Changing Trends in Week-Day Religious Education on Public School Time (Classic Reprint)

This book investigates the history of week-day religious education in the United States from 1915 to the 1950s, with special attention given to the objective, curriculum, and organization of week-day religious education. Week-day religious education, as the author refers to it, is simply the revising of an old method of religious education, having existed since the early ages as a duty of the home. The establishment of week-day schools in the 20th century was spurred by the belief of many that American children needed more religious and moral training, particularly given the secularization of American education. The book provides an in-depth look at the various types of organization of such schools, the growth of interdenominational schools, and a discussion of whether public school property should be used for week-day classes in religious instruction. The author concludes by noting that week-day religious education, a movement to incorporate more religious instruction into the lives of American children and youth, has grown rapidly in recent decades and is likely to continue to play an important role in the religious lives of American children.