‘A Successful Socialist Sunday School’ by Henry Flury from The International Socialist Review. Vol. 12 No. 11. May, 1912.

“To the young belongs the future.” Judging by the zeal and enthusiasm displayed by the young “hopefuls” of our Philadelphia Sunday School one readily believes that the present Their happy faces. sparkling eyes, strong bodies and joyous spirits have been a source of inspiration to their teachers whom they meet each Sunday morning. The school owes its beginning to Mrs. Morris Goldberg. Last fall she was able to organize a staff of teachers and got the Workingmen’s Circle to give their aid. They furnished a whole building – heated, provided with an assembly room, seating 150, and separate class rooms. They installed a piano which cost them over a hundred dollars—because they believed in the children.

The Workingmen’s Circle (an organization formed chiefly of, Socialists) sent their children on Sunday mornings. The youngsters were soon interested and brought others whose parents were not Socialists. A trained singing teacher (a Socialist), Miss Kamenoffsky, was engaged as well as a pianist who gives his services free.

The pupils, numbering 150, from 6 to 15 years of age, all meet in the assembly hall every Sunday morning. A song is sung, then recitations are given by one or two pupils; then more songs and the classes go to their respective rooms. There are four grades at present in charge of Mrs. Goldberg; the principal, Miss Goldberg, Miss Vittelas and myself. The class of youngest pupils is given interesting talks and readings, chiefly on nature, animals, etc. The class of oldest pupils are given material which bears more directly on our present social life. The Socratic method of asking questions is used in order to arouse self-activity on the part of the pupils. The aim in general in all the classes is to avoid dogma, to dispel superstitions, to get a better understanding of social relations, to perform that work which no other institution is doing – training the children to be social beings. To cultivate their imagination, to enable them to picture a better state of society and to desire that state, to love the beautiful, this is part of our work. The meaning of the war spirit, race-prejudice, class-subjection and other capitalistic ideals are clearly shown in their real purpose – to keep the working mass divided.

My purpose in writing this is to inspire the formation of other schools like ours. The child is worth bothering with. He must have the material adapted especially for him. Dividing society into sheep and goats is not sufficient to give the child a social view-point or knowledge of social relations or its relations to the world of nature.

The school has more applicants than it has room for. It has already 150 pupils. We have another school just as large uptown, equally successful. They are a source of constant inspiration to all concerned and more will probably be opened next year, for “nothing succeeds like success.” We have a systematic course of study. though it is not fixed nor ironclad and a regular course outlined. I shall be pleased to send our plans to anyone who contemplates getting up one of these schools “who sends the necessary stamped envelope to the principal, Mrs. M. Goldberg, 1408 S. 5th St., Philadelphia. Let the good work proceed! Onward, to the revolution!

HENRY FLURY.

The International Socialist Review (ISR) was published monthly in Chicago from 1900 until 1918 by Charles H. Kerr and critically loyal to the Socialist Party of America. It is one of the essential publications in U.S. left history. During the editorship of A.M. Simons it was largely theoretical and moderate. In 1908, Charles H. Kerr took over as editor with strong influence from Mary E Marcy. The magazine became the foremost proponent of the SP’s left wing growing to tens of thousands of subscribers. It remained revolutionary in outlook and anti-militarist during World War One. It liberally used photographs and images, with news, theory, arts and organizing in its pages. It articles, reports and essays are an invaluable record of the U.S. class struggle and the development of Marxism in the decades before the Soviet experience. It was closed down in government repression in 1918.

PDF of full issue: https://www.marxists.org/history/usa/pubs/isr/v12n11-may-1912-gog-Corn.pdf