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Boy Scout Troop 633
(Blythewood, South Carolina)
 
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Responsibilities of Chaplain & Aides

Why Were You Recruited As a Chaplain?

Chaplain

Scouting is a resource for religious organizations, schools, and community and civic groups to use in their program for young people. Scouting is an educational program based on "duty to God" and designed to enhance

  • A personal value system
  • Leadership skills
  • Citizenship responsibilities
  • Career awareness
  • Personal fitness

 

If the troop is operated by a religious organization, it is customary for the religious leader to serve as the chaplain. The religious leader may ask a member of the staff who is qualified to serve in that position. A unit not operated by a religious organization may select a chaplain for the troop from the local clergy.

The Basic Opportunity

In this capacity, you as the chaplain have an opportunity to be a friend to the Scouts and leaders and to contribute to their spiritual welfare and growth. You as the chaplain, by virtue of your position and personality, can encourage the boys in their Scouting work and other aspects of their total lives.

The Job Description

  • Provide a spiritual tone for all troop meetings and camping experiences.
  • Assure members and leaders of your interest in them and their activities.
  • Provide spiritual counseling service when needed or requested.
  • Provide opportunities for all boys to grow in their relationship with God and their fellow Scouts.
  • Encourage Scouts to participate in the religious emblems program of their respective faith.

Outreach Opportunities

Many times one of the first contacts a new family has in the community is with the Scouting unit. As new members are registered, you will learn of their religious affiliations or interest and can extend to them an invitation to join you in worship. Or you may share with them other opportunities for worship within the community. At no time should the chaplain proselytize.

Accidents, Illnesses, and Other Problems

Ask the leaders to report accidents, illnesses, and other problems of members to you. You should become aware of situations where a pastoral call would be appropriate and beneficial. Leaders who are in regular contact with their members often are the first to know of situations that may need pastoral attention. If a member misses several meetings, it may be an indication that something is wrong. Ask that the names of absentees be shared with you. As chaplain you have the opportunity to visit and discover the source of the problem. If the problem is with some aspect of the Scouting program or leadership, you should discuss this problem with the appropriate individual or committee.

Chartered Organization Representative

This person is the representative of the chartered organization to the district and local council of the Boy Scouts of America. This person must be able to represent the organization's concern in both policy-making and program. The chaplain should work closely with the chartered organization representative for the interest of the chartered organization and its ministry, as well as for children, youth, and families.

Support of Unit Leadership

Remember, volunteers sharing their time and effort are what makes Scouting work. Support them. Recognize them for a job well done. Commend them personally for their ministry. Thank their family members, too, for their sacrifice makes Scouting possible.

Observe Unit Leadership

Unit leaders are charged with fulfilling the purpose of both the chartered organization and Scouting. The leadership should demonstrate awareness of and understanding of both. It should be evident that Scouting activities are fulfilling spiritual needs, in addition to developing Scouting skills.

Religious Emblems Study Programs

Encourage Scouts to earn their appropriate religious emblems. The troop possibly includes Scouts of various faiths; therefore, a knowledge of all emblems would be helpful. The chart Duty to God, No. 05-879A, will be most helpful. Procedures within various faiths differ. A call to your local council service center will help to identify the requirement book, method of ordering, and presentation information.

Planning Worship Experiences

Every troop going away for a weekend needs to plan to conduct or attend a service in keeping with the 12th point of the Scout Law. You may be invited to conduct the services or work out a program with the chaplain aide and other adult leaders. An overnight event should include worship experiences, either for the individual or for the troop. You may want to recommend scripture readings or devotional readings to be used at the close of the evening or as a morning meditation.

Identifying Service Opportunities

Service projects for advancement are required of all Scouts. Helping others is a Scouting tradition. You have the advantage of being able to identify many possible service projects for individuals and families, for the chartered organization, for the community, and beyond the community. You will need to be on the lookout for service projects that are helpful and significant. A particular emphasis in service projects is to focus on concerns and cares of the faith community, such as persons living in impacted areas (neighborhoods isolated by highways, interstates, commercial developments, etc.); aged, homebound, hungry, and illiterate people; ethnic minority groups needing help; and persons with handicapping conditions.

Sensitivity to Needs

Working with leaders and youth will offer you an opportunity to relate to them at a level where you will become sensitive to needs not yet expressed. Be alert for personal, family, or social situations that may require special care.

Chaplain Aide

Chaplain aide is an approved youth leadership position for Boy Scouts. The responsibilities are to encourage spiritual awareness and growth in the lives of troop members and to assist the chaplain. The Boy Scout seeking the position of chaplain aide should have earned or be in the process of completing his religious emblems study program. It is recommended that the Boy Scout selected be at least a First Class Scout. The chaplain aide should be mature and sensitive, a Boy Scout who has earned the trust of his fellow Scouts. The purpose of this program is to:

  • Make the 12th point of the Scout Law more meaningful in life.
  • Promote a greater understanding of and appreciation for all religions.
  • Provide Boy Scouts with the opportunity to work with an ordained member of the clergy, thereby gaining insight into the religious professional life.

Duties of the Chaplain Aide

  • Maintain the troop's religious emblems award progress chart.
  • Present an overview of the various religious emblems programs to the troop at least annually, instructing members to contact their own clergyperson or religious counselor to guide them in the appropriate study programs.
  • Compile and keep an up-to-date list of local clergy who have agreed to be counselors for the religious emblems programs.
  • Present an overview of the religious emblems programs to Cub Scout dens and packs on request.
  • Serve as the youth coordinator for the observance of the annual Scout Sabbath or Sunday in February.
  • Working with the troop chaplain, usually a member of the clergy, compose a Sabbath service appropriate for all troop members during weekend campouts. Invite the troop chaplain to visit a campout, eat with the troop, and conduct a worship service.
  • Prepare a troop prayer.
  • Assist the troop chaplain, or other appropriate adult, to plan and conduct a religious emblem recognition ceremony. Presentation of a religious emblem is the responsibility of the local religious institution in which it is earned, though it is appropriate for the troop to recognize boys who have received religious emblems at courts of honor.
  • Encourage troop members to strengthen their own relationship with God through personal prayer and devotions and participation in religious activities.
  • Participate in patrol leader's council planning sessions, ensuring that a spiritual emphasis is included, e.g., vespers, prayer before meals, religious observances, etc.
  • Working with the troop chaplain, compose an appropriate prayer for before and after meals. When composing these prayers, the chaplain and chaplain aide should be sensitive to the various theological and religious positions embraced by the faiths represented in the group.
  • Work with the troop chaplain to plan appropriate religious services for all members during weekend troop campouts. Troops may conduct their own religious services, invite the troop chaplain or an exemplary layperson to participate in the service, or they may visit a nearby church, synagogue, temple, mosque, or other religious institution.

 

Scout Interfaith Services


Attachments
Icon File Name Comment  
interfaithserviceworksheet08182008[1].pdf Interfaith Service Worksheet  
JOTA scout interfaith service OCT14.doc JOTA Scouts Interfaith Service OCT 14  
ScoutingAndSpiritualDevelopment[1].pdf Scout & Spiritual Development  
scoutworshipservices.doc Scout Worship Services Guide  

Manual for Chaplain & Aides

To serve as a chaplain or chaplain aide is a unique opportunity for ministry. While serving in these offices, you will have the opportunity to help Scouts as they grow, both physically and spiritually. Some techniques to be used are modeling, mentoring, and offering faith-based experiences.

 

Use this manual to help you become better oriented to the duties, responsibilities, and opportunities of chaplaincy service in Boy Scout troops. In it, you will find helpful information and resources to help you better perform your duties.

Declaration of Religious Principle

The Boy Scouts of America maintains that no member can grow into the best kind of citizen without recognizing an obligation to God and, therefore, recognizes the religious element in the training of the member, but it is absolutely nonsectarian in its attitude toward that religious training. Its policy is that the home and organization or group with which a member is connected shall give definite attention to religious life. Only persons willing to subscribe to this Declaration of Religious Principle and to the Bylaws of the Boy Scouts of America shall be entitled to certificates of membership.

Troop Chaplain

ChaplainThe troop chaplain is an adult who may be a troop committee member, the executive officer of a religious chartered organization, or serves in another leadership capacity. It is customary that the religious leader, or an appointee of the chartered organization, will serve as chaplain if the troop is operated by a religious organization. A troop not operated by a religious organization may select a chaplain from local members of the clergy. The chaplain should:

  • Provide a spiritual element for campouts and troop meetings
  • Provide spiritual counseling when needed or requested
  • Provide opportunities for all boys to grow in their relationship with God and their fellow Scouts
  • Encourage Scouts to participate in the religious emblems program of their respective faith
  • Be familiar with the chaplain aide section of this manual
  • Work with the troop chaplain aide to plan and conduct an annual Scout-oriented religious observance, preferably during Scout Week in February

Outreach Opportunities

After housing and schooling needs are met, one of the first contacts a new family has in the community is with a Scouting unit. As new troop members are registered, you will learn of their religious preferences or interests and can extend an invitation to join your congregation in worship, or you may direct them to other opportunities for worship in the community. At no time should the chaplain proselytize.

Praying in a Group

When present, members of the clergy or chaplain aide may be asked to lead the troop or other Scouting units in prayer. If the group consists of members with mixed beliefs, or if the beliefs of the group are unknown, then prayers should be of an interfaith content. However, if the group is of like belief or the unit is chartered to a religious organization, then it is entirely appropriate to offer belief-specific prayer.

Religious Emblems

The chaplain is in an ideal position to promote the religious emblems program and encourage Scouts to complete the requirements for the emblem of their faith. Many troops include Scouts of various faiths; therefore, a knowledge of all emblems is helpful. Since procedures vary among different faiths, the Duty to God brochure, No. 05-897A, is a helpful reference. In addition, call your local Boy Scout service center or the council religious relationships committee for help in identifying ways to promote the religious emblems program and emblem recipient recognition ceremonies.

The Chaplain Aide

Chaplain AideThe chaplain aide is an approved youth leadership position in Boy Scout troops. The responsibilities of this position include encouraging the spiritual growth and awareness of each member of the troop and assisting the troop chaplain (and adult committee members). The chaplain aide should:
  • Work with the troop chaplain (usually an adult member of the clergy) to plan appropriate interfaith religious services during troop outings
  • Encourage troop members to strengthen their own relationships with God through personal prayer and devotion and participation in religious activities appropriate to their faith
  • Participate in patrol leaders council panning sessions to ensure that spiritual emphasis is included in troop activities
  • Help the troop chaplain (or other designated adult) plan and conduct an annual Scout-oriented religious observance,. Preferably during Scout Week in February
  • Present an overview of the religious emblems program at troop meetings at least once per year
  • Help the troop chaplain (or other designated adult) recognize troop members who receive their religious emblems, perhaps during a troop court of honor (note: most religious emblems are conferred during a service at the Scout's place of worship, but the achievement should also be recognized at a significant troop event.)

 

Qualifications

  • The chaplain aide must be mature and sensitive and have earned the respect and trust of his fellow Scouts.
  • The chaplain aide must be at least a First Class Scout.
  • The chaplain aide must have received or be working on the requirements leading to the age-appropriate religious emblem for his faith.

 

Troop Worship Opportunities

Praying as a Group

When present, members of the clergy or chaplain aides may be asked to lead the troop or other Scouting groups in a prayer. If the group consists of members of mixed beliefs, or if the beliefs of the group are unknown, prayers should be of an interfaith nature. However, if the group is of like belief, it is entirely appropriate to offer belief-specific prayer.

Sample Interfaith Prayers and Benedictions

  • For health, strength, and daily food, we give you thanks, o Lord.
  • For this and all your mercies, Lord, make us truly grateful.
  • For food, health, and friendship, we give you thanks, o Lord.
  • For food, for raiment, for life, for opportunity, for friendship and fellowship, we thank you, o Lord. (Philmont grace)
  • Come, o Lord, be our guest and bless what you have bestowed on us.
  • Gracious giver of all good, we thank you for food and rest. Grant all we say or do pleases you.
  • Lord, bless our Scouting leaders who spend so much of their time and energy to help us grow up well. Guide them in their work, give them patience and wisdom, and reward them in this life and the next. Amen.
  • As our campfire fades, we thank you for the joys and blessings of this day. We lift our minds and hearts to you in gratitude for life, happiness, and the Scouting movement. Lord, protect our camp this night. May we rise refreshed and ready to serve you. Amen.
  • May the great Scoutmaster of all Scouts be with us until we meet again.

 

At Camp

Since troops often camp on weekends, Scouts and leaders may not be able to attend their regular worship services. A troop worship service should be conducted and all encouraged to attend. The troop chaplain aide and the troop chaplain (or other designated adult) should conduct these services.

Scout Funeral Services

On occasion, a troop may experience the loss of a Scout or leader. It is a difficult time for everyone. At the request of the family or with the permission of the family and religious leader, Scouts may participate in the funeral and memorial service to celebrate the life of the Scout or leader. Some things that may be appropriate include:

  • Attending in uniform
  • Sitting together as a unit
  • Serving as honorary pallbearers or ushers.
  • Serving during the service by doing such things as reciting the Scout Oath or Law.

The primary concern is for the family and its preferences. The involvement of the troop or Scouts in the troop is at the discretion of the family and its religious leaders.

Funeral Service for Scout or Scouter

 

This outline is merely a guide. The wishes of the Family and spiritual advisor take precedent.

  1. Processional
    • Color Guard brings in US flag and Troop flag
    • Pallbearers follow
    • Scouts and Scouters in Uniform follow
  2. Opening Prayer

    Almighty Father, as we grieve the loss of (Name of Deceased), help us to remember his involvement with Scouting. Show us how he lived the Scout oath and law. We ask that you comfort us as we will miss his friendship and fellowship.

  3. Pastoral Comments

    (Highlights of the Deceased's life and Scouting accomplishments)

  4. Song: "On My Honor"
  5. Readings: (Listed below are some suggestions.)
    • Psalms 23:1-6
    • Psalms 37:5
    • Jeremiah 29:11
    • I Corinthians 15:54-57
  6. Comments from friends.
  7. "Scout Vespers"
  8. Closing Benediction

    "May the Great Scoutmaster of all Scouts be with us until we meet again, and may our footsteps lead unto Him."

  9. Taps
  10. Recessional

Scout Vespers


Scout Vespers.  Sing with reverence to tune of "Oh Christmas Tree"

Softly falls the light of day,
While our campfire fades away.
Silently each Scout should ask
Have I done my daily task?
Have I kept my honor bright?
Can I guiltless sleep tonight?
Have I done and have I dared
Everything to be prepared?

Listen Lord, oh listen Lord,
As I whisper soft and low.
Bless my mom and Bless my dad,
These are things that they should know.
I will keep my honor Bright,
The oath and law will be my guide.
And mom and dad this you should know,
Deep in my heart I love you so.

Quietly we join as one,
Thanking God for Scouting fun
May we now go on our way,
Thankful for another day.
May we always love and share,
Living in peace beyond compare.
As Scout may we find,
Friendships true with all mankind.

Quietly we now will part,
Pledging ever in our heart,
To strive to do our best each day,
As we travel down life's way.
Happiness we'll try to give,
Trying a better life to live,
'Till all the world be joined in love,
Living in peace under skies above.