Not so Interested in Sunday School: Sharing My Experience

My History with Sunday School

I have gone to church my entire life – special thank you to my Gramps whose testimony set the course for my whole family (that story is for another day). In all my churching, I have been to churches with and without Sunday school. It’s really a great concept in my personal opinion and has been since it started.

According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, a man named Robert Raikes created an opportunity for the youth of the time, who were often employed by factories and working Monday through Saturday, to get a basic academic and religious education on the one day they didn’t have to work their childhood away. I know some of you younger ones are thinking going to school is the last thing you would want to do on your only day off of work, but believe it or not, people wanted to go to school because that was, and still is, that greatest tool we have to overcome obstacles to success in this life. But I digress.

As I was saying, Sunday school is great!

But can I tell you a secret?

I have always dreaded going to Sunday school.

I know! I’m awful! And I still am not certain why I feel such apprehension because I truly enjoy my current Sunday school class, and I have enjoyed past classes as well. (To the psych student out there wide-eyed and swimming in questions bubbling over in your head wondering what caused this angst of mine: let’s chat.) Each Sunday, if I don’t have other responsibilities in the morning, and yes, sometimes I go looking for them, then I’ll go to my class’s door and stand outside. By standing there one moment longer, I’m hoping someone might call out my name at the last second and ask me to help clean up a spilled drink, or run papers to another classroom, or find a missing child. Just kidding! We haven’t lost any children.

A couple Sundays ago, someone had left the door just barely cracked, so I peeked in from my quiet spot in the hallway. Come to think of it, I’m really glad no one walked by at that point; I might have looked a little questionable. I don’t know what I expected to see other than all the people who are always in my class. People I have grown to love! However, I still felt stuck.

Am I Alone in this Struggle?

Puzzled by this discontentment, I started asking other people what they thought about the concept of Sunday school. Not only did I ask people from my church, but I also asked friends and family who attend other churches. The responses I received stretched in all possible directions. Seldomly, I had to ask prompting follow up questions, but usually “What do you think about Sunday school?” was enough to get my surveyee to start talking. Necessary, unnecessary, a tool, a nuisance, effective, ineffective, were all terms used in the responses I heard.

Those who thought Sunday school is necessary, explained that the purpose of Sunday school is to be able to discuss the Bible and sermons more analytically rather than just receiving a pastor’s interpretation of a portion of the Bible each week. Many who deemed the additional meeting unnecessary had not seen it implemented effectively, or it became more of a chore trying to get people to teach or show up at all.

Some even thought Sunday school was only for children; this could be because they grew up in a church with Sunday school, but as they’ve grown many churches have strayed away from having Sunday school altogether. And let’s face it, as a kid I know I didn’t think about what Sunday school class my parents were going to. As a matter of fact, I remember thinking several times, Why do I have to go to Sunday school? Can’t I just go with my parents until church starts? I did not think I would be going with them to another Sunday school class though.

At first, I thought I had wasted my time searching for some reason behind my reserve. Don’t misunderstand, I’ve always enjoyed church. This feeling wasn’t just my reluctance to go to church as a whole because I continued to attend and volunteer in the church after I moved out of my parents house, through college, and even still. Although, I felt like I was still grasping at the wind trying to find an answer that may or may not be there. I wanted to clear the fog that had daunted me for so long. Consequently, I followed up with some research.

My Research on Sunday School

My leading question at that point was “What is the purpose of Sunday school?” I did find an answer that I liked from ChurchLeaders.com: the purpose of Sunday school is to be the “reaching, teaching, winning, and caring arm of the church.” I liked what they had to say. There wasn’t just one purpose, there were several components. Better yet, scripture supported their answer. Deuteronomy 31:12 says, “Gather the people together, men and women and little ones, and the stranger who is within your gates, that they may hear and that they may learn to fear the LORD your God and carefully observe all the words of this law.”

Okay! I get it, and I like it!

Unfortunately, the following Sunday still wasn’t any easier.

Baffled, I continued pondering with my husband.

I tell you what, I’ve never met a more patient person. I am particular and fluster easily, but somehow he seems to, might I say, enjoy my relentless questions. Furthermore, he never fails to entertain my questions with his perspective and scriptural knowledge (he often impresses me with how well he knows his Bible – I strive to know mine better) even if he knows we won’t come to a certain conclusion in that setting.

In our conversation we let our thoughts wander in every nook and cranny, which eventually made me reconsider how satisfied I felt with the four-part purpose I found from ChurchLeaders. My next question grew to be, “What is the difference between Sunday school and Sunday morning worship service?”

Searching and Not Giving Up!

What I’ve come to is both incomplete yet satisfactory. For me. For now.

During a Sunday morning sermon, we as lay people get the opportunity to be shepherded by someone we trust to have sought further insight into Words miraculously preserved over thousands of years. We can take notes and should put in time to look into the Word ourselves, but in the midst of a sermon isn’t exactly the time to raise your hand to ask questions. Sunday school provides a more intimate gathering that allows for more questions and discussion; however, certain people often pre-plann and guide those classes to arrive at a specific point or lesson. While people can ask questions, there’s a guide or structure to follow.

When I graduated high school and moved to college, I noticed a sense of freedom. Not only did I have less rules (not too many less though because I did attend a Christian college), but I felt a freedom in autonomy. I started to have conversations with my peers about how we perceived the world around us, where we faltered, what aspirations had driven our decision making, etc. I have one friend in particular, who would stay up for hours with me talking about our shortcomings, why we fell short of expectations we had once had for ourselves, and how all of that led to Jesus and what He teaches in the Bible (yes, even our mistakes directed our attention to Jesus). It was unguided, unstructured, free to wander, authentic expression of whatever thoughts shot through the breadth of our minds.

I continue to seek the root of the uneasiness that accompanies me to Sunday school: possibly the formality that comes with wearing my Sunday best, perhaps the stiffness I feel when I don’t exactly know where a book is in the Bible, or even the embarrassment that swells in me when I don’t answer a question right. I may not have figured out my lingering fear, but I did unveil something else. In all the questioning and conversation, opinion and opposition, I was delighted!

Still Faithful to Church

Whether or not I find the answer to why I feel the way I do, I know where I’ve thrived for the past seven plus years. In the uncertainty, the search for something more than a blanket statement, pushing boundaries of what always has been, the convictions that lead to vulnerable conversation, I have experienced a freedom that I believe God has always desired for me, and everyone else, to feel.

We as humans often put on a facade to hide the ugly or imperfect things in our lives. Friends often aren’t as forthcoming with information about themselves anymore because we tell ourselves that no one wants to know that we’re struggling or that we’re doubting. The more we hide behind what we think our life should to look like, the more we isolate ourselves, which is the opposite of what God wants for us (Galatians 6:2). He said it is NOT good for man to be alone (Genesis 2:18).

So the title “Not So Interested in Sunday School” is not indicating that I don’t like coming together with other God-fearing people to learn more about Him. I guess I just feel a resistance to putting together a perfect lesson, dressing proper, and having it all together. I personally prefer something more like getting in your comfy clothes, sitting on the couch with a blanket and a snack with other people who mess up and miss the mark – sinners – talking about tough stuff. Letting frustrations, anxieties, joys, laughs, and tears of all kinds fill the room. This is a place of discomfort and sometimes even downright ugliness, but through all that, we get to consider others’ perspectives, connect with other broken people, and cultivate relationships that enable us all to grow and learn more about our Creator.

That’s where I want to be not just on Sunday mornings, but every day of the week.