Girl Guides, God and Queen

In my homeland of Australia last year, the Girl Guides (in America the group is known as the “Girl Scouts”) eliminated God and the queen from their oath.

One news source stated the following:

With the deletions of God and queen, the Guides hope “to be seen as more inclusive and a modern, relevant organization and that many more women will like to join us,” said Belinda Allen, director of Girl Guides Australia.

In the old oath, formally known as the Guiding Promise, a girl swore to “do my duty to God, to serve the queen and my country.”

The new pledge:

“I promise that I will do my best; to be true to myself and develop my beliefs; to serve my community and Australia, and live by the Guide Law.”

You can read the entire article at this link.

Now, not surprisingly, the United Kingdom’s Girl Guides are considering following suit.

A UK news source reported the following:

It would be the first major reform for the Guides, which boasts more than half a million members, to be initiated under Julie Bentley, its new chief executive.

The former head of The Family Planning Association who took over in November ruffled feathers when she described the Guides as “the ultimate feminist organization”.

I think that bit of news says a lot about the direction the Girl Guides in the UK are heading.

The report states, “The mention of God could be replaced with a promise to ‘search for the spiritual value in my life’ or ‘serve the highest truth and love faithfully at all times’.”

Of course, who determines what “value” means if one is just an animal (according to evolution) and there is no God? And who determines what is “truth” if there is no absolute truth?

Another quote in the article is a reminder of an important biblical principle that can be applied here. The article states, “The review follows complaints from two families with no religious faith who wanted their children to become Guides but objected to the oath.”

First of all, God’s Word makes it plain there is no neutral position. “He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad” (Matthew 12:30).

It seems to be just like what’s happening in the USA. When two families who supposedly have “no religious faith” (which means they have a very ardent religious faith—but an atheistic one) complain, then people will move to take God out of the picture and supposedly make it neutral! But in doing so, they are actually now making it against God and agreeing with those secularists committed to the atheist religion who wanted it changed. One of the challenging problems with this shift is that Christians by and large seem not to understand there is no neutral position! AiG has many articles on its website that discusses this topic.

You can read the entire UK news report at this link.

I'm sure the USA will be next to want to delete God from the Girl Guides/Girl Scouts—something we’ve already seen in many other areas of the American culture. Interesting that the report (if correct) states that membership is way down.

I have been told there are Christian groups in the USA for Christian girls to be a part of instead of the Girl Guides. I suspect this will happen with the Boy Scouts too if they head in the same direction.

Such shifts are all a part of the secularization of the West—and just another warning to Christians of what is happening around them. This should fire up Christians to deal with the real state of these nations like the USA and the UK—that they need to repent of their unbelief and return to a holy God.

But remember, with the continued secularization of the culture as more and more people shake their fists at God, and as the leadership in the West continues to exhibit an almost total disregard for God’s Word (e.g., “gay” marriage, abortion, etc.), there is a passage of Scripture that comes to mind:

Why do the nations rage, And the people plot a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, And the rulers take counsel together, Against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, “Let us break Their bonds in pieces And cast away Their cords from us.” He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall hold them in derision. … Now therefore, be wise, O kings; Be instructed, you judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, And rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, And you perish in the way, When His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him. (Psalms 2:1–12)

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,

Ken