Order of the Arrow is very ceremonial, and very secretive from what I understand. I don't know if that's even open to non-members, I'm thinking not but I'm not sure.
It certainly wasn't open to non-members back in the day. I don't think it is now, though it's been a while since I've been to an OA induction ceremony.
Quote:
The Arrow of Light ceremony is open to the entire pack and parents and the one insignia that a boy can wear on his Boy Scout uniform from Cub Scouts. . . . More trivia: A boy can only earn Arrow of Light as a Cub, he can't go back and get it later.
But wait, there's even more trivia:
Arrow of Light is one of only three awards earned as a Cub or Boy Scout that an adult Scouter can wear (in the form of a knot) on his uniform. The three are:
Arrow of Light:
Eagle:
and a Religious Award (such as God and Country):
Don't know why the religious knot shows up smaller.
Well, that Arrow of Light ceremony is definitely not like the one that our Pack uses. My son does have his Arrow of Light and his Religious knot. We also started doing an additional award for our high achieving Webelos called the Iron Man. A Webelo who got the Iron Man had accomplished all 20 of the Webelo Achievements even though only 7 are required for the Arrow of Light. My son did that too.
Location: Where stately oaks and broad magnolias shade inspiring halls
Posts: 2,110
MysticCat, I love your trivia. When I presented my den with their Religious Award Knots, I forgot to mention that the knot carried over to BS and AS uniforms. The Cubmaster picked up on that and told the audience. It was funny because everyone went either "Oooo" or "Ahhh".
Our recent Arrow of Light ceremony was very nice. After the boys crossed the bridge, the Cubmaster did a candle ceremony where each colored candle represented an attribute. He then painted a stripe on the boys' faces in the color cooridinating with the candle.
I earned the religious award as a Girl Scout, and when I became a Cub Scout leader, I was allowed to wear the purple/silver knot on my Boy Scout uniform. I have that, plus the leader knots for Tiger, Wolf, Bear and Webelos, as well as the District Award of Merit.