To Superintendents by W. J. Bostwick

Pacific Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Oakland, California · Jul 31, 1879

To Superintendents.

By W. J. Bostwick

WE desire to call the attention of superintendents to the Sabbath-school report in this number of the SIGNS, as there are some points in it worthy of special notice. It will be seen that the total membership of the schools in the State, so far as reported, is 702, with an average attendance of only 405. We say only, because this average is far below what it should be. The question then arises, What can be done to increase the attendance at our Sabbath-schools? There is only one answer to this question, and we offer it as a suggestion: That our schools set about doing missionary work. This is the best mode that can be devised to increase the membership as well as the attendance of our schools. If a boy or girl, or any of the adult members, are absent one Sabbath day, let the teacher see to it that that person is visited during the week and the reason of non-attendance known. Let it be shown that you have an interest in them, and they in return will have their interest increased in the Sabbath-school. No Sabbath-school approaches anywise near perfection until it embraces within its membership every member of the church. The Sabbath-school is not for children alone, but for adults also.

Again: The total membership is 702, but the report shows there are but 449 Instructors taken to supply this number of scholars. Superintendents, cannot your club of Instructors be increased so that every member of your school can have one? The Instructor is an excellent Sabbath-school missionary paper; and if you would be fishers of men, women, and children, bait your hooks with the Instructor.

We would call attention to another very important point in connection with this report. The Constitution of the State S. S. Association requires that each school pay to the Association one-tenth of its quarterly collections. This constitutes a fund for the support of the Association, and to enable it to carry on its work of building up the Sabbath-school interest in the State. But this quarter we have received a tithe from only four schools of the seventeen reporting. We urge upon superintendents the importance of attending to this matter.

There are some churches in the State which either have no Sabbath-school or fail to report, we do not know which. We will mention a few names that have been handed us by the president of the Association, viz: Lemoore, Church’s Colony, Fairview, and Mendocino. We hope that if these churches have no schools that they will immediately organize them, elect their officers, and report the same to the secretary of the State S. S. Association, Oakland. W. J. BOSTWICK, Sec. S. S. A.