[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]The legacy of the International Sunday School Department is built on a foundation of education, faith, and visionary leadership. Below is an overview of our journey from a local class in Mississippi to a global ministry.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Early Foundations (1908\u20131917)<\/b><\/p>\n

The seeds of the Sunday School movement were sown in 1908 in Lexington, Mississippi, by Professor L.W. Lee. Principal of the College at Natchez, Professor Lee had been saved under the ministry of Elder C.P. Jones in 1895. His dedication to Christian education led him to become the church’s first Sunday School Superintendent.<\/span><\/p>\n

By 1916, the movement gained significant momentum in St. Louis, Missouri, under the leadership of Elder F.C. Christmas (affectionately known as “Father Christmas”). Starting with just twelve students (nine women and three men), he soon introduced educational quarterlies. While some saints initially resisted these materials, Bishop C.H. Mason witnessed the positive impact on the congregation and officially sanctioned the program.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 1917, Overseer C. Bostic of Missouri invited Elder Christmas to the National Convocation to present his work. At the time, Professor Courts of Lexington was in charge of the National Sunday School. However, after hearing “Father Christmas” speak, Professor Courts and Mother Lizzie Robinson both acknowledged that he was the right choice to lead the department forward.<\/span><\/p>\n

National Growth and Leadership (1924\u20131967)<\/b><\/p>\n

The department\u2019s structure solidified in 1924 when Bishop Mason officially appointed Elder Christmas as the National Superintendent. Under his leadership, Sunday School departments were established in every state. To manage this rapid growth, Elder L.C. Patrick was appointed as an assistant, eventually succeeding Father Christmas as National Superintendent in 1944.<\/span><\/p>\n

Key Milestones of this Era:<\/b><\/p>\n

\n
• 1945<\/b>: Growth continued at the state level as Bishop S. Crouch of Northern California appointed Elder H.C. Johnson as State Sunday School Superintendent. Elder Johnson subsequently named Missionary Lucille Cornelius as his Chairlady\u2014the first woman to hold a leadership role within the department.<\/span><\/li>\n
• The Field Representatives:<\/b> During Bishop Patrick’s tenure, <\/span>Mother Jones of Arkansas<\/b> made history as the first National Field Representative.<\/span><\/li>\n
• 1951<\/b>: The first independent National Sunday School Convention convened in Kansas City, Missouri.<\/span><\/li>\n
• 1967<\/b>: Bishop C.W. Williams assumed the role of National Sunday School Superintendent.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

  The Modern & International Era (1968\u2013Present)<\/b><\/p>\n

  In 1968, Bishop Roy Winbush oversaw the opening of the<\/span> Publishing House<\/span><\/a> in Memphis, Tennessee. The department continued to evolve under Bishop Jerry Macklin of California (appointed in 1993), who was supported by Sis. Gloria Smith of Washington as his National Field Representative.<\/span><\/p>\n

  In 1999, the department reached a global milestone when the Sunday School went live on the web during the “World\u2019s Greatest Sunday School Session.” Following the election of the late Bishop G.E. Patterson in 2000, Bishop Alton Gatlin was reappointed to take the department to new heights.<\/span><\/p>\n

  Joining Bishop Gatlin\u2019s leadership team was the newly appointed Evangelist Cloelia Penix as International Field Representative, alongside three Vice Presidents: Supt. Rodney Atkins, Supt. Darrak Scrules, and Supt. Althea Sims.<\/span><\/p>\n

  Current Leadership<\/b><\/p>\n

  Today, the department continues to thrive under the guidance of our current President, <\/span>Superintendent Mark Ellis<\/span><\/a>. We remain committed to our founding motto:<\/span><\/p>\n

  “A child saved is a soul saved, plus a life.”<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

  As we look toward the future, we invite you to join us as we continue to make history.<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  [vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]The legacy of the International Sunday School Department is built on a foundation of education, faith, and visionary leadership. Below is an overview of our journey from a local class in Mississippi to a global ministry. The Early Foundations (1908\u20131917) The seeds of the Sunday School movement were sown in 1908 in Lexington, Mississippi,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-70","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","description-off"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cogic.org\/sundayschool\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/70","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cogic.org\/sundayschool\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cogic.org\/sundayschool\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cogic.org\/sundayschool\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cogic.org\/sundayschool\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=70"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/www.cogic.org\/sundayschool\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/70\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4544,"href":"https:\/\/www.cogic.org\/sundayschool\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/70\/revisions\/4544"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cogic.org\/sundayschool\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=70"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}