I expect many of you read the message from National President Claude Taylor on the inside cover of the Aug/Sept '85 Leader. "Scouting in Canada has somehow, in recent years, forgotten in large measure its spiritual emphasis," Mr. Taylor says.
In many instances, the spiritual emphasis in Scouting does seem to be lacking. On the other hand, there are signs of a renewed interest in spiritual things in the Scouting movement in Canada. One of the indications of this renewed interest was the response of Scouts, Venturers and leaders towards the efforts of the chaplains at CJ'85. I believe this response reflects the growing awareness among our youth members and their leaders of the need for a spiritual dimension in their lives.
Spirituality has always been an important part of Scouting. The first program objective listed by our organization is a personal understanding of God the first principle is the love and service of God. And B.P. & P., Section X, sets out in very clear language what Scouts Canada expects of leaders in the area of religion and spirituality. It's up to us, the adults in Scouting, to help youth members discover and develop their own spiritual awareness. I believe that, with the help of God and a little effort on our part, we can do a lot more in this area than we've done in the past and much more than we often think we can do.
Part of the problem, I think, is that few of us have a clear idea of how we should go about helping a young person develop his or her spiritual self We usually have a pretty clear idea of what we are not trying to do. We are not trying to run a religious education program. For the most part, we're content to leave that to the various religious groups to which our members belong. Our camps are not intended to be Sunday School in the bush or a duplication of the efforts of the church camp across the lake. And finally, as Scouts we are not trying to convert the world to one particular religious point of view. We respect a great diversity of religious opinion and practice.
B.P. & P. tells us what we are expected to do, but the question remains: How do we go about it? In a series of articles, I hope to present a few ideas you may find helpful in your efforts to make spiritual growth a part of Scouting in your area. The series will look at prayers, music, the spoken word and putting together a Scouts' Own or church parade. But before getting into any of that, I think it's important to look at the key factor- our own personal example.
If we want our Scouts to take an active part in their religious traditions and to develop spiritually, we must show the way by taking an active part in our religious traditions and working on our own spiritual development.
Let's ask ourselves some questions. Do we regularly attend our place of worship, or do we limit our attendance to occasions when our faith celebrates its major festivals? Is the language we use in private any different than the language we use in front of our youth members? Do our day-to-day actions reflect our faith, or do we keep our beliefs separated from our normal lives. Are we doing anything to develop our own spirituality?
Anyone who has ever taken a Wood Badge course no doubt has heard all he or she may ever want to hear about setting a good personal example for youth members. The fact remains, our personal example is very important. Young people are keen observers of the world around them and learn much of what they learn through observing the adults with whom they come into contact. Whether we like it or not, our youth members will take their cue from us and follow our lead.
Our attitude toward public and private prayer is one of the most obvious expressions of our spirituality and it's an area where leaders can make a significant contribution to the spiritual growth of young people.
Open and close every meeting, day at camp or other event with prayer and say grace at every meal. We may neglect this simple approach because, for some strange reason, we often find it harder to say grace or to pray at home with our families or in camp with our youth members than to do these things at formal public functions.
Opening and closing every meeting with prayer and saying grace at every meal is a good start. It is most effective if every member of the group has an opportunity occasionally to lead the prayers. If we are serious about helping people develop their spiritual selves, it's important to encourage them to take a turn at leading prayers. Just keep in mind that it is unfair to ask someone to lead a prayer without warning. Give the person some time to prepare.
If you ask a boy who has never led a prayer before, he's bound to be nervous. Perhaps his personal background has not included the saying of prayers. Offer help. You could teach him a specific prayer for the particular occasion, but it will probably be most helpful if you give him a book of prayers and ask him to pick out one to read to the group.
It's not that bad a solution. Everybody has to learn to pray somehow and reading a prayer from a book gets a person used to the idea that he or she can not only pray in private but also lead prayers in public. When people gain confidence in leading prayers, they begin to find that prayers in books don't always say exactly what they want them to say and will start to write some of their own.
Where can you find good books of prayers suitable for Scouts? "Let's Celebrate" by Don Laing is one good source. Published by Scouts Canada, it's available from your Scout Shop or through your Scout catalogue.
"Scout Prayers", published by the Scout Association of Great Britain, is another book I like. Unfortunately, it isn't always readily available in this country, but you should be able to order it by writing: The Scout Association, Baden-Powell House, Queen's Gate, London SW7 5JS.
Your own religious tradition is a third good source of prayers. A few cautions. Choose prayers in modern English. Most people are no longer familiar with the English of the 16th century and, while it is a very beautiful language, it sometimes turns people off - especially young people. It's usually quite easy to "translate" old into modern English yourself.
Be sure also that the prayers you select will not offend someone of a different religious tradition. For example, in the past many Christian groups often prayed for the conversion of Jews, obviously ignoring the fact that, if people of the Jewish faith had wanted to convert, they would have done so long ago. Granted, that's an extreme example but it's important to remember that some of the phrases with which we are comfortable and use automatically in our own religious traditions may be offensive to others. As Scouts, we respect our religious differences.
Look at some of the prayers of religious traditions other than your own. Sometimes you can express a good idea in an even better way by using someone else's words. A good source of prayers from different religious traditions and cultures is "Sharing" compiled by Avril Taylor. Published by the Girl Guide Association of Great Britain, it is available through your local Girl Guide office.
Another approach is to check out some collections of prayers available in religious bookstores.
After looking at a number of books without finding the words you want for an occasion, you may decide to use your own prayer. Here's a suggestion from my personal experience. Write out the prayer and use it exactly as you write it. Otherwise, your thoughts, like mine, may tend to wander and the prayer will be too long.
Try to gear prayers to the age and interests of the group you're working with and, for all groups, keep them simple. Some members may have only begun their journey toward spiritual maturity and will not be ready for anything but a simple approach. Remember, also, that some of the simplest prayers are among the greatest.
To give you examples, here are some opening prayers based on the mottos or promises of the different Scouting sections. Use them as they are, adapt them to suit your group, or consider them models upon which to base your own prayers on the promise, law and motto of your section.
Beavers: Our Father in Heaven, teach us how to share with others. Amen.
Cubs: God our heavenly Father, give us the strength through your spirit to do our best in all that we do.
Scouts: God our heavenly Father, we have promised to love and serve you. Be with us and guide us as we prepare ourselves to do that. Amen.
Venturers: Heavenly Father, we have promised to develop ourselves so that we may better serve you, our neighbours and our country. Guide us through the power of your spirit at our meeting tonight so that we may be able to fulfill that promise. Amen.
Rovers: God our heavenly Father, we know that without your guidance we can do nothing that will please you. Pour out your spirit upon us so that our service to others will always be pleasing and acceptable to you. Amen.
Adults: Almighty God, our heavenly Father, we thank you for the opportunity to serve the youth of our community. We pray that you will so guide and direct the discussions of this meeting that the decisions we make will further the growth of the Scouting movement and enable our young people to be better able to love and serve you. Amen.
I'll wind up with two very simple closing prayers we have used.
The Lord watch between you and me while we are absent one from the other. Amen.
The grace of Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all. Amen.
Many thanks to The Rev. Neil T. Gregory, The Anglican Church of Canada, Parish of Lintlaw, Saskatchewan.
Last edited: February 22, 2004
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