What began 150 years ago as one man's concern for the spiritual development of his neighbors' children has developed into an organization that influences for good the hearts and minds of members of the Church throughout the world.

"The Sunday School has a great spot in my heart," said Elder Harold G. Hillam of the Presidency of the Seventy and general president of the Sunday School.

"I began teaching Sunday School when I was a junior in high school. Whether we are teachers or students, the Sunday School has one main goal — teaching the gospel of Jesus Christ."

This year marks the 150th anniversary of the organization of the Sunday School, first held Dec. 9, 1849, in the humble, yet significant, circumstances of Richard Ballantyne's home at 300 South and 200 West in Salt Lake City.

To mark the occasion, two major events are planned this year. The first is scheduled several days prior to April general conference when the First Presidency and other General Authorities will open the centennial box in a special ceremony. The box is called the centennial box since was closed in 1949 during the centennial year of the Sunday School.

The second event will come in October when a sesquicentennial box containing artifacts and records of the Church pertaining to the past 50 years will be sealed and prepared for opening in the year 2049.

The tradition of sealing Sunday School time capsules began with the jubilee celebration of 1899 and has been repeated every 50 years since. The jubilee box was opened by the general board during a centennial program in the Tabernacle in April 1949.

It was a beautiful redwood repository that contained a message from board members urging diligence in the teaching of the gospel, noted an article in the Dec. 14, 1949, Church News. Also included were pictures, lessons, buttons, ribbons and other mementos of the era.

Later that year, in October 1949, President David O. McKay, then a counselor in the First Presidency, was the featured speaker during ceremonies that included the sealing of the centennial box to be opened in 1999.

The centennial box was composed of wood contributed from missions around the world, including a piece of Keyaki hardwood from Japan's Higashi Honganji Temple, olive wood from Israel, rare stinkwood from South Africa, as well as other woods.

When the First Presidency opens the centennial box in April, they will find a message from the 1949 board that was placed in the box by white-haired Henry Peterson, who was the only surviving board member from 1899.

Elder Hillam was a newspaper carrier for the Deseret News in 1949 and still remembers the heavier-than-usual newspaper that marked the Sunday School centennial edition. He now serves as general president of the Sunday School.

"Our emphasis during this sesquicentennial year is to foster gospel scholarship and encourage excellence in teaching," he said. "We hope all members of the Church will take this opportunity to better understand the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. We recommend all members rededicate themselves to being excellent teachers and even better students so the Spirit can be in our meetings and touch the hearts of every individual. The Sunday School is here to stay. It is one of the main teaching arms of the Church." — Janene Wolsey Baadsgaard