The Negro's church,.

The Program of the Church

135

Young People's Work
The young people's organizations are usually designated by
such names as the Young People's Union, the Epworth
League, and the Christian Endeavor. The young people's
work receives less emphasis than that of the Sunday church
school. There are 398 churches reporting young people's
work, as against 608 of the 609 reporting Sunday church
schools. A number of churches studied reported having
young people's groups in previous years; but for one reason
or another these organizations did not last.
ORGANIZATION
The young people's work is usually organized to provide
for both general and special groups for study and discussion
purposes. These forms of organization permit the use of a
variety of programs, which include study of denominational
lesson material, discussions, special speakers and musicals.
The officers of the young people's group ordinarily consist
of a president, several vice-presidents, a secretary, and a treasurer. Additional officers are found in varying local situations.
Meetings are customarily held on Sunday evenings preceding
the evening preaching and worship service.
PURPOSE
The purposes of the young people's groups vary from the
study of the Bible, to social gatherings. In one organization
the purpose may be both social and Bible teaching. In another it may be discussion of "timely themes"; while another
has as its purpose giving young people "something to do."
There seems to be no generally accepted function for
young people's work. The purposes it will serve are determined almost entirely by the local church. If a clew to its
purpose is sought in the denominational literature it uses,
two things are usually apparent: (1) There is a strong effort
to "pep up" the young people's work with attractive quota