Article June 19, 1948 Issue

Procedures and Practices

Our Leader, Mary Baker Eddy, who established the Christian Science Sunday School, included in the Church Manual its Order of Exercises as well as By-Laws governing its general conduct. These basic provisions for the Sunday School are accepted without modification or alteration by The Mother Church and its branches throughout the Field. However, details of Sunday School procedure vary in different localities, and churches find that experience and changing conditions sometimes call for changes in details of procedure and practices.

Some years ago a booklet was issued entitled "Questions and Answers Relating to The Mother Church Sunday School." This booklet is not to be depended upon now for up-to-date information regarding The Mother Church Sunday School, as some of the practices therein mentioned have since been discontinued or modified. For example, when the booklet was issued, boys and girls were taught in separate classes from about the age of nine years. Now, although there are a few classes either of girls or of boys, the coeducational plan is applicable at the discretion of the superintendent in all age groups. At the present time information is supplied to the Field about practices in The Mother Church Sunday School and in branch churches through this column and by means of correspondence with the Sunday School Activities Division, which is located at 107 Falmouth Street, Boston 15, Massachusetts.

Since the issuance of the Christian Science Sentinel of July 20, 1946, in which reference was made in the Sunday School column to the method of supplying pupils in The Mother Church Sunday School with copies of the Sentinel and The Christian Science Monitor, a new plan has been put into effect. Instead of sending the periodicals by mail as formerly, copies are now available after the Sunday School session to pupils who wish to receive them. Either or both of the Tuesday and Friday numbers of the Monitor issued during the previous week are available to the younger pupils, and a Monday, Wednesday, or Thursday number, or all of these, to the older pupils. Noncurrent copies of the Sentinel are used for this purpose.