Boy Scout Troop 325
Scoutmaster Minute
Citizenship
August 26, 2003
George Denise, Scoutmaster

We often talk about "citizenship". What does it mean? For starters, we don't just mean citizenship, we actually mean "good citizenship". There is good citizenship and bad citizenship. Most of the time when we talk about citizenship, we really mean good citizenship.

So what does good citizenship mean? What does it mean to be a good citizen? For that matter, what exactly does "citizen" mean?

According to Webster, a citizen is a person owing loyalty to and entitled by birth or naturalization to the protection of a community, city, state or nation."

In other words, it is a trade-off. We pledge our loyalty to our community, city, state and nation, they, in turn, provide the benefits that come from being a citizen: formally, these include police protection, fire protection, streets and highways, military protection, public education, a justice system, and all the other rights our constitution, state, and local laws provide us.

Informally, we receive from those around us, acceptance, friendship, and assistance from our friends and neighbors when we need it.

We really receive quite a bit, in return for our "loyalty." So what, exactly, does loyalty mean? In this context, formally, it means agreeing to support our public institutions by respecting and obeying our laws, paying our taxes, and working respectfully through our institutions to achieve change when we feel change is needed.

Historically, societies have been fairly intolerant of individuals and individual freedom and diversity. In primitive societies throughout the world, going against even the simplest rules could result in banishment from the community or even death. Hunter-gatherer societies lived a very precarious existence. They tended to be small groups, living far apart so as not to overtax the resources on which they depended. Fires, floods, disease or drought threatened the very existence of their society. Accordingly, in hunting, in gathering, in fighting off wild animals or competing tribes, everyone doing exactly what was expected was crucial. Everyone's contribution was critical. So much so, that when members became too old to contribute, they were often sent out into the wilderness to die. This sounds harsh, but the tribe could not survive without every member pulling his or her weight.

As technology advanced, we developed the ability to raise and grow food in much greater abundance, to store it safely, and to transport it long distances relatively easy. We are now able to live together in much larger groups, and with greater abundance. We live much richer lives, with more time and more luxury. We are not as dependent on each member as we once were. Also, ours is a very large country. It was built by people from many different areas and cultures, many of whom came here to escape oppression in their homelands. The country they created, and the constitution they created, sought to provide maximum freedom for its citizens, more so than any country or society before it. And, in spite of all of its transgressions, it was a country founded on tolerance for those different than ourselves.

Today, we have learned not only to accept diversity, but to respect it and even to embrace it. We have learned that, just as two heads are better than one, diversity often results in new ideas and new ways of thinking and doing, contributing still further to our development as a people and a nation. Formally and informally, then, loyalty means treating our fellow citizens - each other - with respect and dignity, whether we look alike or not, whether we think alike or not, whether we have the same abilities or not, even whether we like each other or not, as long as they treat us with equal respect and dignity.

Think about that as you go forward, and as you work to build your patrols up to a full eight members.

Thank you, and God be with you.