Investiture Ceremony?

[Oldscout448]

Ok here goes, the ceremony we did about five times a year. Remember back then you bridged individually at your 11th birthday.

The troop is called to attention, the boy joining The Troop is called up onto the stage at one end of the room by the senior patrol leader. He asks if it is truly his wish to become a member of troop 448. Upon receiving an affirmative reply he turns to Patrick. " Pat as the scout who has been in this troop the longest, will you induct this new scout into our troop?"

Pat steps up onto the stage (in full dress uniform medals, sash, the whole nine yards) strikes a match and lights a candle in a single holder saying " I light this candle which represents the Spirit of Scouting (room lights go out at this point) With it I will light these three  red ' candles representing the three parts of the Scout Oath, and these twelve white candles which represent the points of the Scout Law"

" Raise your hand in the scout sign (Pat raises his hand here) and repeat after me."

"A scout is Trustworthy" (lights the first white candle)

"A scout is Trustworthy" echos the new scout.

From off stage a deep voice speaks

" a Scouts Honor is to be trusted. If he were to violate his honor by telling a lie or by cheating or by not doing exactly a given task, when trust it upon his honor, he may be directed to hand over his Scout badge.

A scout is loyal. ( lights the second candle. )

He is loyal to whom all loyalty is due, is scout leader, is home and parents and Country.

A scout is helpful.

He must be prepared at any time to save life, help injured persons, and cheer the home duties. He must do at least one good turn to somebody everyday.

A scout is friendly.

He is a friend to all and her brother to every other Scout.

A scout is courteous.

He is play to all, especially to women, children, old people, and the weak and helpless. He must not take pay for being helpful or courteous.

A scout is kind.

He's a friend to animals. He will not kill nor hurt any living creature needlessly, but will strive to save and protect all harmless life.

A scout is Obedient 

He obeys his parents, scoutmaster, patrol leader, and all other duly constituted authorities.

A scout is Cheerful

He smiles whenever he can, is obedience to orders is prompt and cheery. He never shirks nor grumbles at hardships.

A scout is Thrifty 

He does not wantonly destroy property. He works faithfully, wastes nothing, and makes the best use of his opportunities. He saves his money so that he may pay his own way, be generous to those in need, and helpful to worthy objects. He may work for pay, but must not receive tips for courtesies or good turns.

A scout is Brave

He has the courage to face danger in spite of fear and to stand up for the right against the coaxing of friends or the jeers or threats of enemies, and defeat does not down him.

A scout is Clean 

He keeps clean and body and thought; stands for clean speech, clean sport, clean habits; and travels with a clean crowd.

A scout is Reverent ( lights the last white candle )

He is reverent towards God. He is faithful in his religious duties and respect the convictions of others in matters of custom and religion.

Pat now tells the new scout " Now we will recite the Scout Oath together" and starts off " On my honor..." lighting the red candles as they go. But  Pat gets quieter and quieter until at the end the scout speaking alone.

" although I put out this candle which represents the spirit of scouting is  (Pat blows it out here) it will now live on in this scout until it is lighted again at our next investiture ceremony.

Lights go back on, and every one shakes the hand if the newest member of the troop.  Left handed of course.

Edited January 11, 2019 by Oldscout448

[eagle90]

We do a very similar ceremony to the one above.  The candleholders we use are probably over 50 years old!

 

Dale

[Eagle94-A1]

Scout Investiture- PL, SPL, and SM

Lights go out and the room is illuminated by a single candle, the Spirit of Scouting, on a table at the front of the room. Also on the table are two log candelabras, one holding three candles, and the other twelve. The Senior Patrol Leader and Scoutmaster are behind the table. The candidate(s) for membership wait in the back along with their Patrol Leader(s). When all is ready, the patrol leader(s) lead the candidate(s) down the aisle to the table where the candle is burning.) Halfway to the front, the SPL stops the New Scout and PL.

SPL: HALT. Who are you bringing into our troop

PL: I bring (SCOUT'S NAME(S) 0 who wants to join Troop xx and has earned his Scout Rank

SPL: Bring him forward. PL brings the new Scout forward and stands beside them.

SPL picks up the lighted candle:

SPL: “This candle represents the spirit of Scouting. As we welcome you into the fellowship of Troop XX we want you to stop and think about what it means to be a Scout. Besides going on outings and camping trips, it’s doing you best to live up to the Scout Oath and Law. Please make the Scout Sign and repeat after your Patrol Leader the Scout Oath and Law.”

PL will say the Scout Oath in sections. The SPL will light the three candles of the Scout Oath candelabra when the new Scout(s) say “To God and My Country” “To Help Other People” and “To Keep Myself….”

PL: “On my Honor… …I will do my best… …to do my duty… …TO GOD AND MY COUNTRY… …to obey the Scout Law… …TO HELP OTHER PEOPLE AT ALL TIMES… …TO KEEP MYSELF… …physically strong… …mentally awake… …and morally straight.”

PL will now slowly say the Scout Law. The SPL will light each candle when the new Scout repeat each point.

PL: “A Scout is TRUSTWORTHY... … LOYAL… …HELPFUL… …FRIENDLY… …COURTEOUS… …KIND… …OBEDIENT… …CHEERFUL… …THRIFTY… …BRAVE… …CLEAN… … and REVERENT.”

SPL now places the Spirit of Scouting candle on the table.

SM: “When you entered the room, the only light was a single candle representing the Spirit of Scouting, the fun and adventure of your program. It didn’t provide a lot of light, and you could see very little. Then your Patrol Leader led you into the room, The Senior Patrol Leader, the chief scout of Troop XX stopped you and asked if you were ready to join the troop. When your patrol Leader answered for you, and brought you to the front. Your Patrol Leader then had you repeat the Scout Oath and Law, making you a Boy Scout. As you said the Oath, the Senior Patrol Leader lit a candle representing the three points of the Scout Oath: Duty to God and Country, Duty to Others, and Duty to Self. Then the Senior Patrol Leader lit the 12 candles representing the 12 points of the Scout Law. With the 15 candles lit, the room became brighter, a beacon for all to see. By living the Scout Oath and Law in your lives, you will become a beacon for others. Now that you are Boy Scout, you will receive three items tonight.”

SPL: “The first item you will receive tonight is your troop neckerchief. It is one of the original Scout uniform items still in use, and that is because it is the most useful. On it you will see our troop number, XX and our hometown so all will know who you are. It is worn under an open collar. I give you this charge, DO NOT BE THE FIRST TO DISGRACE IT.”
 

PL raises the collar and SPL places the neckerchief on the Scout.

SPL: The second item you will receive is your troop woggle. A Scout Woggle is made of cord and it has three braided strands. The three strands stand for the three principals of the Scout Oath: Duty to God and Country, Duty to Self, Duty to Others. The woggle is tied in a circular manner to resemble a neverending knot to symbolize the unity of Scouting. The color red was chosen because it represents our charter organization, XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Methodist Church.

SPL hands woggle(s) to PL(s) and the PL places the woggle on the neckerchief

SM: The last item you will receive tonight is you Scout Rank. The shape of the Scout Rank is the arrowhead or Fleur-de Lis used as the North Point on mariners’ compasses. It represents that Scouting points you the right way in your life just like a compass in the field. It is the basic shape that all Scout badges build upon, and it is the international symbol of Scouting worldwide.

Let’s welcome our newest Scout with a round of applause. Pause

SPL TO PL AND NEW SCOUT. You two may now be seated pAUSE.

SPL: I now declare this Court of Honor open for business.

[Treflienne]

18 hours ago, Cambridgeskip said:

It's certainly something we do in the UK.

 

18 hours ago, Cambridgeskip said:

ask them if they've enjoyed their time with us so far, if they are ready to become a scout and whether they know the scout law and promise.

So I looked up the (UK) Scout Association web site and saw that in the UK the Cub Scout Promise is different from the Scout Promise. (In particular the cub promise refers to a different, briefer, Law).

So your new scouts, at their investiture, are making a new promise that they did not make in cubs.

How long, typically, from when they start attending the scout meetings until their investituture?   And during their time leading up to their investiture,  when the rest of the scouts are reciting the Scout Promise at the start of the meeting (which I am assuming they do) then do these new scouts-to-be recite the Scout Promise along with the scouts, or do they wait until their investiture?

 

[Treflienne]

4 hours ago, Oldscout448 said:

these three  red ' candles representing the three parts of the Scout Oath, and these twelve white candles which represent the points of the Scout Law"

 

2 hours ago, Eagle94-A1 said:

Also on the table are two log candelabras, one holding three candles, and the other twelve.

So in GSUSA,  a generation back at least,  when we had an investiture for the new girl scouts we would sometimes also have what we called a "rededication ceremony" for the rest of the girl scouts (perhaps once a year).  A log candleholdle with three candles for the three point of the Scout Promise, and another log candleholder with ten candles for the ten points of the Girl Scout Law . . . (But we had no "spirit of scouting" candle.)

[Cambridgeskip]

3 hours ago, Treflienne said:

 

So I looked up the (UK) Scout Association web site and saw that in the UK the Cub Scout Promise is different from the Scout Promise. (In particular the cub promise refers to a different, briefer, Law).

So your new scouts, at their investiture, are making a new promise that they did not make in cubs.

How long, typically, from when they start attending the scout meetings until their investituture?   And during their time leading up to their investiture,  when the rest of the scouts are reciting the Scout Promise at the start of the meeting (which I am assuming they do) then do these new scouts-to-be recite the Scout Promise along with the scouts, or do they wait until their investiture?

 

It can me a bit variable but 4-6 weeks is quite standard, although we may hang on longer if there is a particular camp or event where we want to carry out the investiture.

and actually mass reciting of the promise is pretty rare! I don’t know of any troop that do it week to week. The only time it really happens is at St George’s Day events where there is often a promise renewal.

[Eagle94-A1]

8 hours ago, Treflienne said:

 

So in GSUSA,  a generation back at least,  when we had an investiture for the new girl scouts we would sometimes also have what we called a "rededication ceremony" for the rest of the girl scouts (perhaps once a year).  A log candleholdle with three candles for the three point of the Scout Promise, and another log candleholder with ten candles for the ten points of the Girl Scout Law . . . (But we had no "spirit of scouting" candle.)

 The Spirit of Scouting candle is the one candle that lights all the rest. In the cermeony above, that candle is held by the PL to lead the new Scout into the room. Handed off to the SPL who then lights the 15 candles onthe logs.

[Treflienne]

On 1/9/2019 at 11:45 PM, fred8033 said:

I saw a BSA troop invest new scouts.  It was a very meaningful.  The lights were dimmed.  The new scouts stood in a crescent facing the SPL.  A candles were held by the new scouts and it was their first time saying oath and promise with the troop.  It was kept very short.  I'd be glad to see it done again.

Was this done very soon after they registered and began attending meetings?   Or was this done after they had earned Scout rank?

[Eagle94-A1]

8 hours ago, Treflienne said:

Was this done very soon after they registered and began attending meetings?   Or was this done after they had earned Scout rank?

In my troop growing up, it was done as soon as they completed the paperwork and earned Scout rank,which was usually about 3-4 weeks after their first visit to the troop. Sometimes it was faster. I transferred into the troop as a Tenderfoot, and as soon as I turned in the paperwork, I was invested in the troop.

Troop I just left did it at the first Court of Honor after they earned Scout. They made a big deal out of it in front of the families.

Like I mentioned, IMHO the Cross Over Ceremony seems to have replaced the Investiture Ceremony. I don't have a problem with Cross Over Ceremonies, heck I use to do them as a youth with the OA,  But lately I see kids going though the Cross Over Ceremony with a troop, then never showing up again. Troop I just left had 4 Webelos Cross Over in December. 1 out of the 4 showed up at the first meeting of the year,  2 of the 4 were visiting other troops, and 1 is MIA.

[Treflienne]

1 hour ago, Eagle94-A1 said:

Like I mentioned, IMHO the Cross Over Ceremony seems to have replaced the Investiture Ceremony.

I looked at some cross-over ceremonies on the web,  and they do seem to include the Oath and Law.   Also, since 2015, the cross-overs will already have been using the Scout Oath and Scout Law as cubs,  so they will already have subscribed to them as cubs.

And the Scout Rank seems like it will take a little longer to earn than Scout did previously (or even than Tenderfoot did back in the 1911 handbook.)

So the question really only comes up for new scouts who were never scouts or cubs before.

I am looking for best practise for new scouts who were never scouts or cubs before.   How to encourage them to think carefully about the Oath and Law, and be aware that they pledging themselves to a way of life, and not just drift into saying the oath thoughtlessly.  While such new never-been-cubs scouts have probably been unsusual in recent yeats, we have on the order of a dozen (girls) who look like they will be joining Scouts BSA next month.   Decent chance the girls will do combined opening ceremonies (at least part of the time) with a boys troop with which we will be linked.  And the boys troop recites the oath and law at the beginning of each meeting.   My personal (completely uneducated) opinion would be to have these new scouts think carefully about the oath and law and (in some fashion) swear them in at their first meeting the first week of February.  But perhaps that is contrary to how things should be done in BSA.  (I am definitely influenced by my GSUSA background, so I have a lot to learn.)  Making them wait until they earn the Scout Rank to publically recite the Oath would seem like too long a wait -- and the boys who come up from cubs do not have that wait.

Looking for opinions from opinionated people who find tradition meaningful, and who care about the Oath and Law.

[fred8033]

14 hours ago, Treflienne said:

Was this done very soon after they registered and began attending meetings?   Or was this done after they had earned Scout rank?

It was after crossing over and their first meeting with the troop.   At that time, there was no "earning" scout rank.  Scout was a badge reflecting membership was setup correctly.

[Jahaza]

After reading this thread, I was looking through the old Commissioner Helps for Packs, Troops, and Crews book and noticed number 4, recommending an induction ceremony when someone joins a unit.