A History of the Mennonite Brethren Church, Ja Toews

ay of the month: listing the subject of the lesson (following the "International" outline), giving the text from the Bible, an introduction, the golden text verse, an exposition of the lesson, questions adapted to children and practical suggestions for the Christian life. In addition, the Sonntagschulbote also carried articles and reports on M.B. missions, on the church, on the Sunday school, etc. 1 ' Moreover, Duerksen also began to publish Sunday school lessons and a Kinderblatt (Children's Paper). At the conference in 1902 Duerksen reported that subscriptions to the Sunday school papers and lesson materials were adequate to cover all costs, and hence there was no need for a conference subsidy. The conference expressed its approval of Duerksen's ministry, and encouraged all churches to make use of the Sunday school material.' 2 Concern for a sound doctrinal content of the lesson materials found expression in the appointment of "editors" who adapted the "International S. S. Lessons" for use in Mennonite Brethren churches. During the early period (1900 to 1907) J. F. Duerksen, D. D. Bartel, and H. W. Lohrenz rendered valuable services in this area of conference work. Beginning in 1907, N. N. Hiebert served as "editor-in-chief" of Sunday school lessons for twelve years until 1919, and again from 1927 to 1936. Hiebert also served as associate member on the International Council of Religious Education. 13 The concern for proper Sunday school materials gave rise to a serious discussion on the conference floor at the 1924 convention. Many churches favored the creation of more scripturally oriented lesson material, written by brethren of the conference. However, since the selection of the "International" lessons for the succeeding two years was considered more satisfactory than heretofore, the conference decided to elect a Sunday School Committee which was to oversee the selection of lessons, and when the latter were considered to be inadequate, to provide its own lesson materials." In the 1930's the transition from German to English made rapid progress and the younger generation found it increasingly difficult, if not impossible to use German lesson materials. At the 1939 convention the conference accepted a recommendation of the Publications Committee to publish a sixty-four page Sunday School Quarterly in the English language for the younger classes, containing only one introduction, one text, based on the graded treatment of the International Lessons, but three expositions for pupils of the primary, intermediate and senior departments (respectively). The "explanations" (Erklaerungen) are to be written by three different persons in order to achieve a greater balance. We recognize this as an urgent need for achieving a greater unity in our Sunday school work. ''■ Three decades later hardly any adult classes in U.S. M.B. churches still used German Sunday school materials." In Canada, as will be shown