Blessed are those who prefer others before themselves.
Baha'i Faith
Hurt not others in ways that you would you yourself would find
hurtful.
Buddhism
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
Christianity
This is the sum of all duty: treat others as you yourself
would be treated.
Hinduism
No one of you is a believer until you desire for another that
which you desire for yourself.
Islam
In happiness and suffering, in joy and grief, regard all
creatures as you would regard your own self.
Jainism
What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor.
Judaism
Be not estranged from another for God dwells in every heart.
Sikhism
Human nature is good only when it does not do unto another
whatever is not good for its own self.
Zoroastrianism
For Scouts on a hike or canoe trip, a compass is an important tool. Because it gives you a stable reference point (magnetic north), you can set a course and follow it. As long as your compass is accurate and you don't damage it, it will serve you faithfully. If you trust it.
Our faith or spirituality is something like that. We have a point of reference that does not change, God. And we have a compass, so to speak, in our relationship with God. It's something we have learned and continue to learn about, just as we learn to use a compass properly.
We use our spirituality and faith to get us through this grand journey we call life. If we are prepared to trust the things we have learned about God and creative living, our spirituality can guide us through the joys and temptations of life. We can use it to show us what service we may give and what potential dangers to stay away from. We can use it to guide us in our friendships, in our work, in what we say to people and about people, and in how we treat our natural world.
(Scouter Rob Brown, N. Saskatchewan Region)
There is a story that the devil once announced he was going out of business and offered to sell his tools to anyone who would pay the price. On the night of the sale, the tools were all attractively displayed. They were a nasty looking lot-malice, hatred, envy, jealousy, deceit-each marked with a price tag. A little off from the rest lay a harmless looking wedge-shaped tool, much worn, and priced higher than any of the others.
"What is it?" someone asked the devil.
"That's discouragement," he replied.
"Why is it priced so high?" the prospective customer asked.
"Because," said the devil, "it is more useful to me than any of the others. I can pry open and get inside a person with it when I could never get near him with any of the others. Once inside, I can use the person in whatever way it suits me best. That's why it is so worn, you see. I use it with nearly everybody, because few people yet know that it belongs to me."
It is probably not necessary to add that the devil's price for this tool was so high that there were no bidders. And he is still using it.
(told by Colin McKay in Scouting (U.K.) magazine)
Blessed are the Scouts who are taught to see beauty in all
things around them..
for their world will be a place of grace and wonder.
Blessed are the Scouts who are led with patience and
understanding...
for they will learn the strength of endurance and the gift of
tolerance.
Blessed are the Scouts who are provided a home where family
members dwell in harmony and close communion...
for theyshall become the peacemakers of the world.
Blessed are the Scouts who are taught the value and power of
truth...
for they shall search for knowledge and use it with wisdom and
discernment.
Blessed are the Scouts who are guided by those with faith in a
loving God...
for they will find Him early and will walk with Him through life.
Blessed are the Scouts who are loved and know that they are
loved...
for they shall sow seeds of love in the world and reap joy for
themselves and others.
Happy is the man who finds wisdom,
And the man who gets understanding,
For the gain from it is better than gain from silver,
And its profit is better than gold.
She is more precious than jewels,
And nothing you desire can compare with her.
Long life is in her right hand;
In her left hand are riches and honor.
Her ways are ways of pleasantness,
And all her paths are peace.
She is a tree of life to those who lay hold of her;
Those who hold her fast are called happy.
The Lord by wisdom founded the earth;
By understanding he established the heavens;
By His knowledge the deeps broke forth,
And the clouds drop down the dew.
My son, keep sound wisdom and discretion;
Let them not escape from your sight,
And they will be life for your soul
And adornment for your neck.
Then you will surely walk on your way securely
And your foot will not stumble.
If you sit down, you will not be afraid;
When you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.
Do not be afraid of sudden panic, or of the ruin
of the wicked, when it comes;
For the Lord will be your confidence and
will keep your foot from being caught.
"How can we determine the hour of dawn - when the night ends and the day begins?" the rabbi asked of his students.
"When, from a distance, you can distinguish between a dog and a sheep?" one of his students suggested.
"No" the rabbi answered.
"Is it when you can distinguish between a fig tree and a grapevine?" another student asked.
"No" he replied.
"Please tell us the answer, then" said the students.
"It is when you can look into the face of a human being and have enough light to recognize in him your brother," the wise teacher replied.
"Until then, it is night, and the darkness is still with us."
Once a Traveller and a Tracker set out to explore the world together. As they wound their way through the wilderness, the Traveller was amazed at the Tracker's habit of pausing several times a day to pray.
"Why do you pray to something intangible?" the Traveller asked. "How do you know there is a God?"
Now the Tracker was very skilled in noticing things and, through the years, had gained much insight reading the smallest signs. And he answered the Traveller this way:
"I know there is a God when I see the leaves turning yellow. I know there is a God when a trout jumps at a fly, and when grass waves in the dry wind. I know there is a God when clouds shade my head and the stars wink at night."
"So you see," said the Tracker, "I know there is a God, for I can see his footprints throughout the Universe."
Fall, the Hunting Moon of our predecessors. Leaves changing and last year's pine needles falling.... Nature's carpet springing up after each step, leaving no track. Shafts of sunlight striking through beech and birch, spruce and maple.
Smell it! Open your arms, throw out your chests. Drink it in. Help yourself; it's all yours. Did you ever smell anything so wonderful as the fragrance of the pines?
Open your eyes! See the sun on the river. See the eddies past the beaver dam. See that partridge dart off through the trees...
Open your hearts. God is here.
(from an outdoor investiture, published in the May 1949 Scout Leader.)