International Committee

Committee Chair: Dr. Robert Horne
Committee Advisor: Fr. Roger LaChance

Committee Mission

  • Maintain relationships with the international Scouting and Catholic youth movements to ground programs in the Universal Church.

 

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Committee Objectives

  • Maintain a close relationship with the ICCS
  • Develop and implement special projects and activities for Catholic Scouts and Scouters of the United States which heighten their awareness of international Scouting and of being members of a universal Church
  • Foster  international interaction
  • Remind of our privileged position in the world schema
  • Remind of the responsibility to assist the less fortunate and contribute to their betterment, and
  • Remind of the demand of our Catholic faith to evangelize and participate individually and collectively in the missionary work of the universal Church.

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Annual Efforts

  • Maintain a participative relationship with the ICCS by attending meetings and inviting attendance at NCCS Biennial conferences
  • Coordinate and oversee all international Scouting events with NCCS participation: International World Youth Days, World Jamborees, Jubilee Year 2000 InterAmericas Trek, etc.)
  • Maintain a working relationship with the BSA International Division
  • Oversee promotion of international development programs such as the Spes Mundi Emblem.

 

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Special Projects

  • Maintain and promote the “International Awareness Recognition” activity program in coordination with the ICCS to help Scouts develop closer links with their Catholic counterparts in countries where Scouting in the Catholic Church exists.
  • Define the global presence of the NCCS to the international Scouting Movement - maintain a schedule of events and recommend appropriate NCCS participation

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NCCS International Committee distinguished from International Catholic Conference on Scouting

It is important and necessary to distinguish the NCCS International Committee from the ICCS (International Catholic Conference on Scouting) and explain their relationship.

ICCS. The ICCS is to WOSM (World Organization of the Scout Movement), as the NCCS is to BSA. Just as BSA belongs to and is represented at the meetings of WOSM, so NCCS belongs to and is represented at the meetings of the ICCS.

The ICCS was founded in 1938, and is organized under the Vatican’s Secretariat of the Laity as a universal conference of affiliated national Catholic associations and committees, with a World Chaplain appointed by Vatican and an internationally elected General Secretary.

The mission of the ICCS is to bring together national Catholic Scouting associations and committees to make the Catholic Church’s contribution toward unity, offering to the worldwide Scouting movement those values which characterize our common way of living as baptized Catholic Christians.

An NCCS presence at ICCS meetings is also symbolic. In the eyes of the rest of the world, and as a matter of fact, the USA is the most powerful, highly developed, and wealthiest of all nations on the globe. The rest of the world charges Americans, in general, with the special responsibility of supporting and contributing to the efforts of those in smaller and less developed nations to better themselves and their societies.

In particular, the special responsibility of the NCCS is seen as supporting and contributing to the efforts of those national Catholic Scouting associations in smaller or developing nations with their efforts to develop and implement proven Catholic Scouting programs. The gospel reminds us that “much is expected of those to whom much has been given.” The rest of the ICCS membership throughout the region and the world expects the NCCS (USA) to be interested in and actively engaged in its meetings and activities.

Therefore, our presence at ICCS meetings is symbolic of our appreciation of and acceptance of our leadership and stewardship responsibilities to assist evangelization efforts through Catholic Scouting in the rest of the world. In most of the countries comprising the ICCS Americas Region, Catholic Scouting efforts face challenges that are literally foreign to most Catholic Scouts and Scouters in the United States and Canada, which are the only two countries in the region which culturally have a “middle class.”

The national Catholic Scouting associations in all the other countries are therefore, particularly concerned that their Scouting programs are available to poor and underprivileged children and youth. They see the evangelical virtues and values instilled in youth through the Scouting movement as instrumental for educating and transforming their respective societies.

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International Awareness Recognition

This is an activity program developed by the NCCS International Committee in coordination with the International Catholic Conference on Scouting. Its purpose is to help Scouts develop closer links with their Catholic counterparts in countries where Scouting in the Catholic Church exists.

Although the Catholic Church is universal in nature, many Scouts may not be aware of this fact. Even less known is the fact that Scouting under Catholic auspices exists in many countries of the world. This activity is aimed at developing an awareness of these two realities. The requirements to receive this recognition do not preclude members of other faith traditions from participating, and are simple so that many Scouts and Scouters may choose to participate.

If not available from the local Diocesan Catholic Committee on Scouting, applications may be requested from the NCCS Administrative Office. The recognition includes a pin, patch, and very handsome ICCS medal, and is mailed after a completed application and fee is received. The income from this activity is dedicated to funding the participation of the clergy leadership of the NCCS International Committee at international scouting and ICCS meetings and activities, as well as funding special projects of the NCCS International Committee.

Requirements and Application

back to top July 3 2007