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3rd World Jamboree, Arrowe Park, 1929

HIS GRACE THE ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY

Service of Thanksgiving
Sunday, August 4th, 1929

"Twenty one years ago a soldier dreamed a dream. From his boyhood he had rejoiced in the life of a Scout. In many adventures he had found that it quickened the mind and braced the will and made men good comrades. His dream was that the spirit of the good Scout might make the boys of his own nation healthy, happy, and helpful, and fit them for loyal service to their country and their God. Today, ‘Behold this dreamer cometh,’ and he comes not alone but with a comradeship of nearly two million boys belonging to forty-two countries. His dream has become one of the great realities of the world. How deeply must his heart be moved as he remembers the little camp of a score of boys at Brownsea Island where he first tried to make his dream come true, and contrasts it with this vast camp of fifty thousand and thinks of his two million Scouts in every quarter of the globe. May I not dare to say to him before you all, ‘The Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.’ I pray that God’s blessing in fullest measure may be upon him and upon the worldwide company wherein his dream has been fulfilled.

"In this truly wonderful Movement each one of you has his own place. That place means a great trust. It is that just there you will be true to the ideals for which the Movement stands. For remember it is not mere numbers that give it worth. The counting of heads may be a danger and a snare. It is the spirit that matters. So I have a word for each of you this morning. It is one given long ago by St. Paul to a young comrade. You will find it in our English Bible in his first Letter to Timothy, chapter VI, verse 20. It is this—’Keep that which is committed to thy trust.’ What is the spirit you are on trust to keep?

"This is the fourth of August. It is impossible to forget that on this very day fifteen years ago this realm was drawn in the Great War which for four years darkened the earth. God forbid that I should recall the bitter memories of that awful time. I only speak of it because to day we see coming forth from its shadow this great army of the youth of all nations pledged to the spirit of peace and goodwill among men.

"Here is a power without which Treaties and Leagues are of little avail. It is a power of the spirit. It passes into you and lays hold of you through the instinct of comradeship one with another. You are learning it when you see boys of many nations and many languages wearing the same Scout uniform and obeying the same Scout Law, and when around the campfire you meet together. In future days when you have become citizens of your various countries you will remember and know that in spite of any differences which may arise you are all brothers.

"Yet if war is to be banished, is there anything that can take the place of the appeal it has made for centuries, not least in the heart of youth, to the spirit of adventure and the splendour of self sacrifice? Can these great qualities be found along the ways of peace? Your Movement is giving the answer. Quite apart from military ways and memories you find scope for adventure in games, in camps, in rambles through wood and field. You learn to play and work together as good comrades, thinking less of yourself than of your side. You are bound in honour to be alert in finding chances of doing useful service and acts of helpfulness and kindness. Thus day by day by an instinct you are scarcely aware of, you are discovering that happiness does not go with selfishness and that what makes life worth living is not success for self but the service of others.

"All this means that the true spirit of the Scout comes from another world than that in which men push and strive for themselves. It comes from a world where honour and truth and unselfishness and brotherhood rule; the world whose name is the Kingdom of God. Let me repeat to you some words written by a brilliant servant of the British Empire in the stress of War. They were sung in Westminster Abbey at the Service of Thanksgiving for the recovery of our King. The writer is full of fervent love for his own country, as you will always be for yours—

‘I vow to thee, my country—all earthly things above—
Entire and whole and perfect, the service of my love.’

Then he remembers—

‘And there’s another country, I’ve heard of long ago
Most dear to them that love her, most great to them that know
We may not count her armies; we may not see her King—
Her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering—
And soul by soul and silently her shining bounds increase
And her ways are ways of gentleness and all her paths are peace.’

"This other country is the true home of the spirit committed to your trust. Just in so far as you are mindful of her, loyal to her, will you be good citizens of your own country and a friend to all the world. Yes, ‘we may not see her King,’ but He is among us. Some of you have already met Him earlier today. He has said that where two or three are gathered together in His Name, He is in the midst of them. I would that all of you could believe that there is no leader, no comrade, more worth following than this perfect Knight who went out alone on the most splendid adventure in human history, to win by the might of His self sacrifice a place for God’s Kingdom in the hearts of men. I know that by following Him, each true-hearted Scout would keep the spirit committed to his trust.

"You are rejoicing in the stir, the fun, and frolic of this huge camp. You must be filled with pride as you see the greatness of your company. Yet remember each of you carries his own share of responsibility for maintaining its honour and securing its future.

"Many years we hope may still be given to the Chief Scout, but when he lays down his noble work it is for you—Scouts, Rovers, Scoutmasters, to carry it on. This you will do if everywhere you keep its spirit high and true. Of that spirit you are trustees. It is a great thing which is committed to your trust. Keep it."

OTHER LINKS TO THE 3RD WORLD JAMBOREE

		Canada’s Scouts at the World Jamboree 1929. The story of the Canadian Contingent’s experiences at Arrowe Park from the Report to the Governor-General and Chief Scout for Canada (Courtesy of Kevin Snair, Nova Scotia, Canada)
		Message of King George V delivered by the Prince of Wales, August 2nd, 1929 "THE KING’S MESSAGE"
		The Duke of Connaught’s address, Wednesday, July 31st, 1929 "THE HOPE AND PROMISE OF A BETTER WORLD"
		The Prince of Wales’ address, Friday, August 2nd, 1929 "STICK TO YOUR SCOUTING: PLAY THE GAME"
		The Archbishop of Canterbury’s address at the Service of Thanksgiving, Sunday, August 4th, 1929, "A SOLDIER’S DREAM"
		The Chief Scout’s Closing Address, August 12, 1929 "BURYING THE HATCHET"
		Baden-Powell Photo Gallery 3rd World Jamboree, Arrowe Park, England, 1929 Words and Pictures
		Baden-Powell Photo Gallery: The Frank Donahoe Collection Photos from the 3rd World Jamboree

		Baden-Powell Photo Gallery Baden-Powell at the World Jamborees Links to the World Jamborees, 1920-1937
		The Baden-Powell Home Page

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