Scout Promise

Original 1908 text

In his original book on Boy Scouting, Robert Baden-Powell introduced the Scout Promise, as follows:

:"On my honour I promise that— :#I will do my duty to God and the King. :#I will do my best to help others, whatever it costs me. :#I know the Scout Law, and will obey it." While taking this oath, the scout will stand, holding his right hand raised level with his shoulder, palm to the front, thumb resting on the nail of the little finger and the other three fingers upright, pointing upwards:—

This is the scout's salute and secret sign.}}

World Organization of the Scout Movement requirements

The form of the promise has varied slightly from country to country and over time, but must fulfill the requirements of the World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM) to qualify a National Scout Organization for membership. Together with clarifying its Scout Law, the Constitution of WOSM states:

All members of the Scout Movement are required to adhere to a Scout Promise and Law reflecting, in language appropriate to the culture and civilization of each National Scout Organization and approved by the World Organization, the principles of Duty to God, Duty to others and Duty to self, and inspired by the Promise and Law originally conceived by the Founder of the Scout Movement in the following terms:

The Scout Promise On my honour I promise that I will do my best— To do my duty to God and the King (or to God and my Country); To help other people at all times; To obey the Scout Law. |author=|title=|source=}}

In order to accommodate many different religions within Scouting, "God" may refer to a higher power, and is not specifically restricted to the God of the monotheistic religions. The WOSM Constitution explains "Duty to God" as "Adherence to spiritual principles, loyalty to the religion that expresses them and acceptance of the duties resulting therefrom."

The World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS), which is a sister organization to WOSM, has the same wording in its constitution (Part 4, Paragraph 2: Original Promise), and follows similar policies.

In 2014, the WOSM passed a resolution, "Spirituality in Scouting", recognizing the importance of spirituality, but without defining it with the word "God". The WOSM then convened a 2015 "Duty to God" task force, which in turn produced another draft resolution to be considered at the WOSM 2017 conference. The final 2017 resolution passed indicated a need for further investigation, and for WOSM to take into consideration a member organization's "culture and civilization" if asked to approve changes to their Promise or Law. Conversely, a member organization was asked to consider the global movement and its goals if it requested alternative wording.

Alternative promises

Although the Constitution of WOSM states that the Promise should include a reference to Duty to God, Scouting founder Lord Baden-Powell approved the use of promises with reference to a higher ideal, higher truth, an optional reference to God, or without a reference to God, for Belgium, Czechoslovakia, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Finland.{{cite web |access-date=6 August 2009 |archive-date=16 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716202625/http://www.ppoe.at/scoutdocs/relationships/wagggs_wosm_rel.pdf |url-status=dead

The Israeli Scouts, though founded in 1919/1920, and joining WOSM in 1951 and WAGGGS in 1963, also have no "duty to God" or apparent equivalent in their promise.{{cite web |access-date=25 August 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071204205905/http://www.israelscouts.org/scouts_oath.html |archive-date=4 December 2007 |url-status=dead

In 1969, the Eclaireuses et Eclaireurs israélites de France decided to discontinue using the reference to God due to its inconsistency with religious beliefs and practices from a Jewish perspective. Use of the word God (Dieu), derived from Zeus, can be seen as an inappropriate pagan reference in Jewish texts or education.{{cite web | access-date = 25 August 2009 | archive-date = 28 February 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210228175614/https://fr.scoutwiki.org/Promesses_des_%C3%A9claireuses_et_%C3%A9claireurs_isra%C3%A9lites_de_France | url-status = live

In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, some WOSM and WAGGGS affiliated organizations have introduced alternative promises for their programs, giving adherents a choice. Examples include Scouterna (Sweden), Scouts Australia, and Scouts Canada.

Non-WOSM Scouting

Scout sections that follow traditional Scouting, such as Baden-Powell Scouts within the World Federation of Independent Scouts, use several promises including the original Scout promise above that includes the reference to God.{{cite web | access-date = 10 March 2007 | archive-date = 12 August 2011 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110812201214/http://bpscouting.org/ | url-status = live | access-date = 10 March 2007 | archive-date = 4 February 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120204214508/http://www.1sttarrantbpscouts.org/Intro.html | url-status = usurped | access-date = 10 March 2007 | archive-date = 24 February 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210224191924/http://www.inquiry.net/ideals/b-p/law.htm | url-status = live

References

References

1. (1908). "Scouting for Boys (Part I ed.)". Oxford University Press.
2. (2017-08-01). "Constitution of the World Organization of the Scout Movement". World Organization of the Scout Movement.
3. (2017-09-01). "Constitution and Bye-Laws". World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts.
4. "World Scout Conference Resolutions 1920–2017".
5. (2017). "Background Document Regarding Draft Resolution 2017-F Spirituality in Scouting". The World Scout Committee.
6. "World Scout Conference Resolutions 1920–2017".
7. "WOSM Constitution and By-Laws". World Scout Bureau.
8. "הנני מבטיח הבטחה שלמה לעשות כל מה שביכולתי {{!}} {{!}} The National Library of Israel".
9. בן אליהו, נעמה. (17 February 2012). "שלושה דורות בעדת הצופים".
10. "Paracha Ki Tétsé 576 : Dieu ou Bon Dieu ?".
11. "The Scout Method and the Scout Law {{!}} Scouterna".
12. "Promise and Law".
13. "Values (Promise section)".