Lecture : Wrenching our Youth From Frivolous Pursuits,

When we asked Dr. Bruce Guenther to find a catchy title for his lecture on the history of the Bible school movement in Western Canada, he found this one in a quote from the Bethany Bible Institute Catalogue from 1937, that stated the school’s objectives: ‘To give our youth foundational Bible instruction in both the German and English languages, to wrench our youth from frivolous pursuits and the contemporary Zeitgeist, to nurture the German language as a special possession handed down from our fathers, to raise believing youth for the battle of the faith, and to take into account the needs of the congregations in the methodical training of Sunday School teachers and sundry church workers.’ This was probably the intent of most of the Bible schools that sprang up in the first half of the twentieth century. Although the Methodists established the first Canadian Bible school in Ontario in 1885, and Tyndale began in 1894 and continues to the present day, Mennonites established Herbert Bible School in 1913 and soon had 60 such schools strung across the nation. The Mennonite Brethren started 30 of these Bible schools, and the Conference of Mennonites (now Mennonite Church Canada) started 20. Seven other Mennonite groups started 10 more.

Altogether, 330 Bible Schools of various Protestant denominations served their communities, Prairie Bible Institute being the largest. Dr. Guenther said that, “Taken as a whole, the Bible school movement stands as one of the most important influences in the development of evangelical Protestantism in Canada during the twentieth century.” Low tuition, an agrarian lifestyle that left young people with spare time in winter, a chance to meet and mingle with other youth, and motivation to learn about the Bible to serve churches still run by laity, were all factors in the popularity of these schools.

The Bible was the center of the curriculum, and the scriptures were studied “systematically and thoroughly [even if not critically] …a necessary innoculant against humanism, modernism and atheism”. Christian education methods were also taught, and there was a special emphasis on missions. Young people who returned from Bible school “became a veritable army of trained lay workers for involvement in Sunday Schools, youth work, music, and church leadership. Over time, the Bible schools created a common religious experience, a high level of biblical literacy, and an enthusiasm…for participation in the life of the church that was an ongoing source of vitality and energy for local congregations...that shaped the ethos of the entire denomination.”. Dr. Guenther feels that Mennonite institutions are no where close to having this kind of an impact on church life today.

With the rise of 9 Mennonite high schools in the late forties and greater opportunities for higher education at MBBC and CMBC in Winnipeg and even at the university level, interest in Bible school began to wane and there was a push towards accreditation in those that remained open. Only seven Mennonite Bible schools are operating in Canada today.

Most young people who attended Bible schools have warm memories of the experience. They remember pranks, special teachers, romances that often led to marriage (hence the name bridal schools), life changing decisions, spiritual commitments, life long friendships and, of course, increased Bible knowledge and ministry skills.