Vacation Bible School was the brainchild of a Mrs. D.T. Miles, wife of a Methodist minister in Hopedale, Ill. Mrs. Miles, it is said, was concerned that the children of her husband’s congregation weren’t learning enough on Sundays and needed a monthlong course of study over the summer. The first session, in 1884, had 37 students. Like its modern-day counterparts, it included arts and crafts, singing, exercise, drama and Bible study.<\/p>\n
Today, more than half of American churches offer VBS. Many provide a weeklong, half-day program during the summer, primarily for grade-schoolers. Increasingly, however, churches are switching to evening sessions, and offering classes for adults, as well, said the Rev. Mayra Castaneda, assistant director of education and leadership ministries for the National Council of Churches.<\/p>\n
VBS is big business for the publishing houses of the major denominations, which develop an annual theme–ranging from ranching to hot-air ballooning–and sell workbooks, teacher manuals, decorations and computer games wrapped around it. More than 70% of the 35,000 United Methodist churches in the U.S. offer Vacation Bible School, and they learned next year’s theme, “Beach Party: Surfin’ Through the Scriptures,” this July. The 2008 material will be available by December, allowing churches, if they choose, to conduct a summer-themed VBS over Christmas vacation.<\/p>\n