Scouting Religious Emblems Programs

Among the programs facilitated by the Tallahassee Area Catholic Committee on Scouting (TACCOS), providing trained counselors to facilitate Scouting’s religious emblems programs is among the most important. The religious emblems are typically presented annually each spring by the Bishop at the Scout Mass (or “Green Mass”). Recipients of approved Catholic religious emblems programs include members of Scouting America (formerly Boy Scouts of America), Cub Scouts, Girl Scouts, and American Heritage Girls.

Registration is now open for the 2024-2025 sessions for two of Scouting America’s religious emblems, Ad Altare Dei and Pope Pius XII: 

Ad Altare Dei

The purpose of the Ad Altare Dei (“to the altar of God”) emblem program is to help Scouts of the Roman Catholic Church develop a fully Christian way of life in the faith community. The program is organized into chapters based on the seven sacraments. One of the program’s goals is to help faith grow within each Scout. Growth in faith should not be equated with knowledge but should relate knowledge of the seven sacraments to the Scout’s ordinary life experiences. Through religious education at the parish, the Scout has and is receiving a solid foundation of religious knowledge. Through the Ad Altare Dei program, the knowledge already received concerning the Sacrament of Baptism should become more personal and more intimate in the Scout’s life. Belonging to the Church should also develop a new and important meaning. Two or more adult counselors will present the program in a group setting so that Scouts can share their experiences with one another.

Program Objectives

  • The most important aspect of the program is that the Scout grows in his or her spiritual experience of his or her relationship to God and the Church.

Eligibility

  • Any young person who is Roman Catholic and registered in a Scouting America troop or Venturing Crew
  • Designed for 13 or 14-year-old Scouts, but older youth may also use this program
  • Active member of a Scouting America troop or Venturing crew for at least six months
  • Completed 6th grade before starting the program

Requirements

  • Each Scout must have his or her own printed copy of the Ad Altare Dei Youth Manual.
  • The program is designed to be completed in six to eight months.
  • Use of a Catholic Bible is required for this program.
  • Regular participation in Sunday Mass is also required for this program.
  • Each Scout must complete the requirements in the Ad Altare Dei Youth Manual to be eligible for this Religious Emblem.
    Each Scout must successfully complete an Ad Altare Dei Board of Review.

Lead Counselor: John Vargo

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Pope Pius XII

The purpose of the Pope Pius XII emblem program is to help Scouts explore their vocations (single, married, religious, ordained) and ministries in the Church as calls from God. It includes youth-led discussions on current issues facing the Church and society, which are normally included as part of a retreat or day of recollection.

Scouting and Venturing help youth to develop leadership skills. The youth learn to think in tight situations, to explore where they are going in their lives and to try their best in making some really sound moral decisions in their lives. The adults in their lives must show them that they practice what they preach. A vocation is a call to use his or her God-given abilities that each person has received in service to humanity and to God. The youth begin to examine this call to gain some real understanding of just what is this call from God in their lives. The exploration turns the youth toward career choices and different Church ministries that they might pursue today.

Program Objectives

  • Each participant will examine how being a Christian affects his or her daily life in a real world.
  • Each participant will be challenged to evaluate his or her personal talents and abilities in light of a possible choice of life state, occupation, and ministry.
  • Each participant will be challenged to discover how these life states, occupations, and ministries help them to become more active in the Catholic Christian faith community.
  • Each participant will have an opportunity to share his or her faith and practice his or her religion among peers, while receiving guidance and feedback attuned to the ideals of Scouting.

Eligibility

  • Any young person who is Roman Catholic and registered in a Scouting America troop or Venturing Crew
  • Designed for 15 or 16-year-old Scouts, but all Scouts in high school before their 18th birthday (and Venturers before their 21st birthday) may participate.

Requirements

  • Each Scout must have his or her own printed copy of the Pope Pius XII Participant Manual.
  • The program is designed to be completed in nine to 12 sessions, but flexibility is often required in scheduling sessions and interviews.
  • A number of interviews and an investigation of a controversial issue facing the Church or society are integral to the program.
  • A retreat experience, ideally centered on the Pius XII program itself, and a ministries service project are required.
  • Each Scout must successfully complete a Pope Pius XII Board of Review.

Lead Counselor: Paul Palmiotto

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