community. For the suppression of the 'sweating system.' For the gradual and reasonable reduction of the hours of labor to the lowest prac- tical point, with work for all; and for that degree of leisure for all which is the condition of the highest human life. For a release from employment one day in seven. For a living wage in every industry. For the highest wage that each industry can afford, and for the most equitable division of the products of industry that can ultimately be devised. For the recognition of the Golden Rule and the mind of Christ as the supreme law of society and the sure remedy for all social ills.''^ III. Ways of Working We proceed to mention some practical ways in which the class may engage in helpful social service. Let us say here again that neither in these nor in any other activities of the class should there be under any circumstances rivalry or what may be construed as competition between the class and the Church. The Church may itself be organized to do some of the things which we suggest. If so, let the class fall in heartily with the Church's plan, and as individuals let the class members be earnest and active in the work of the Church. In some cases the Official Board may be induced to plan definitely to carry out some of these sug- gestions ; if so, all the better. There is abundant oppor- tunity for the class to enlist its members in forms of service IThe statement in full, together with various pamphlets upon the same subject and information concerning the purposes and plans of The Methodist Federation for Social Service, may be secured by addressing William M. Balch, Secretary, Dover, N. H. 2 204 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK in which the Church is not active and which it may not seem practicable for the Church as such to take up. Protect the weak and helpless. If laws against evil doers are to be enforced, and if helpless children and even more helpless adults are to be protected from ill treatment and oppression at the hands of unscrupulous and villainous men, the Christian forces of the local community must needs be alert and watchful. Sometimes it will be necessary for authorities to be informed, for protests to be voiced, and even for positive legal measures to be resorted to. Why should the Adult Bible Class not see to it that no liquor is sold to minors or to drunkards, that young girls are not lured to dance halls and evil resorts, that obscene literature is not sold to young people, that, in fact, all laws designed to protect the weak and guard the moral welfare of the young are enforced? If the need exists, let the influence and power of the class be used in behalf of securing from councils and legislatures improved legislation along these lines. The improvement of living conditions. In many of our local communities there are districts where conditions are such as to menace both physical and moral health. This is true not alone of large cities. We have heard much of the dark, damp, crowded, unsanitary tenements of the cities. Many a small city has its poor district along the river bottom, or in an interior swamp, or perhaps in too close proximity to manufacturing establishments which pour out noxious gases or otherwise pollute the atmosphere. In other cases the dis^ posal of sewage or of waste products of commercial estab- lishments is such as to pollute the water supply. The entire community continues to give silent sanction to conditions which undermine health, destroy life, and breed crime. What need here for arousing community conscience ! These gen- eral suggestions may point out to some of our classes oppor- tunities for social service of highest value. Care for the poor. If the local church is not well or- ganized for systematic charity work, much may be done in PRACTICAL FORMS OF SOCIAL SERVICE 205 this direction by the Adult Class. Not infrequently some member of the Church, as a result of old age, illness, or misfortune, is in need of pecuniary aid; everywhere there are neglected children to be cared for. Supplies of good second-hand clothing can always be put to good use. We often hear it said that there is no actual distress in "our Church" or "our community," when, if the situation were actually known, not a little real destitution and want awaits relief. Secure employment. At certain seasons of the year, and during periods of industrial depression, and in large cities all the while, there are men and women out of work. Many others are not engaged in suitable or in remunerative employment. By means of a committee, or otherwise, the class can do much both by way of securing employment for the unemployed and by way of securing employment of a suitable kind, and under right conditions of wage, sani- tation, hours, and environment, especially for young men and women. Secure home accommodations. Great numbers of young people come into the cities each year to engage in work in offices and factories. Many of them, wholly unacquainted, engage room and board where conditions are entirely unfit for a healthy moral and religious life. At their homes they were unsullied, perhaps even actively religious. Under the new conditions they at first drift, then lose religious interest, cast away restraint, yield to temptations, form pronounced evil habits. Some of our classes are so situated that they could do much by way of finding homes with Christian families for young people from the country; at least locating them where the moral influences are good and where Church attendance is easily possible. If these strange young people are to be won to the Church, or retained to the Church and the Christian life, the efforts of the pastor must be supplemented by those of the members of the Adult Bible Class. 2 2o6 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK Protection of human life. Christian sentiment in behalf of the protection of workers in dangerous occupations must needs be still further aroused. The sacrifice of life through unnecessary occupational diseases in our country is a re- flection upon the nation. The number of workers killed and maimed by machinery unequipped with safety devices is an awful and wholly unnecessary sacrifice. Let our classes inform themselves on these subjects and use their influence in their several localities for the betterment of existing con- ditions. Aid in social settlement work. Many of the social settlements in the large cities are doing a noble work. Most of our churches are located long distances from the colonies of immigrants and laborers. They will not come to our services, for they speak foreign tongues and know only for- eign customs. We must go to them. Our ordinary Church methods fail to reach them. "They do not understand us or our methods; our creed is heresy to them; all attempts to proselyte are regarded as devilish enticements to dis- loyalty to ancestral faith." The settlement offers an oppor- tunity for broad-minded, educated people, by geniality, patient teaching, fellowship, and friendship to become Good Samari- tans in a large way to many people. Too largely this work has been left to people not identified with the Churches. It would be well for the class in the large city to place itself in touch with some Social Settlement and plan to be represented by some one or more of its members as residents. Co-operate with general philanthropic agencies. In general, it is impracticable for the local Church to maintain its own hospital, home for aged members, day nursery, med- ical dispensary, or even gymnasium. These and other im- portant philanthropies must be carried on by agencies which have a wider constituency. The Church and its subordinate organizations must as a rule aid such philanthropies by co- operation with outside organizations. Let the Adult Bible Class, after consultation with the Church Board and the pastor, PRACTICAL FORMS OF SOCIAL SERVICE 207 assume the obligation of co-operating with some one or two important philanthropic agencies. Such friendly co-operation, personal aid, and material assistance is needed, should be given, and will be appreciated. Inaugurate a free lecture course. Much good can be accomplished by means of free lectures or addresses on such subjects as Needed Social Reforms, House Sanitation, Med- ical Information for Laymen, Our Laws and Their Enforce- ment, Child Labor, Benefits and Dangers of Trade Unionism, Organized Charities, and any one of a large number of other subjects which lie perhaps just outside the range of pulpit treatment and yet are so vital to the larger work of the Church and the kingdom. Secure parks and playgrounds. Use the influence of the class in behalf of public parks, adequate playgrounds for children, the beautifying of streets by systematic planting of trees, and the improvement and maintenance of local places of natural beauty or historic interest. Conduct a fresh-air camp for the city children. Thou- sands of the children of the tenements know nothing of open fields, clear skies, and natural forests. A week in the country will introduce them to a new world and give to life a new meaning and outlook. For some it will provide a new lease on life. What more beautiful or worthy charity could there be than such as this to some of God's little ones? Lesson Outline: I. What is Social Service? II. The Church and Social Service. III. Ways of Working. Bibliography: Tippy, "The Socialized Church." Rauschenbusch, "Christianity and the Social Crisis." Peabody, "Jesus Christ and the Social Question." Henderson, "Social Duties." 2o8 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK Topics for Special Study: 1. The social teaching of Jesus. 2. Organized charity in our community. Topics for Class Discussion: 1. What place did social service have in the ministry of Jesus? 2. Is social service a new thing in Methodism? 3. What are we to understand by our religious duties to men? 4. How has the Church defined its position on the question of social service? 5. Possible forms of social service in our community. CHAPTER XVII GENERAL CLASS ACTIVITIES 14 "He that loveth a good book will never want a faithful friend, a wholesome counselor, a cheerful companion, an effectual comforter." — Barrow. "Many and many a time a good book, read by a boy, has been the direct source of all his future success ; has inspired him to attain and deserve eminence ; has sent him on the paths of discovery; has been as a sheet-anchor to all that was noblest in his character; has contributed the predominant element to the usefulness and happiness of his whole life." — Farrar. "To man propose this test: Thy body, at its best. How far can it project thy soul On its lone way?" — Browning. CHAPTER XVII GENERAL CLASS ACTIVITIES I. Social Life of the Class 1. Necessity and value. The members of the Adult Bible Class will have some sort of social life. If the class itself does not provide for meeting the need for social enjoyment, the members will find it under other mental Need ^tispices, and it may be in forms not consonant with the highest Christian ideals. The class, therefore, has a responsibility to its members in the matter of providing proper social diversions. The social feature must not be allowed to become so prominent as to smother re- ligion. Kept within bounds, it will be a pronounced help to the entire work of the class. Sociability promotes friend- liness and good feeling. Laughter, mirth, and healthful en- joyment provide needed relaxation from labor and business cares and are a general stimulus to physical health and moral stamina. Moreover, the social affairs of the class in which all mingle on equal terms will tend to break down artificial and harmful barriers and promote true democracy of feeling and association. If they are pervaded by the hearty good-fellowship and cordiality which should be char- acteristic of them, they will prove to be a door through which many people will enter the class. 2. General suggestions. Every properly organized Adult Bible Class has a social committee. The general direction of the social life of the class should be in the hands of this committee. A few suggestions on important points will not be out of place. Whatever is attempted should be attractive and worth while. The make-up of the class 212 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK will determine somewhat the character of the socials to be held. The class officers should be able to tell what would fit best. The events should not be gotten up on the spur of the moment, but be planned weeks ahead, well Have a Well- announced, and thoroughly advertised. Make cial Program ^"^^ ^^^^ every member of the class is informed; give special invitations to any who are sick or have been absent from the class sessions. When the time comes, carry out the program decided on with promptness, enthusiasm, and good-cheer. Tolerate nothing irreverent or vulgar; remember who our Leader is. Make every one en- joy themselves. Pay especial attention to strangers, the elderly people, and those who seem backward or ill-at-ease. Ex- pect that the occasion will demand time, energy, and effort, and give of yourself freely to the success of the evening. Use the members of the class in these social events. It is well to ask every member to. make some contribution to the class social program in the course of the year — a read- ing, a vocal or instrumental selection, or some original form of entertainment. 3. Suggestive plans. Most of the following plans are such as have been actually used by Adult Actual Use Classes and are, therefore, known to be of practical value: Social Affairs for a Year. The following suggestive pro- gram for twelve monthly socials to be given by the various Adult Bible Classes of the Sunday-school was contributed by Mr. George F. Zaneis to The Adult Bible Class Monthly for February, 1908: September — Vacation Experience Social (Men's Class). October — Annual Class Dinner (Men's Class). November — Harvest Party (Mixed Class). Decem- ber — Christmas Program (Men's and Women's Classes com- bined). January — First Class Reception (Classes Separately). February — A National Program Party (Ladies' Class). March — Shamrock Party (Mixed Class). April — Stunt Social (All the Adult Classes). May — Flower Social (Woman's GENERAL CLASS ACTIVITIES 213 Class). June — Garden Party (Young Ladies' Class). July — Picnic or Outing or Woods Party (All Adult Classes). Class Dinner. At least once a year the class should ar- range for a Class Dinner, at which the entire class will come together in a pleasant, social way. It is not necessary that this should be formal or elaborate. It is essential that it be planned on such a basis that every member of the class may be present without personal sacrifice and that it be made the occasion of heartiest good-fellowship. Two or three toasts by happy after-dinner speakers will add much to the enjoyment of the occasion. In Honor of the Pastor. Invite the pastor to be the guest of the class at a social meeting. Provide some means of entertainment, and as the principal feature of the pro- gram ask the pastor to speak en "How the Adult Bible Class Can Plelp the Pastor," and the teacher or president to respond in behalf of the class. Entertain the Elderly People. Provide a pleasant enter- tainment for the old folks. The aged saints are too often overlooked. Invite them to be the guests of the class at an entertainment at which a program will be given in their honor. Excursion. Entertainment and profit may be combined in an excursion by water, rail, or trolley. Some place of natural beauty or historic interest may be the objective point, or the trip may be planned for the purpose of attendance upon some convention or conference. It would be helpful for the class to visit in a body another class of a nearby town ; let the receiving class furnish refreshments and the guests pro- vide the program. Some time later let the order be re- versed. Inspiration and enthusiasm for months to come may be gained by attendance upon some one of the great summer assemblies held under the auspices of various religious or- ganizations. Provide a special class Excursion Savings Bank, and begin to accumulate funds early in the year by weekly dues or voluntary contributions ; when the time comes, meet all expenses of travel from the common fund. 2 214 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK Aden's Supper. Make the men responsible for the entire management of a class social — buying or soliciting, cooking, serving, and all the rest. Arrange some unique features. Any book of social plans will furnish numerous suggestions. In several cases the progressive supper plan has been used with much success — each course served at a separate table, the guests passing in a body from one table to the next in order. Another good plan is to serve the supper as in a cafeteria; place tables at one side of the room with single portions of each item of the menu, and let the guests help themselves. In the city it is well to have these occasional suppers at an early hour — six or six-thirty o'clock — in order that the men may come directly from business. Weekly Dozvn-town Luncheons. Some of our city classes have found the fellowship of a class luncheon once a week or once a month helpful. It creates a class spirit and brings the members closer together. Conversation Social. Arrange the company in groups of three with one to advance to the next adjoining group every three or five minutes, the members thus to advance by turn, or by choice of the best conversationalist, as may be de- cided. Assign varied topics of conversation to each group, such as the cost of living, health and happiness, vacation experiences, how to build up the class, our mission to our island dependencies, city government, wealth and culture. When tongues are tired, change to a musical program or to some simple game. Titles of Socials. We give a list of socials by titles which may prove suggestive. Almost any plan must be adapted to local conditions; from these titles each class may be able to work out a plan of its own: Hard Times, Old Folks, Election Returns, Mystery, Bean Banquet, Park, An Even- ing with the Old Masters, a Valentine Social.^ 1 There are a number of books of plans for social evenings on' the market. A list of these with prices may be secured free by addressing the Methodist Book Concern, New York, Cincinnati, Chicago, or any of its various Depos- itories, 2 GENERAL CLASS ACTIVITIES 215 II. Literary Interests 1. Importance. In most of our classes there exists a decided need to awaken a literary interest and to cultivate a taste for the best literature. "A good book is the precious life-blood of a master spirit embalmed and treas- The Influence ^j-ed up on purpose to a life beyond life." "Our Books ^^^^ especially need courage and gladness. The struggle for existence grows every day more keen. Amid the vast growth of population ; amid the in- creasing difficulties of earning an honest subsistence; amid the reactions of lassitude caused by the wear and tear, the strain and stress of daily life ; amid the depression and un- certainty created by problems yet unsolved we need every possible counteraction of irresolution, weariness, and gloom. The influence of great books would enable us, more perhaps than any other influence, to acquire our own souls in con- fidence and peace." An effort may well be made toward creating an appetite and love for the best literature — the greatest books and the highest class periodicals. Patience and persistence will be needed as development in this direc- tion is sure to be gradual and most often slow. 2. Practical plans. In a large class a literary com- mittee should be called into being to promote literary in- terests and to work in co-operation with the social com- mittee in planning class events which will com- Commiuee ^^^^ ^^^^ literary and social features. Be sure that the one at the head of the committee is a person of good literary taste. The following practical sug- gestions may be found serviceable : An Evening zvith Noteworthy Books. Let each member agree to represent some noteworthy book. For social diver- sion have first a guessing contest to identify the titles repre- sented. Award a gift book to the one whose costume is the best representation. Follow this by having each read a selection from the book he has represented, give a review of it, or narrate the circumstances, manner, time of Its writ- 2 2i6 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK ing, with an account of how it was received at first. This program combines, as will be seen, both social and literary features. A Book-a-Month Circle. Form a circle or group of mem- bers of the class who will agree to read a book a month during the year. See to it that good books are read. Let the literary committee receive suggestions from the members and then make out a selected list of books. Each member of the group may buy one, two, or three books, as may be necessary, and these may be passed around the circle in turn. A little planning will provide some effective form of co- operation. Have some new and some old books ; provide for variety in subject matter — fiction, biography, art, poetry, religion, science, and travel, — all should be represented. The time commonly spent in what Lowell spoke of as dabbling about in "the stagnant goose-ponds of village gossip" will easily suffice for the reading of one helpful, informing, and inspiring book each month of the year. An Evening with a Celebrated Author. The anniversary of the birth of some noted author forms an appropriate occasion for a literary meeting at which his life history, his character, and his writings may be treated in an interest- ing and informing manner. The birthday of such eminent authors as Milton, Tennyson, Whittier, Longfellow, and any one of many others might well be taken account of. Literary Lecture. An occasional high-class lecture on some literary subject should be provided for. It would be an excellent thing for the class to provide such as an annual event and invite the entire Church as its guests, all expenses to be defrayed by the class itself. Business Addresses. Talks by successful business men on such topics as Thrift, Savings, Banking, Business Suc- cess, may be made of interest and practical helpfulness, espe- cially to young men. Lesson Program. The interest in the regular lessons of the class may be increased by an occasional meeting at which GENERAL CLASS ACTIVITIES 217 papers on special topics connected with the lessons may be read. The work for the quarter may be pre-viewed. The manners and customs of the time as bearing on the lessons present profitable subjects for consideration. These might be illustrated. John Cowan, teacher of an Adult Class in Hawaii, illustrated the study of Paul's journeys by having various members of the class dress as a Greek peasant, as a Greek woman (Lydia), as a Jewish teacher, as a slave. In the study of this same subject, papers might be profitably presented on such topics as Tarsus and its influence on the life of Paul; the literary style of Paul; the influence of Greek thought upon Paul's teaching; the administration of the Roman law in the first century. Stereopticon. A first-class stereopticon is of great value to any Church. The class might well purchase one and place it at the disposal of the Sunday-school and the Church. By its aid happy and profitable evenings for the people may be provided at slight expense. Travel lectures, visits to the homes of great men, interesting missionary programs, scien- tific addresses, temperance talks, illustrated books, Christmas entertainment, — these by no means exhaust the uses to which one may be put,^ Social Service Studies. A good-sized class should be able to organize a group for the study of social questions, the circle to hold regular weekly or monthly meetings. There are admirable courses of study available.^ An Evening zvith the Presidents. Present a brief sketch of the life and labors of the most distinguished of the Presi- dents ; for the others have some interesting incident in con- nection with his boyhood, his nomination, his domestic life, his Presidential career, his speech-making, his religious life. 1 The class which has a stereopticon should be lu touch with the Christian Lantern Slide and Lecture Bureau, 153 La Salle St., Chicago. They rent slides at a low rate for missionary and other religious entertainments. 2 We suggest the use of the studies entitled ' The Gospel of the Kingdom," published by the American Institute of Social Service, 80 Bible House, New York. 2 2i8 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK Here is a rich field for an entertaining and informing lit- erary program. An Evening with a Contemporary. Gi\'e attention to a living hero, some contemporary great man who is doing things worth while. Every generation has its men who are making history; they will be honored and revered by the people of to-morrow ; acquaintance with their ideals, their struggles, and deeds may offer much of inspiration to the people of to-day. Nature Study. Know the trees of your own locality. Make friends with the birds which have their homes in them. Here are two fascinating subjects much neglected. Life has an increased content and interest to him to whom every tree is an acquaintance and every bird that sings from its branches a friend. Arrange for illustrated lectures on these sub- jects by professors from some nearby college. Nature study and allied subjects present a rich field — there are a thousand things worth looking into. What are the natural resources of your section? Are they being conserved for the public benefit, or are they passing into the hands of individuals to be exploited for private gain? Are the natural beauties of the landscape being preserved or destroyed? Is any at- tention being given to landscape decoration in the community? Are trees being planted along the streets of your town or city? Are the citizens being influenced to decorate lawns and private grounds with trees, shrubbery, and flowers? Any of these suggestions offers a worthy line of activity to an Adult Class. III. Athletics I. Their place. Athletic sports may be made use of as a valuable means of reaching and holding young men and women in the organized class. Under many circumstances athletic games and contests are urgently demanded in order that the young people may have the outdoor life and the exercise which is necessary to physical health and vigor. GENERAL CLASS ACTIVITIES 219 What is to be done will depend, of course, upon the make up of the class. A class of elderly men or women would prob- ably not be benefited by the organization of a basket-ball team, nor would we advise a young woman's class to establish a baseball team. With a class of young men, or a young- people's mixed class, athletics may be found to be not only useful to the members themselves, but also a valuable means of building up the class. 2. General suggestions. The Adult Classes of a town, city, or county have in some cases formed an Athletic Union to encourage clean, helpful athletic sports, and to arrange and carry out athletic contests. Best known of these is the Cook County Bible Class Athletic Association, which has under its direction baseball leagues, indoor ball leagues, men's basket-ball leagues, bowling leagues, and a women's league. Much interest attends a contest at baseball between two sections of the class, or between the class and the officers of the Sunday-school, or between the nines of two different classes. Tennis is a most healthful and pleasant sport popular with many classes. In the winter season basket-ball provides vigorous exercise and is a most interesting game. Some classes will find it a decided advantage to their work to fit up and maintain a gymnasium. To do this for the benefit of the boys of the neighborhood affords an ex- cellent field of helpful service to some of our men's classes. Lesson Outline: I. Social Life of the Class. 1. Necessity and value. 2. General suggestions. 3. Suggestive plans. II. Literary Interests. 1. Importance. 2. Practical plans. 220 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK HI. Athletics. r. Their place. 2. General suggestions. Bibliography: Reisner, "Social Plans." Topics for Special Study: 1. The social life of your class members. 2, Reading Circles, Topics for Class Discussion: 1. How should the Church treat the demand for social enjoyment? 2. State some essentials of a successful social program. 3. The influence and worth of good reading. 4. How may literary culture be advanced? 5. The place and value of athletics in the class. CHAPTER XVIII HOW TO BUILD UP AND MAINTAIN A STRONG CLASS "We must think nobly of the individual soul, and no way approve the opinion of those who, seeing nothing but the poor tenements that it sometimes inhabits, do not recog- nize its infinite capacity for expansion and improvement. To educate well, we must believe in the ultimate triumph of good education, because we fight on the same side as the stars in their courses." — Barnett. "The only conclusive evidence of a man's sincerity is that he gives himself for a principle. Words, money, all things else are comparatively easy to give away, but when a man makes a gift of his daily life in practice, it is plain that the truth, whatever it may be, has taken possession of him." — James Russell Lowell. CHAPTER XVIII HOW TO BUILD UP AND MAINTAIN A STRONG CLASS I. What Constitutes a Strong Class? Strength is not merely a matter of numbers. We want and ought to have large Adult Classes, but we should avoid an emphasis upon numbers which may obscure other more important things. The real strength of any class mination of ^^^^ ^^ ^^^ quality and quantity of the work Strength is being done for and by the class ; in the loyalty, Quality and faithfulness, and devotion of its members, and Quantity of ^^ ^-^^ coherence and stability of the organiza- tion. Better a relatively small class which pos- sesses these elements of real strength than a class the bigness of which consists merely in the number of names upon its membership lists. Of all ambitions of Adult Classes, the ambition for mere bigness is one of the most unworthy. A worthy ideal as to what constitutes strength in Adult Class work should be constantly held before the members by teacher and officers. The class should not be allowed to feel that the work is done when names have been added to the membership rolls. The class itself, as well as the teacher, has a responsibility in making membership of the largest worth to the new member. Is the man a Christian? Is he a member of the Church? Is he as earnest and active in religious work as he ought to be? Does he fully realize his social and civic responsibilities? Is he engaged in a line of work which affords him opportunity for the largest influ- ence and usefulness of which he is capable? Each question 2?3 - 224 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK suggests a possible service of the class to the individual member. Further, it should be remembered that the real test of any class does not come in the first month, or even in the first three months of its existence. A temporary interest and Permanent enthusiasm can be aroused in almost any new Enthusiasm project. There are always people who are ready Begotten of to join; what they are becoming members of does '^"^^ not so much matter ; their chief interest seems to be in the act of joining. The objects and aims of the Organized Adult Bible Class present a splendid opportunity for engendering a permanent interest and enthusiasm; its great ends command the earnest and abiding support of Chris- tian men and women. Let these ends be repeatedly ex- plained and emphasized until the realization of their im- portance takes hold of the minds and hearts of the class members ; thus the enthusiasm growing out of the newness of the organization will become an enthusiasm for its worth- fulness. The extent to which this is accomplished will be in many classes an important means of measuring their strength. II. Methods of Building Up the Class Membership I. Essential prerequisites. There are some things which may be considered as necessary prerequisites to the building up of a large class. (a) A Class Room. In order that the class may possess an individuality of its own, a class spirit, and do satisfactory work, it is important that it have a room of its own. It is well for the class to decorate and furnish this room itself. If a room in the church is not available, perhaps one can be secured in close proximity to the church. (b) A Genuine Interest. Before proceeding with organi- zation, see to it that you have a nucleus of people who are genuinely interested and enlisted in the project. Nothing is gained by electing officers and appointing committees merely for the sake of being able to say that you have an organized STRONG CLASSES 225 class. That will tend to bring the whole movement into disrepute. It is not necessary to have many to begin with. Three to five persons with clearly defined purpose, possessed with a genuine spiritual enthusiasm, with energy and persist- ence, can do the impossible. We have in mind a class of two hundred which recently celebrated its fifth anniversary, which started with five members. It is better to begin with a few people who are imbued with the right spirit and who have measured the difficulties to be overcome than to start with a loose aggregation of many people whose superficial enthusiasm will pass with a change in the weather. (c) Democracy of Spirit. Again, if a large class is to be built up, its members must possess a true democracy of spirit. Petty social distinctions must be lost sight of. Gen- uine brotherliness must prevail. Any man or woman without regard to occupation, wealth or the lack of it, education, social standing, or dress, must realize on coming into the class that they are welcome, that their presence is appreciated and desired. Cultivate sociability. Be sure that no stranger leaves the class without a hearty invitation to return. Re- serve at least three minutes at the close of the hour for friendly social greetings. (d) Religious Life. The religious life of the class must be real, earnest, and genuine. There is no place for affecta- tion, pious cant, or sham religiousness. It should be under- stood by all that the class is a religious organization, and that religion and the religious life occupy first place in all class aims and plans. Such an atmosphere must be main- tained in all meetings of the class, that conversation on re- ligious themes and an expression of the religious life will be perfectly in place. Nothing else will take the place, and nothing else will exert the drawing power of religious warmth and earnestness. Our greatest aim, "To win men to Christ," must ever be kept in the forefront. 2. Working plans. The following plans and methods have the sanction of successful use in many classes : IS 2 226 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK (a) Personal Solicitation. This is the method of work which gives life and efficiency to almost every plan of in- creasing class membership. The almost universal testimony of officers and teachers is that this is the secret of effective- ness in every plan. Nothing else will take the place of the personal touch. Every member should be made to feel that his interest and effort is indispensable to the largest success, and no excuse for lack of it should be accepted. A good idea is to occasionally distribute blank cards at the class session and ask each member to suggest the names of three or four acquaintances who should be members of the class. Definite plans may then be made for reaching these per- sons. (b) Double Up Campaign. Inaugurate a campaign for doubling the membership by each member securing one new member. Take as the motto, "Each One Get One." Present the subject at a meeting of all the members. Discuss and urge the plan until the co-operation of all has been secured. Receive weekly reports. Continue the campaign until the end has been achieved. (c) Membership Contest. Divide the class into two, three, or four sections, designating each section by a particular color, and enter upon a contest to see which section can secure the largest number of members within a given time, the losing section or sections to pay a forfeit, such as a banquet, to the winners. The captains of the sections, if wisely chosen for ability in leadership, will be able to arouse much interest in the competition among their followers. (d) Publicity Week. Pledge the members to make the class and its work the one principal topic of conversation during a specified week. Name as one condition that only words of praise and commendation are to be spoken, and no word of criticism. A week of talk, of the right kind, in behalf of the class will accomplish much by way of arousing in- terest and enlisting recruits. Plan for this far enough ahead so that it will be fixed in the mind of all the members. A 2 STRONG CLASSES 227 similar plan is that of pledging the members to invite by telephone during a certain week a specified nmnber of people to attend the class. (e) Follozv-up Plan. Many classes have successfully used a follow-up plan in winning new members. On Sunday when a new name is reported, the class president assigns one mem- ber to call on Monday, another on Tuesday, a third on Wednesday, and so on, one for each day of the week, in- cluding the next Sunday. The following week a report is called for. If the person has not been reached, assignments are again made, and continue to be made until he has joined the class. If faithfully worked, this plan never fails. Said one man : "If you keep after others like you did me, we '11 be a winner. I felt it must be w^orth while to go if so many men thought it worth their trouble to call and invite me." Another : *T thought you fellows must really be interested in me, you came so often." (f) Invitation Committee. Every class should make it the special duty of some committee to seek out strangers attend- ing the Church service and invite them to the class. This committee should always be on duty, and should miss no one. III. How to Keep Up the Attendance Regularity of attendance on the part of members of the class is essential both to growth and to effective work. It is difficult to interest outsiders in a class whose Regular members do not attend regularly. The teacher is is Essential handicapped in his efforts if the members are irregular. As means of inducing faithfulness in attendance, the following plans will be found of value : (a) Develop Class Loyalty. Appeal to the class spirit of the members ; frequently commend the faithfulness of those who are invariably present; assert your confidence that the members can be depended upon to support the class and its work by faithful attendance. Occasionally print something bearing upon this, as a neat card, entitled : 228 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK "Class Resolution "Nothing during the year will prevent me from attending to my secular duties that I can possibly help. "Will it be so with my religious duties? Yes, if so I will. "I will to be present at the meetings of my class every Sundav this year. "(Signed) »' (b) Follozv Up Absentees. Make it a fixed custom to inquire into all absences. Especially the teacher and the officers should do this. Be sure that no member is ever absent without being written to, called up on the telephone, or called on in person. (c) The Squad System. The group plan, sometimes called the "Squad System," sometimes the "Sections of Ten Plan," has been used with excellent results both as a means of keep- ing up the attendance and in increasing the membership. The class is divided into groups of ten or less, with a captain over each. The captain is held responsible for the attendance of those in his group. He is provided with monthly record cards for recording attendance and to aid him in his reports to the class. The captain is at liberty to use any of his men in aiding him in his efforts to secure the regular attendance of all. A friendly competition may be developed between the different groups as to which shall make the best record. IV. Maintaining Interest and Activity No class can be permanently built up unless the members as they are secured are bound to the organization by ties of A Deep and abiding interest and devotion. It will avail little Abiding In- to secure new members unless those whom we terest Must already have are retained. How can a permanent be Secured place in the affections of every member be secured for the class? How can indifferent and lethargic members be aroused to earnest and active service? 2 STRONG CLASSES 229 (a) Show a Personal Interest in Each One. As teacher or officer look well to your own motives in your class work. Be satisfied with nothing less than possessing a genuine per- sonal interest in every member. If you would permanently win people you must love them. This was the Master's method, and it has never been either improved upon or super- seded. Perhaps it is best expressed by the term friendship. Establish a bond of genuine friendship between yourself, as officially representing the class, and the class member, and you have gained him for all time. Be sympathetic. Never allow a member to carry a burden of loss or grief or dis- appointment alone. Never fail to take account of the illness of a member, no matter how slight. Insure that all cases of illness are reported at the class sessions. Immediately thereafter send out on behalf of the class some such message as this : "Dear friend : You have been reported to the class at its meeting to-day as sick. Some of our number will call very soon. You have the sym- pathy and prayers of the class for your early recovery. " (b) Give Every One Something to Do. Keep the members busy. See that every one has some definite task. As far as possible, place every one on some committee. As the class increases in size see that the officers and committees are representative of the entire class. The importance of this is well stated by the teacher of one of our largest classes : "A large class is made up of many small groups. The units of each group are v^^elded together by ties of friendship or relationship. Each of these groups should be represented among the officers and chairmen of committees. Then, when the officers inaugurate a new policy or plan, they will carry the bulk of the membership along v/ith them." (c) Keep in Touch With Other Classes. Much inspira- tion will come from an intimate knowledge of what other 230 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK successful classes are doing. Each officer, or better still, each member, should receive the official denominational organ of the movement, The Adult Bible Class Monthly.'^ This is of the largest importance. The members, in groups of two or three, may be delegated to visit other classes and return reports of their activities. Occasional contests with other classes may be arranged with good effect in such matters as average attendance or growth during a specified period. Inter-class debates are also good. (d) Look After Little Things. Pay attention to details. Ihere are numerous things, small in themselves, which have an important part in maintaining class interest. It is a good thing to have Class Stationery; let the class buy it in large quantity and supply it to the members at cost. A Class Banner hung in the class room, having on it the class name, date of or- ganization, and the motto, will be to some extent a bond of unity. In some classes a Class Yell is desirable. A Class Song is appropriate to every class and helps wonderfully to build up class spirit. Recognition of New Members is important; have some simple form of reception and a greeting by all. Observe the Class Anniversary with a special program. Lesson Outline: I. What Constitutes a Strong Class? II. Methods of Building Up the Class Membership. 1. Essential prerequisites. 2, Working plans. III. How TO Keep Up the Attendance. IV. Maintaining Interest and Activity. Topics for Special Study: 1. Essential elements of a strong class. 2. Means employed by some successful classes in in- creasing their membership. I Sample copies may be had free by addressing the Methodist Book Con- cern, 150 Fifth Ave., New York, or Cincinnati, or Chicago. STRONG CLASSES 231 Topics for Class Discussion: 1. What is to be the measure of class strength? 2. Is there a danger that too much emphasis may be placed upon numbers? 3. Name what you consider essential prerequisites to the building up of a strong class. 4. What is the most valuable means of gaining new members ? 5. Discuss plans of enlisting new members, 6. How can the class attendance best be kept up? 7. State the most important means of maintaining in- terest and activity. CHAPTER XIX ADVERTISING THE CLASS "The children of this day and generation are wiser than the children of light. They use means that will bring the desired results. Providence does not give success to sleepy methods in the Church any more than in business. Adver- tising is the most vital assistant in the business world. Rush rules the hour. Materialism threatens to deaden the heart life. Attention must be attracted to the fact and need of spirit growth, if the aesthetic and affectional natures are to remain. People must be turned toward the Church and aroused to the importance, helpfulness, and easy possibility of religious development. Advertising attracts attention. It must be used by the Church to get a hearing for its most important message." — Christian F. Reisner. "The use of efficient methods and well-laid plans is vitally essential in all class work, but there must be a care, espe- cially in recently organized classes, that their exact relation to the work be thoroughly understood and kept in proper place. A skeleton is vitally essential to every well-developed human being, but it needs to be clothed upon with soft, warm, well-shapen flesh, and breathed through by a living, loving spirit, to be attractive to any but the medical student or the ethnological specialist." — May F. McKean. CHAPTER XIX ADVERTISING THE CLASS I. The Object and Value of Advertising 1. Why advertise? Multitudes of people are so busy that they give the religious life no notice or attention. Other multitudes, not so busy, are almost wholly indifferent to re- ligion. Some means must be used to effectively Advertising bring the claims of religion before them. They People ^^^ "°^ reached by the announcements, exhorta- tions, and appeals made in empty churches and class rooms. Newspapers, bulletin boards, personal letters come face to face with the unchurched multitudes and speak a message which otherwise would not be heard at all. Ad- vertising thus reaches many who would not and could not be reached in any other way. It should be made use of because it is an effective means of obeying the gospel com- mand. Go, publish the gospel to all men. Advertising shows an aggressive and earnest spirit. It im- presses the world with the fact that the Christian is not ashamed of his religion, and that he is at least as earnest and enthusiastic in the cause of religion as he is in the business of earning his daily bread. Aggressiveness and enter- prise within the bounds of propriety are favorably regarded by almost every one and have much influence with many. 2. Why advertise the Adult Bible Class? There are Advertising special and definite reasons why the Adult Bible Brings the Class should advertise. It is important that those Class to who are outside of the class and the Church People should be informed of the class, of its objects and aims, of what it offers in the way of fellowship, instruction, and help; that they should be attracted and interested; and 235 ' 236 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK finally, that they should be persuaded to join the class. The right kind of class advertising will aid materially in effecting these ends. Advertise, therefore, in order to : Acquaint people with the organization, its aims and pur- poses. Impress them that the class may be a means of help to them in many ways, most of all in the Christian life. Persuade them that the class is interested in them and wants them. Inform them where and when the class meets and to keep this continually before them. Move them to attend the class session and become members. 3. Objections to advertising met. (a) It is sensational. This is the most common objection oflfered. Our answer is, that a sensational means is needed to arouse and awaken men from religious lethargy. That Prophets word is not one to be frightened at. People were and Apos- not lacking in their day to bring the same charge ties were against prophets and apostles. The message and Sensational manner of John the Baptist were so sensational as to draw multitudes of self-satisfied people from cities and villages into the wilderness to see and hear. Paul was many times accused of being sensational in his presentation of his message. Class advertising should carefully avoid all exag- geration and over-statement, also all slang, and should promise only what can be fulfilled. There are methods of advertising which are not in good repute by reputable business men; these seek to convey impressions not justified by the facts. Here a question of common honesty is involved. The Adult Bible Class will, of course, have all regard for absolute truth- fulness of statement. If these conditions are faithfully re- garded the charge of sensationalism need occasion no alarm. (h) Advertising cheapens. It does not have this effect in other things. People are constantly paying the highest prices for goods the reputation of which has been established and enhanced by advertising. There can be no doubt that some ADVERTISING THE CLASS 237 people to whom everything pertaining to religion is very sacred are pained to see the religious appeal emblazoned in public places or scattered broadcast by leaflet or tract. We respect the feeling, but at the same time hold that as Rather, it gospel advertising is successful in reaching and Demand holding men and is very evidently blessed of God to good and great ends, that these results are so important as to compel that the feelings of some should be disregarded. II. Principles of Successful Class Advertising Advertising to be successful must meet the test of the following essentials : 1. It must attract attention. The wording, the print- ing, the circulation — all must be such as to attract attention. In order to do this it must have at least three qualities — it must be strong, virile, and striking. To attract Elements , . . . , i i , • That Win ^"^^ attention of many it must also be extensive. A little advertising accomplishes nothing. It must be planned on a scale such as to reach the last man. The direct command is an important means of attracting attention. Whining, begging, imploring, coaxing never attract. The hearty, strong word of direct command is constantly used in business advertising. Make use also of the element of surprise. The average religious advertisement is dull, per- functory, and deadening. If it is worth your while to adver- tise at all, it is worth while to spend enough time on the preparation of your matter to be interesting. Long sentences, worn-out phrases, common words do not stick. Discard all such trite words as "a. cordial welcome," "good singing," "gospel preaching," "the regular session," "at the regular time and place" — they are so much lumber, the only effect of which is to kill your advertisement. 2. It must be repeated. Repetition is important in securing effect. He is a poor advertiser who is influenced by the fact that the first issue of cards or bills brings no 23§ THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK appreciable result. That which at first may not appeal at all, by repeated use may produce its effect. There ought to be, therefore, some attractive title or phrase, some distinctive .. ^jjg steady "^^^^^ in mechanical make-up or in wording which Rhythmic will servc to recall the former advertisement and Blow deepen the impression. This is the value of the Counts" trade-mark so commonly used in commercial ad- vertising. "Fifty-seven Varieties," "the Rock of Gibraltar," "Good Morning, Have you used ?" are so familiar that the slightest glance brings to mind that with which they are individually associated. The same effect may be produced by a miniature cut of the church building, by the picture of the church door, or of the interior of the class room, or by some distinctive class emblem. The right sort of class name or motto may be used to advantage in this way. As for the remainder of the advertisement, let it be continually changed. Seek out a new wording for each time it is printed. 3. It must tell its story quickly. People will not read long or labored advertisements. They must be brief, pointed, and so printed as to be easily scanned by the eye. Both the wording and the designing are here again in- Essent^af volved. Avoid saying too much. Use leaders; the class needs them as much as the department store does. Impart definite information. Say something im- portant in the first sentence. An advertisement is no place for an elaborate introduction. When it has once been written, go over it carefully and cut out all superfluous phrases. 4. It must conform to good taste. The general style and make-up of the advertisement, the character of the paper Appeal to stock used, the type, and the ink — all are im- the Sense portant. Mis-spelled words, grammatical errors, of Beauty cheapness in appearance produce unfavorable ef- and Order ^^^^ ^^^ ^^ more to drive away than to attract. The first impression upon the reader is conveyed by the general make-up of the advertisement, and if this is unfavor- able it is difficult to overcome. Some common forms of ADVERTISING THE CLASS 239 advertising offend against beauty and order. The hideous bill- boards which disfigure the landscape of town and country will not much longer be tolerated. The comic and ludicrous are out of place in all Church advertising. It rarely pays to be sharp, witty, or smart. 5. It must arouse enthusiasm. To do this the ad- vertisement must breathe the spirit of faith and confidence. It must be bright, interesting, and carry the assurance of success. This essential should constantly be kept Impart the j^^ mind ; mere publicity is no advantage ; notoriety of^Success ^°^^ ^^^ draw. The advertising that brings re- sults kindles interest and enthusiasm. Warmth, brotherliness, heartiness are a means to this end. Know your people; seek the appeal which will reach your constituency; a sort of advertising which would help in one place might have no effect with a different class of people. III. Methods and Plans I. Methods. There are many methods of advertising which may be used by the Adult Bible Class. We suggest as among the most effective these : (a) Use of the secular press. The class should make use of the columns of the daily and weekly newspapers of the town or city. Editors, as a rule, are pleased to be furnished with accounts of the doings of live organizations. Many newspapers will freely tender the use of their columns for class programs, advance accounts of events, brief, well-written reports of business meetings, feature articles — in short, any- thing that is bright and readable. It is important that the class have either a Class Reporter or a Press Committee. Use judgment in the selection. Place at the head an adver- tising man if the class has one among its members; if not, some one who can write well and who knows the require- ments. Accept the courtesy of the press not merely as a matter of course, but show appreciation and a desire to conform to their rules. 2 240 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK It will be found possible in many instances to arrange for a column to be regularly devoted to the class and its work. A clever writer can make this an invaluable aid to the work of the class. (b) A class printing press. Some classes have a printing press of their own and issue their own invitation cards, hand- bills, and class requisites. If some member of the class will take the chief responsibility and enlist the aid of a number of boys of the junior or intermediate departments, he may not only aid the class but perform a most valuable service to the boys, providing them pleasant diversion and em- ployment and keeping them from evil associations and amuse- ments. (c) Church bulletin. If the Church issues a Church paper or weekly bulletin, the class should have a regularly assigned space. Give this space an individuality of its own. Fill it with bright, original matter. Make it a means of arousing interest in the class and drawing others in. (d) Bulletin board. Have a neat bulletin board outside the church. Appoint some one to have this in charge who will look after it faithfully, see that announcements are placed well in advance of events and removed immediately after- ward, and that the whole is made attractive. An ugly or disorderly bulletin board is the wrong kind of an advertise- ment. (e) Issue printed programs, and scatter them widely. They should be put out at least five or six days ahead of the time, otherwise many will have made other engagements. See that the printing is tastefully done. (f) Art posters. If the class has among its members or friends some one who has some genius in original drawings, art posters may be made and placed in store windows an- nouncing in unique ways the class sessions. These, if cleverly done, will attract much attention. (g) Announcements in hotels. Framed announcements should be placed in hotels and boarding houses. These ADVERTISING THE CLASS 241 should be changed often enough so as not to become stale. Often they are neglected until they are entirely out of date; this gives the impression that the institution advertised is a back number. If in a city of some size, a plain map with arrows and a star to indicate the way to the church and its exact location is of value. Weekly announcements and invitations to the class meet- ings may be used in hotels to good advantage. An attractive announcement placed beside each plate or slipped under the doors of guest rooms will do much good. (h) Post cards. Post cards may be used to advantage. Stock forms such as are illustrated in the appendix of this book may be employed, or each class may design its own. The stock forms are less expensive ; but, on the other hand, distinctive cards presenting the peculiar claims of the class they are used to advertise are of larger value. Whatever form is used, a personal word added increases the drawing- power of the card. (i) Personal letters. Some classes have found personal letters their best method of advertising. Letters may be mimeographed or multigraphed at comparatively small ex- pense. If these methods are used, care should be exercised to secure good workmanship. A poor copy is unattractive and of little value. Dictated typewritten letters, or letters in the handwriting of the sender are much better than copies, as the personal touch is increased. (j) Feature material. Offer a class picture, photographs of class picnics and entertainments to the press. Many times these will be gladly accepted and printed, accompanied by comments. (k) Miscellaneous. There are many other methods of advertising more or less familiar to every one, such as blotters, calendars, door-knob callers, handbills, paid news- paper advertisements, and so forth. Let the Press Com- mittee be on the lookout for unique and attractive adver- tising material and be ready to adapt successful methods 16 2 242 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK used in commercial advertising, to promote the interests of the class. 2. Plans of distribution. There are various ways by which the advertising matter of the class may be distributed : (a) Newspaper carriers. For towns or cities where there is an evening paper, an arrangement may usually be made with the carriers to distribute programs, handbills, or any small advertising form folded within the papers which are delivered at the houses. (h) Shop distribution. Enlist a man in each large manu- facturing establishment and shop to distribute advertising matter at the noon hour or in the evening as the men are leaving work. It is important to secure the right sort of man, one who will do the work faithfully and who is respected by the men. For a time it may be necessary to pay for hav- ing this work done. (c) Organize a messenger service from among the junior and intermediate boys under a popular leader. (d) Form an advertising squad among the class members ; make each member of the squad responsible for the advertis- ing distribution in a certain territory, a street, or district. 3. A publicity campaign. In addition to the regular week by week advertising, it is of the largest importance that about once a year a special publicity campaign be en- tered upon as a means of increasing the attendance and building up the membership of the class. Preliminary to this the class should secure the name of every person in the town who ought to be reached. It may be necessary to take a religious census by means of a house-to-house canvass. Every possible name should be entered upon a mailing list, pains being taken not only to have the name and address correct, but to have other important items of information, such as family relationship and Church affiliation. We outline a plan for a four months' publicity campaign, the best months being from September on: First month: Handbills, ordinary dodger size. Use a ADVERTISING THE CLASS 243 good quality of paper, and pay careful attention to the word- ing and to the printing. Second month: The telegram system. Do not slavishly copy any model, but work out your own. The stock form given in the appendix will be suggestive. Third month : Invitation cards, vestpocket size. Make them distinctive and neat and use unlimited quantities, not only placing them from house to house, but handing them out to persons met on the street and in places of business. Furnish every member with a supply, and urge all to use them. Fourth month: Letters or postal card announcements by mail. Issue a different one each week, and mail so that they will be received on Saturday morning. Remember in such an undertaking that thoroughness of distribution is a prime requisite. On the quantities necessary to achieve results, John Blackham writes in The Adult Bible Class Monthly as follows: ''Incredible as it may seem, if one thousand men are wanted at the first service, 100,000 handbills are necessary. If 500 men, then 50,000; if 250 men, then 25,000. This proportion has been proved over and over again. It may seem impossible to distribute 100,000 hand- bills, but it has to be done, and it can be done. It may seem waste, but it is the truest economy. The very fact of having such a large number of bills necessitates a good number of workers, and the effort of distributing them is just what is necessary to success. One of the most successful societies distributed 10,000 handbills every day for ten days. It may be asked, 'Why are so many bills necessary?' Many Chris- tian people have a great dread of overlapping in bill distri- bution. They are afraid of the same person having the same bill twice over; but this is just what is necessary to get the kind of people we want. The first bill is thrown away, the second is treated in the same way, and probably the third ; but the fourth may be glanced at, the fifth may be looked at a little more closely, the sixth may be read, and the man 244 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK sees it is an invitation to a religious meeting, and throws it away because it has no interest for him ; the seventh is looked at and thrown away; the eighth, ninth, and tenth awaken curiosity and inquiry, and finally the man is induced to 'come and see how he likes it.' " Lesson Outline: I. The Object and Value of Advertising. 1. Why advertise? 2. Why advertise the Adult Class? 3. Objections met. n. Principles of Successful Class Advertising. 1. It must attract attention. 2. It must be repeated. 3. It must tell its story quickly. 4. It must conform to good taste. 5. It must arouse enthusiasm. III. Methods and Plans. 1. Methods. 2. Plans of distribution. 3. A publicity campaign. Bibliography: Stelzle, "Principles of Successful Church Advertising.'' Scott, "Theory of Advertising." Calkins and Holden, "Modern Advertising." Topics for Special Study: 1. Psychology of advertising. 2. The advertising methods of successful classes. Topics for Class Discussion: 1. Why should a religious organization advertise? 2. State special reasons why the Adult Class should advertise. ADVERTISING THE CLASS 245 3. How far are common objections against class adver- tising valid? Why should they not be allowed to over-rule religious advertising? 4. State and explain five principles of successful ad- vertising. 5. Name what you regard as the most effective forms. 6. How may printed forms be best distributed? 7. Discuss the suggested plan of publicity campaign. CHAPTER XX CLASS OFFICERS AND THEIR DUTIES "I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than to dwell in the tents of wickedness." — The Psalmist. "The vision of God in Christ is the greatest gift in the world. It binds those who receive it to the highest and most consecrated life. To behold that vision is to be one of God's elect. But the result of that election depends upon the giving of ourselves to serve the world for Jesus' sake. Noblesse oblige." — Henry Van Dyke. "*Out of every tribe a man.' There was a great diversity of gifts, but this did not matter — every tribe must have a part in the doing. Out of every tribe a man is needed to carry on the ideal work of the class — out of the musical tribe a man to sing heartily . . . ; out of the scholarly tribe a man to hunt up facts and present them attractively; out of the socially-gifted tribe a man to offer the glad hand and bring people together ; out of the magnetic tribe, or the good-talkers tribe, a man to help draw in and make life pleasant, bright, hopeful for those who need to see more of the bright side of life."—/. N. Phillips, CHAPTER XX CLASS OFFICERS AND THEIR DUTIES I. Form of Organization I. The required standard. By col-laboration between the International Sunday-school Association and the various de- The Inter- nominations a standard has been established set- national ting forth the minimum of organization which Standard of must be attained by a class before it shall be Organization entitled to recognition as an organized class by the Association and the denomination with which it is affiliated. This standard of organization requires three definite and distinct things, namely: (a) The class must be organically connected with the Sun- day-school, of which it shall be considered an integral part. This does not mean that the Adult Class must necessarily meet at the same time and place with the rest of the school, though where this is possible it is by far the most desirable arrangement and one which is likely to help the school as a whole most. (b) The class shall have at least the following officers: Teacher, president, vice-president, secretary, and treasurer. It shall have at least three standing committees, as follows: Membership, devotional, and social. It is not required that these committees shall be known by these particular names, but it is required that the class shall have three committees which are held responsible respectively for these three kinds of work. The Executive Committee, where there is such, may act as a Committee on Membership. (c) The class shall consist of adult members only. A minimum age limit has been fixed at sixteen years, thus in- cluding the organized classes of the senior department of the school, as well as those of the adult department proper. 249 - 250 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK It is not intended that the distinction between the senior and the adult departments of the school shall be obliterated, but the recognition here given to organized classes in the senior department, which includes pupils between the ages of sixteen and twenty years, makes it possible for organized classes in this department to pass as such into the adult de- partment of the school without the necessity of applying for a new certificate when the minimum age of the members of the class shall have reached twenty. 2. The determination of form of organization. This form of organization is not given as adequate for all classes. It is presented as the minimum of organization which can be Form of Or- ^^^^ ^^^^ satisfaction and profit by any class, ganization With this as a framework, an organization may Suited to be formed suited to the local situation and needs. Local ^ In general, it may be said that the more simple the organization is, the better. It should not be allowed to become cumbersome or unwieldy. In the beginning the average class could do no better than to adopt the form which we have outhned, and then as the work takes shape develop the organization as the needs demand. It should be said that without reasonably complete organization the best work is impossible. Chief advantages of organization are that it provides for a division of labor, places responsibility, and creates means of accomplishing new and enlarged ends. Inadequate organization prevents these advantages being realized. In some cases it will be well for the class to fix the minimum age limit at twenty years instead of sixteen. This will be true if the school is sufficiently large to Lhnit have organized classes of the Senior Department as distinct from the Adult. Senior pupils, espe- cially those under eighteen, do not fit well into either a men's or women's class. Moreover, the class will appeal more strongly to men and women of more mature years if it is restricted as indicated. CLASS OFFICERS AND THEIR DUTIES 251 3. Additional officers and committees. Some of our large and well-established classes have numerous additional officers and committees. As officers, we note the following: Assistant teacher, to teach the lesson in the absence of the regular teacher or on special occasions ; Assistant Secretary, to aid the Secretary and to serve in his absence; Financial Secretary Officers ^^ assistant to the Treasurer; Librarian, to have charge of all books and periodicals, and to be responsible for the distribution of song books, Bibles, and whatever helps are needed in the study of the lesson; Class Reporter or Press Correspondent, to send items of interest concerning the class to the secular and the religious press; Advertising Manager, to have direct charge of the class ad- vertising; Chorister, to lead the singing and to have general direction of the music of the class; Pianist; Custodian, to have charge of the permanent records of the class ; Editor of the class paper, in case one is published. As committees the follov/ing may be noted : Evangelistic, Prayer-meeting, Social Service, Missionary, Tem- Additional t- i t • -mt • i-, Committees P^rance, Employment, Literary, Music, Reception, Athletic, Civic, Legal Aid, Medical Aid, Attend- ance, Visiting, Sick Visitation, Advertising, Class Room, Ushers. The class which has any considerable number of com- mittees should by all means have an Executive Committee, composed of the chief officers and the chairmen of the various other committees, which shall act as a cabinet to supervise and plan the work of the class as a whole. II. The Chief Officers and Their Work I. The Teacher. The office and work of the Teacher has been thoroughly discussed in an earlier chapter. Here it will suffice to say that the teacher is the chief officer of the class, and that while his first and most important relation to the class is that of instructor in religious truth, he is also 252 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK a leader of the class in all its activities. It is his duty to be interested in all phases of the work of the The Teacher ^lass. It is not well for him to assume responsi- Officer bility for work which should properly be done by others. It will largely devolve upon him to inspire and enthuse other officers and the members. The activity and power of the class will therefore depend to a considerable extent upon his ability as a leader. The impress of his influence and example will be upon the class. It will be necessary for him not only to teach by word, but also to lead in all forms of service. In visiting the sick, comfort- ing the bereaved, warning the straying, counseling the misled he will be able to enforce and give point to the precepts of the class room. He should be considered ex-officio a member of all committees. 2. The President. The President of the class is its principal executive officer. He shares with the teacher a co- ordinate responsibility for the building up of the class, for The Office ^^^ Spirit and its activity. It is of the utmost and "Work importance that he should be in accord with the of the teacher in his thought and plans for the class and President j^g work ; all must understand that the instruction of the teacher has his hearty support and endorsement. He should also be in close touch with the pastor and know his ideal and ambitions for the class. For himself he should make a close study of the possibilities and needs of the Church and the Sunday-school, and of religious and social conditions in the community, in order that he may have an intelligent conception of the entire field and be able to con- struct the best possible working program for the organiza- tion. By virtue of his office he is ex-officio a member of all committees. The appointment of committees may well be in his hands with the provision made that the appointments shall be concurred in by the teacher. To the end that his appointments be wisely made, he should acquaint himself with the abilities and gifts of the various members. Upon his CLASS OFFICERS AND THEIR DUTIES 253 forcefulness, tact, and skillful management will depend very largely the amount of actual service accomplished by the class. He should preside at all meetings of the class unless providentially hindered, and should see that all business is transacted with promptness and dispatch, and that all obliga- tions of the class are met, 3. The Vice-President. In the absence of the President the Vice-President becomes the presiding officer Duties of Qf ^j^g ^^lass He should hold himself ready to President assist the President at any time upon request, and should freely give to the President, when asked, the benefit of his counsel. 4. The Secretary. Upon the Secretary devolves the re- sponsibility for the keeping of all necessary records, and the making of all announcements and reports. In particular, he should record the minutes of all business meet- Duties ings, a report of the Sunday meetings, and should Secretary preserve a copy of all programs rendered by the class and all printed matter of whatever other sort issued. He should keep a record of class membership, and of attendance upon all class meetings. The minutes of committee meetings should also come into his hands for permanent preservation. He should issue and receive certificates of class membership and through correspondence keep in touch with absent members. The making and presentation of regular reports of the class is also his duty. The essential qualifications of a good Secretary are that he should write a rapid, clear hand, that he appreciate the importance of accuracy, and that he value his office sufficiently to keep complete and up-to-date records. 5. The Treasurer. The Treasurer is in direct charge of the finances of the class. All moneys received Treasurer * ^"^ expended should pass through his hands, and he should keep a complete and accurate account of all receipts and expenditures. Vouchers covering all ex- penditures should be kept. He should present an exact 254 THE ADULT WORKER AND HIS WORK financial report at each business meeting, and also an annual report summarizing the financial transactions of the year, Vv''ith many classes the source of financial income will be the collections taken at the regular Sunday sessions. At least a substantial part of this collection should go to the Sunday- school as the contribution of the Adult Class to Finances ^^^ expenses of the school. Probably the ma- jority of our organized Adult Classes divide this collection on some fixed basis mutually decided upon by the class and the school. This source of income will necessarily be supplemented by others if the class is to do much in a financial way. Many classes ask of their members a monthly or annual pledge in support of class work. Some use a weekly pledge system, providing their members with numbered and dated envelopes for weekly giving. We recommend the annual subscription plan, pledges to be received at the be- ginning of the class fiscal year, to be paid either at one time or in monthly or quarterly installments. This plan is likely to interfere less with the weekly offering system of the Church in use by so large a proportion of the congregations. Some income may if necessary be secured in ways other than by direct giving. An occasional lecture, concert, excursion, or social entertainment may be made the means of financial gain. Chief dependence should not be placed upon these means by any class. Lectures, concerts, and socials should be regularly held for their educational and cultural value, not as financial expedients. No other provision for income is so satisfactory, adequate, and beneficial as that of sys- tematic giving. There is no excuse for not adopting it as the principal plan. Every strong class should make an annual contribution to the Church, It may also contribute to the Church benevo- lences. These contributions ought to be, however, in addition to and not in lieu of contributions of the individual members to the Church and its benevolences. The prosperous class may well have some cause designated officially as a special 2 CLASS OFFICERS AND THEIR DUTIES 255 class benevolence to be supported regularly and generously out of class funds. Lesson Outline: I. Form of Organization. 1. The required standard. 2. The determination of form of organization. 3. Additional officers and committees. II. The Chief Officers and Their Work. 1. The Teacher. 2. The President. 3. The Vice-President. 4. The Secretary. 5. The Treasurer. Topics for Special Study: 1. The form of organization of several large and suc- cessful classes. 2. The financial system of some leading classes. Topics for Class Discussion: 1. State the requirements of the International standard of organization. 2. How is the form of organization of each particular class to be determined? 3. What additional officers and committees may be de- sirable ? 4. Discuss the relation of the Teacher to the class. 5. What is the work of the President? 6. Name the qualifications and duties of the Secretary. 7. What is the work of the Treasurer? 8. By what means may the class provide for an ade- quate income? APPENDIX 17 APPENDIX A MODEL CONSTITUTION (A form suggested by the Board of Sunday-schools, which may be modified to suit the situation and needs of the local class.) ARTICLE I.— Name This class shall be called The Class of the Sunday-school of the Church of , (City) (State). ARTICLE II.— Object The object of this organization shall be the regular and systematic study of the Bible under competent leadership ; the achievement of Christian culture through the spiritual, intellectual, and social development of every member ; mutual helpfulness, and the extension of Christ's kingdom. ARTICLE III.— Motto "In diligence not slothful ; fervent in spirit ; serving the Lord." ARTICLE IV.— Membership Any man (or w^oman) years old or over may become a member of this class by signifying his desire to join and his intention to be loyal to the purpose and aim of the organization as set forth in Article II of this Consti- tution, and by agreeing to attend the regular meetings of this class devoted to the study of the Bible. ?59 2 26o APPENDIX ARTICLE V. — Officers and Committees Section i. The general officers of this class shall be a teacher, president, vice-president, secretary, treasurer, and librarian. These officers shall be elected annually by ballot, and shall hold office until the next annual meeting after their election, or until their successors are chosen. The election of the teacher by the class shall be subject to the regular method prescribed by the Church Discipline. Sec. 2. There shall be standing committees, to-wit : Executive, Devotional, Social, and (other standing and special committees on membership, music, athletics, etc., may be added at the discretion of the class). Sec. 3. The President shall be chairman of the Executive Committee, which shall consist of the general officers and the chairmen of all standing committees. The Executive Com- mittee shall have the power to appoint all other standing com- mittees and to designate who shall be chairman of each. ARTICLE VI. — Duties of Officers and Committees Section i. The Teacher shall have general charge of the Bible study work of the class, and shall be chosen with special reference to his fitness and ability to teach the Bible to adult students. He shall have charge of the regular study of the Lsson at the Sabbath-day session of the class, and shall be ex-officio a member of all committees. Sec. 2. The President shall preside at the regular and special meetings of the class, and shall be the general execu- tive officer. He shall appoint all special committees not pro- vided for in the Constitution and shall be ex-officio a member of all committees. Sec. 3. The Vice-President shall perform the duties of the President in the absence of the latter, and shall render such other executive assistance as may be required by the President. Sec. 4. The Secretary shall have charge of the records of APPENDIX 261 the class. He shall keep accurate Minutes of all business meetings, both of the class and of the Executive Committee, and shall make all announcements. He shall keep a record of the attendance of the members each Sunday, and shall report the same, together with the amount of the collection for the day, to the class and to the Secretary of the school. Sec. 5. The Treasurer shall receive all moneys belonging to the class ; shall hold, deposit, and pay out the same as directed by the Executive Committee in harmony with the rules of the school. He shall make a full report of receipts and disbursements at each annual meeting of the class. Sec. 6. The Librarian shall have charge of all books and periodicals and other printed matter belonging to the class. He shall be responsible for the distribution of song books, Bibles, etc., at the regular and special meetings of the class. Sec. 7. The Executive Committee shall have general super- vision over all class work and interests. It shall devise ways and means of increasing the attendance at the regular class sessions for Bible study, and for advancmg the interests of the class in other ways. Sec. 8. The Devotional Committee shall be responsible for the spiritual welfare and work of the class. It shall be the duty of this committee as far as possible to assist the teacher in planning for and arranging the Bible study work of the class. Sec. 9. The Social Committee shall be responsible for greeting, welcoming, and introducing new members and visi- tors. It shall have charge of all entertainments and other social functions of the class. In the absence of a special committee for this purpose, the Social Committee shall act as a committee on membership. ARTICLE VII.— Meetings Section i. An annual meeting of this class shall be held in the month of each year, the exact date to be determined by the Executive Committee. 262 APPENDIX Sec. 2. The class shall meet every Sunday for Bible study at o'clock, in connection with the regular session of the Sunday-school of the church. Sec. 3. There shall be a regular business meeting of the class on the first of every month, at o'clock. Sec. 4. Special business and other meetings may be called by the President in consultation with the teacher and members of the Executive Committee as occasion may require. ARTICLE VIII.— Quorum members of the class in attendance at any regular or special meeting shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. ARTICLE IX. — Contributions The funds necessary to carry on the work of the class shall be raised by voluntary subscriptions. No contributions shall be solicited at any social meeting or entertainment of the class. ARTICLE X. — Amendments This Constitution may be amended at any regular busin^'ss meeting of the class by a two-thirds vote of the members present, provided that said two-thirds shall not be less than the number required to constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. By-Laws (As the class progresses it will be found necessary to enact certain rules concerning class management, order of business, methods of work, which will come properly under the head of By-laws.) APPENDIX B CLASS ADVERTISING COME WITH US! On Sunday^ October 31, 1909, in the First Methodist Episcopal Church The Brotherhood Bible Class WILL HAVE SOMETHING TO TELL ABOUT RELIGION IN A HURRICANE Paul says, " Be of good cheer, I believe God.** Acts 27:25 STRANGERS CORDIALLY INVITED TO MEET WITH US AND TAKE PART IN THE DISCUSSION EVERYBODY WELCOME! IN THE BASEMENT AT 9 O'CLOCK A. M. Sample hand-bill used by an Adult Bible Class. 263 * 264 APPENDIX ipiL, fieycie, Bch^e. Cleiss . itu CL.fyr^i^clt^ c^t-^i^^-fU^ ^^HT*w^£^<:WXIJt. OORr>IAiX.V WKLCOME VOU KITHKR ia A ■ plymoutb Voung men's Bible €la$$ Mr ^ Dear Friend: i regret diat you were not ai home when caDed, bat hope to meet you in the Clan next Sunday. S¥^^^f ^^^^l-^Cv^S" £ '?!M^^-''^^^f'^^^J^,<^'^ Miscellaneous forms. APPENDIX 267 Lesf You Forget: rou to 'mak? good." The mere suRgestion, from past experience, )ustifies tbe belie! that you will do it. We, rely on you noiv. Fraternally yours, £ARL'R. CONDER,. "Chairman. iBttBinpsa MtrxB Stbl? QUaaa YOU COME Nezt Sunday Morning M. E. S. S. 9-^0 A. M. We lead IS points Lets make it 36 Captain of .the Oranges. Slble Class Rooms* Methodist Church, ConshohooKen,Pa, Chairman of Attention to Stranger Committee: . ^ , ^ A new family Is reported to have moved Into your district, will jrou Xlndiy investigate and report next Babbathr Respectfully yours,, Postal card forms. 268 APPENDIX Stock forms. 77?^ Organized Adult Bible Class ^% of the ^^ Invites You to Join Them. OUR OBJECT:— The Studg of the Bible and General Reli- gious, Intellectual and Social Culture. We have a Class President, Class Teacher, Secretary. Treasurer and Mem- bership, Devotional and Social Committees. COME TO OUR NEXT REGULAR MEETING Invitation extended by : Q Men's Organized Adult Bible Class Dear Friend: HERE'S- SOMETHING DIFFERENT/ ^ How would you like to be one of a Class of Men to meet once a week, on Sunday, to discuss vital questions of the day, from a religious standpoint? We offer you Christian fellowship, earnest sympathy and hearty good cheer. This is an invitation to visit the Class, and if you like it, to join us. We will help you to spend a profitable hour— the week will go better if you da .Try it Fraternally yours,. The Hour; Invitation cards, one for the use of a Mixed Class, the other for a Men's Class. These are stock forms suitable for the use of any class. They may be obtained of the Methodist Book Concern, Chicago, Cincinnati, or New York. APPENDIX 269 Adult Bible Class of the An Organized Class Regular Meetings FOR BIBLE STUDY FOR CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP Teacher President Secrelarp o We Invite You To Attend the Weekly Devotional Sessions Organized Adult Bible Class of the fflclliatliot i£|]lBrapal Svnilai} dri|Opl i/n Numbers- In tnterest We will appreciate your presence. You will appreciate the fellowship. InvitatioD extended by The Place; The Hour: You are asked to call upon Cj Ne«co.ner D ^^ Organized Adult ^^. □ Bible Class ^^"^ r-, OURAJM.-AUalUand fromaass Q a!wa»satlL This wiD malie for a better and stnuijer class. You wiU help! Dear Friend: ^m^ We missed pou from the session of the Adult Bible aass on last Sunday. Your absence was deeply regretted. Our aun IS Eoerg Member Present Eperj) Sundap. We want to malie our class so fuU of interest and helpfUness that no one will stay away unless prevented by some unusual ' If sick or in trouble please notify us that someone CordiaUyyoms. becrew. Stock forms, suitable for use by any class. They may be obtained of the Methodist Book Concern, Chicago, Cincin- nati, or New YoTk. INDEX Absentees, Follow up, 228. Activity, Forms of religious, 183. Activity, Maintaining interest and, 228. Adams, 107. Administration of the graded school, 14. Adult Bible Class. (See Organized Adult Bible Class.) Advertising the class, 234flf. Advertising, The object and value of, 235; principles of successful class, 237; methods and plans, 239; plans of distribution, 242, Age limit, 250. Anecdote, The, 119. Anderson, Martin B., 126. Anniversary, Class, 230. Announcements in hotels, 240. Application, Practical, 97. Art posters, 240. Association, The influence of, 86; the use of, 105. Association and comparison, 94; ac- quaints the mind with the new idea, 94. Athletics, 218. Attendance, How to keep up the, 227. Attention, Interest and, loiff. Attention may be gained by associ- ation of interests, 105. Attention is, What, 106; indispen- sable in teaching, 107; kinds of, 107; without effort, 107; with ef- fort, 108; methods of attracting and holding, 108; present an ex- ample of, hi; acquiring the power of. III. Author, An evening with a cele- brated, 216. Banner, A class, 230. Barnes, L. C, 140. 271 Barnett, 222. Barrow, 210. Beardslee, 166. Beecher, 116, 128, 188. Bible, The variety of, 6; influence on civilization, 39; our text-book, 69; the living source book of Christianity, 69; the book of life, 70; the book for all ages, 70. Big brothers group, 180. Books, An evening with noteworthj', 215; influence of good, 215. Boys' messenger service, 180. Brainerd, David, 188. Browning, 210. Brumbaugh, 152. Building, 17. Bulletin board, Church, 182; class, 240. Burton and Mathews, 6, 11, 28, 84. Business addresses, 216. Butler, N. M., 20. Census, Religious, 182. Change and variety, Offer, no. Change, The instinctive desire for, no. Channing, 171. Choate, Rufus, 121, Church attendance to be encour- aged, 177. Church Bible-school, 22. Church bulletin, A, 240. Church is larger than any of its parts, .49. Church paper, Local, 182. Class. (See Organized Adult Bible Class.) Class activities. General, 209ff. Class anniversary, 230. Class co-operation, 133. Clas-s finances, 254. Class, How to build up and main- tain a strong, 223. 2 272 INDEX Class loyalty, 227. Class organization for personal work, 194. Class prayer-meeting, 178. Class printing-press', 240. Class song, 230. Class yell, 230. Coe, George A., 105, 155. Coleridge, 91. Command and entreaty, 108, Committee, Invitation, 22T . Committees, Additional, 251, Contest, Membership, 22G. Converts of the Church from the Sunday-school, 25. Conversation method. The, 142. Conversion experiences not all one type, 154- Cope, H. R, 12. Co-operation, Class, 133. Course of Study for the Adult Bi- ble Class, 69; determining factors in the choice of, T2; suggested courses, 74. Courses to meet the varied interests of adults', 71; to be determined by the make-up of the class, 73; to be such as the teacher is pre- pared to teach, 73; will depend upon the object which it is de- sired to attain, t^. Creation of new interests, 106. Curiosity, The appeal to, iii. Curriculum, The Adult Department, 71. 72. Danger points, 47, 50. Deduction, Too frequently used, 96. De Garmo, 95. Democracy of spirit, 225. Dependence, 196. De Quincy, 122. Dinner, Class, 213. Distribution, Plans of, 242. Divisions of human life, 13. Divisions of the Svinday-school, 13. Double-up campaign, 226. Downey, David G., 44. Earnestness, 194. Eastern proverb, 116. Education, 152. Education a larger process than teaching, 82. Encourage the workers', 179. Enforced attention, 109. Enthusiasm begotten of worth, Per- manent, 224. Enthusiasm, The power of, i95- Equipment, Adequate, 17. Evangelistic aim in teaching, 15 iff; teaching the most effective evan- gelistic agency with some, 156; the service of the evangelistic aim to teaching, 157. Evangelism, The meaning of the term, 153; evangelism and reviv- alism not synonymous, 153; not concerned exclusively with the unconverted, 157; the v/ider evangelism, 156; what evangelism purposes, 154. Evangelistic meetings for men, 181. Excursion, 213. Exposition of the lesson, 145. Expression, 174; no impression with- out, 175. Eyes open, Keep the, 123. Failure, Common causes of, 136. Farrar, 210. Faunce, W. H. P., 21, 2.4, 80. Feature material, 241. Federation of Adult Bible Classes, 184. Feeling indispensable to religion, 158. Fellowship, Good, 176. Fergusson, E. M., 12. Figures, Think in, 122. Finances, Class, 254. Follow-up plan, 227. Formal process. General Comment on, 98. Formal steps in the teaching proc- ess, 9 iff. Fresh-air camp, 207. Friend, The teacher must become a personal, 64. Friendship, The method of, 192. Froebel, 152, 154. Generalization, 95; the danger in, 97. God works in more than one way, 155. Goethe, 128. Graded school. Administration of, 14; necessity of grading, 10; plan of organization, 13; principles un- derlying, 9; what constitutes, 9; objections to grading considered. Grading, working in harmony with God, 13. INDEX 273 Gregory, 81, 107, 116, 131. Growth, 152. narrower, Pascal, 6. Hart, 81. Herbart's principles, 91. How of the teacher's task. The, 84. Hudson, M. A., 193. Human life. The protection of, 206. Ideal, A new, 21; stated, 26; its realization, 26. Illustration, Essential qualities of rhetorical, 118; finding illustra- tions, 122; importance and use of, 120; kinds of, verbal, 117; material, 119; illustrations in teaching, 155; most forcible form of, 118; misuse of, 122; simplest form of, 117; the value of, 94; what illustration is, 117. Imagination, Cultivate the, 122. Indian proverb, 80. Inattention, Waste through, 103; removal of cause of, 109. Induction, The importance of, 96; Jesus' use of, 169. Influence of association, 86; of an interested teacher, iii. Intellectually alive, The teacher to be, 59. Interest, 104. Interest, Attention through, 109. Interest and activity, Maintaining, 228. Interest and attention, loiff; the relation of, 104. Interests of adults. Courses to meet the varied, 71. Interests, The discovery of, 105. International standard of organiza- tion, 249. Instinct of curiosity, iii. Instruction in the Sunday-school, must meet the needs of all ages, 27; must be emphasized, 28; is fundamental to life, 84; methods of, I39ff. Invitation Committee, 227. Isaiah, 200. James, William, 104, 174. Jesus' method. Some particulars of, 168; appeal to the will, 168; his use of induction, 169; his use of questions, 1 69. Jesus' teaching, Characteristics of: brevity, 167; intensity, 167; near- ness to life and nature, 167. Jesus, the first Christian evangelist, 153; as a teacher, i6iff; His cour- age, 165; His confidence in men, 166; He spoKe with authority, 166; He was full of truth, 171; His freedom from prejudice, 165; most often addressed as teacher, 163; qualities of Jesus as a teacher, 165. Kent, C. F., 20. King, H. C, 152. Leadership in religious work. Im- portance of, 184. Learning to religion. The service of, 60. Lecture Course, 207. Lecture method. The, 144. Lesson movement, 130. Lesson plan, A, 129; utilizes every moment, 130. Lesson, Each, planned separately, 129; made of practical value, 149. Lesson program, 216. Letter, The, 193. Library, 179. Life, Religious, 225. Literary Committee, 215. Literary interests of the class, 215. Literary lecture, 216. Living conditions. The improvement of, 204. Love of truth required in a teacher, 61. Lowell, James Russell, 222. Loyalty, Develop class, 227. Luther, Martin, 20, 152. Mabie, Hamilton Wright, 128. Man determines the message, The, 57. Marion, 126. Mark, 102. Maxwell, Wm. H., 56. McFarland, J. T., 6, 174, 200. McKean, May F., 234. McMurray, 90, 91, 98. Meetings for men, 181. Members, Recognition of new, 230. Membership contest, 226. Membership, Methods of building up the class, 224. Men, Meetings for, 181. Men's supper, 214. 274 INDEX Mental vitality, Importance of, 59. Metaphor, The, 118. Methodism, The social creed of, 202. Methods of attracting and holding the attention, 108. Methods of building up class mem- bership, 224. Methods of instruction, i39ff; should be suited to conditions, 147; should be varied, 147. Mill, J. S., 133. Milton, 171. Missionary, Sunday-school, 183. Mistakes, Avoidance of common, 136. Motives, 195. Nature study, 218. New ideas, Bringing in, 92. Nott, 68. Object teaching. Forms of, 119. Objections to advertising met, 236. Observation, Use, 122. Opening service, 15. Organization of the class, Advan- tages of, 35; creates classi spirit, 36; inspires activity, 27 \ insures permanency, 36; determination of the form of, 250; meets a social need, 37; objections to, 40; offi- cers additional. 251; officers and their duties, class, 247; promotes class growth, 35. Organization of the school, Condi- tions determine the details of, 7; the ideal standard of, 8; officers necessary, 8. Organized Adult Bible Class, 3 iff; advantages over other organiza- tions, 39; denominational recog- nition of, 34; aids the Sunday- school to become a Church Bible- school, 48; brings the adult work into greater prominence, 47 ; class contribution, 182; class or- ganized for personal work, the, 194; class teacher, the, 5sff; class officers and their duties, 247ff; course of study, 67ff; exemplifies a democratic and Christian spirit, 40; furnishes work for other departments, 48; Genesis and growth, 33; general class activities, 209ff; how to build up and maintain a strong class, 22oflf; means of spiritual growth to each member, 177; must not become a second church, 50; methods of building up class membership, 224; possesses a suf- ficient chief aim, 39; principles which must rule in organization and activities, 46; relation to the Sunday-school and the church, 43ff; religious work of, I73ff; school of practice, a, 176; service to the church, 50; service to the Sunday-school, 47; social life of the class, 211; social service of the class, i99ff; standard, 33; what constitutes a strong class, 22^\ why advertise, 235. Original incidents, Use, 122. Parks and playgrounds, 207. Pastor, 213. Pastor, relation to the Sunday- school, 8. Pastoral work, 182. Patience, 195. Paul, 56. Pearce, W. C, 32, 44. Peck, J. p., 197- Personal interest, 229. Pers\3nal letters, 241. P e r s o n al qualifications of the teacher, 57. Personal qualities which point the message, 58. Personal solicitation, 226. Personal work. The importance and need of, 189; the obligation of every Christian, 190; a neglected service, 19a; difficulty, 191; its neglect a spiritual defect, 192; methods, 192; effectiveness of, 196. Personal workers' group, 19.4. Pestalozzi, 82, 116. Philanthropic agencies, 206. Phillips, J. N., 248. Plan, A lesson, 129. Plan, Follow-up, 227. Plato, 80. Point of contact, Discover, 91. Points to be guarded, 47, Post cards, 241. Posters, Art, 240. Practical application, 97. Praise, 134. Prayer, The secret service of, 193. Prayer-meeting, Class, 178; increase the weekly, 181. INDEX 275 Preparation, 91. Preparation always necessary, 127; made a matter of habit, 127; necessity of general, 128; ade- quate particular, 129; rules for lesson, 129. Preparation of Jestis for His work as teacher, 164. Presentation, 92; principles govern- ing in, 93. Presidents, An evening with, 217. President, The class, 252. Press, A class printing, 240. Press, Use of the secular, 239. Principles in the construction of a curriculum for an adult depart- ment. Guiding, 71. Principles of conduct, Jesus formu- lated positive, 170. Principles of successful class adver- tising, 2^7. Principles which must rule in or- ganization and activity of the class, 46. Programs, Printed, 240. Promptness, The value of, 130. Psalmist, The, 248. Publicity campaign, 242. Publicity week, 226. Questioning, Artful, 131. Questions, jesus' use of, 169. Questions to teaching. The service of, 131; thought guided and de- veloped by, 143. Questions, Valueless, 132. Recitation, 140. Recitation method, The, 141. Reisner, Christian F., 234. Relations of the class to the church and the Sunday-school must be defined and recognized, 45; to the Sunday-school, 46. Religious development indispensable to true education, 22. Religious instruction in the public schools, Decline of, 24. Religious life, 225. Religious work of the Adult Bible Class, i73ff; for the school, 179; for the church, 181; additional forms of, 183. Review, 134; defined, 135; impor- tance of, 135. Roark, 90. Room, A class, 224. Roosevelt, Theodore, 68. Sadler, 200. Sayford, S. M., 189. Secretary, The, 253. Secrets of successful teaching. Open, i25ff. Secret service of prayer, 193. Secular press. Use of, 239. Separate rooms for departments and classes, 14. Service of the Adult Bible Class to the Sunday-school, 47. Service is in being. The highest, 58. Simile, The, 117. Social affairs for a year, 212. Social creed of Methodism, 202. Social life of the class, 211. Socials, 212. Social service. Practical forms of, i99ff; social service, what it is, 201; the church and, 202; studies, 217. Social settlement work, Aid in, 206. Socrates, 131. South, Robert, 120, 146. Special courses of study, 74. Spencer, 120. Spirit, Democracy of, 225. Spirit of the classroom, 148. Spiritual work of the Sunday-school centers in the teacher, 62. Spontaneous attention, 107. Spurgeon, 126, 194. Squad system. The, 228. Stationery, Class, 230. Stereopticon, 217. Stories, The use of, 119. Strength, The determination of, 223. Substitute teachers, 180. Sunday evening service, 181. Sunday-school, The graded, sff; a new ideal for the, 21; as the Church Bible-school, 22; not the children's church, 22; chief agency of religious education, 23; inherits the teaching function of the early Church, 25; must be- come the Church Bible-s'chool, 26; must be made educationally efficient, 27; a school for adults as well as for children, 47. System, The squad, 228. Tact, 194. Tardiness, 136. Task of the Sunday-school teacher, 83. 2 276 INDEX Teacher, The class, 55^; personal qualifications of, 57; to oe intel- lectually alive, 59; to respect learning, 60; to be devoted to truth, 61 ; to make the Sunday- school minister to the spiritual life, 62; to make the Sunday- school worth while from the standpoint of religious instruc- tion, 62; to concern himself in the personal welfare of every member of his class, 63; is an educator, the true, 83; tas'k of the Sunday-school, 83; is to teach, 84; is to aid spiritual de- velopment, 84; is to utilize the power of personal contact, 85; the teacher as a class officer, 252. Teacher come from God, The, i62tt. Teachers for certain grades, 16. Teacher's making of himself, 57". responsibility to the truth, 59; to his class, 61; preparation of the lesson, 127; responsibility as an evangelist, 156. Teacher-training, 29; courses, 74. Teaching defined, 81 ; a co-operative process, 82; teaching and educa- tion, 82; attention indispensable to, 107; open secrets of success- ful, i26ff; test of successful, 176. Teaching period must be length- ened, 29. Test of attention, A, 103. Topical Method, The, 146. Training for workers supplied by the Adult Bible Class, 49- Training of teachers, Courses for, 12, 74. Trains the Church's recruits, 51. Treasurer, The, 253. Trumbull, H. C, 81, 102, 188. Truth, The teacher's responsibility to the, 59; love of, required in a teacher, 61. Uniform les'sons. Advantages in, 74. Van Dyke, Henry, 248. Vice-President, 253. Visit the sick, 178. Voluntary attention, 108. Wallace, Alfred Russell, 56. Waste through inattention, 103. West, A. F., 57. Uo. White, 13 5- White, E. E., 56. Will, Jesus' appeal to the, 168. _ Winning men to personal allegi- ance to Christ, i88ff. Wood and Hall, 32, 44- Word, Doers of the, 175. Yell, A class, 230. Date Due « 21 '4 5 WY1-' ^ A1AY»„W D5 |W«z2'W JM.£_-» - ■"mmiSff^ r M&161S 54 f