WORLD'S SUNDAY-SCHOOLS

New Zealand Herald, Volume L, Issue 15349, 9 July 1913, Page 6

WORLD'S SUNDAY-SCHOOLS

+. ,„.. •' j CONVENTION AT ZURICH .

THOUSANDS OF DELEGATES. - !

The 'seventh triennial convention of the ' ; ' World's Sunday-school Association opened "'"*' yesteroay in Zurich, the largest city a Switzerland, and will be continued until July 15. Representative Sunday-school "?M workers from all lands are present, tha United States of America alone sending " : 2000 delegates. The objective of the Asso-"■?£! ciation is briefly the conquest of the s XI world through the Sunday-school.. ~ ' ">■

The fcixth. convention, held in Washington in 1910, appointed six special com- '•'• missions, each composed of 12 to 15 per .. : sons, to make a scientific effort to col--: lect information throughout the world bo'IS that it might be presented at the Zurich. : Convention, and profitably utilised by the ■''£ Sunday-school forces of the local fields : ■ represented. Some idea of the scope of":'•: these commissions may. be gathered from • the statement that the tirst of them covered Continental Europe, the second South Africa, the third India and Malay-'.:/: sia, the fourth the Orient (comprising'£' Japan, Corea, China, the Philippines, ana :j Hawaii), the fifth Latin America, and the :;.," sixth Mahommedan lands. :•■)

Most of the afternoons during the con- '-[ vention have been set aside for departmental conferences, denominational rallies, V 1 missionary and other special meetings. Not only will these meetvngs be held in'■■>,: German and English (the official languages : . of the convention), but opportunity will also be afforded for sectional gatheringsin the. native languages of the people re--presented. The delegates at Zurich will:; De called together at each session to engage in services of song and devotion, P. under the leadership of Dr. A. J. Bucher, ":.i a native of Zurich, now living in Cin- 1 cinnati, Ohio. A special chorus of several V hundred Swi.'is singers has already been, i organised to assist in the singing of the songs that have stirred the Christian blood for centuries. In addition to the regular music of the convention, a special :• concert has been arranged for Saturday-i evening's convention, to be given by the Tmhalie Orchestra, a large Swiss chorus, v and some native yodlers from the moun-■£ tains. ' .', As long ago as December 27 last a party" : of the North American delegates left San... Francisco for the Philippines and China. '% A second party sailed on March 1, stopping at Hawaii en route for Japan. After attending a large number of Sundayschool meetings in Japan, China, and,: Corea. the combined parties took passage > over the Trans-Siberian railroads for St. Petersburg, and from there they travelled to J? Zurich. At the same time a similar party fi from Great Britain has been carrying" ou« a campaign in India, and both of these parties will report at the convention. f| The Auckland Sunday-school Union will be represented by the Rev. A. C. La wry r : and Messrs. J.. C. Spedding, J. Watkinson, and J. Watson. -S'ti Sunday next is being recognised '-"iaM World's Sunday-school Day. An order, of ji service, issued by the executive of the association, has been printed in more than ,S 100 languages and dialects. It will be used as an opening exercise in thousandsp of Sunday-schools in every continent and in many islands. Many of the schools ■£■ of the Auckland Sunday-school Union will J join in reciting the same Scriptures and ; -£ singing the same hymns on that day. • V