At the World Scout Jamboree, Sunday is dedicated to religion and religious services. The day started with a Scout’s own service, a non-denominational religious service. At the Scout’s Own service, different verses, written by a variety of religious and spiritual leaders, were read in correspondence to the points of the Scout Law. After that, I was given a plain white neckerchief with a dove on it, symbolizing peace. The instructions for the neckerchief were to get it signed by international scouts around you. I was privileged to have sat next to a contingent from Japan, who were more than willing to sign my neckerchief. After my neckerchief had been signed, everyone attending the service came together to break the Guinness world record for most people to make a dove with their hands. Soon after, we were tasked with arranging ourselves into a large peace sign. Although it seemed challenging at first, the drone picture of the peace sign looked really amazing. The Scout’s Own service then concluded by singing Country Roads. After that, a few of my friends and I went to the Catholic Mass, which was presided by Archbishop Christophe Pierre. Archbishop Pierre is the representative of the Vatican City to the United States government in Washington DC. He also was a scout in his home country. As he celebrated the mass, he did an amazing job of tying religion and scouting together. In conclusion, the day dedicated to the twelfth point of the Scout Law was extremely rejuvenating, and I am happy to have been a part of it.
