2026 Will Be a Year of Hope
Bishop Schwerin looks ahead to 2026 by turning to scripture; specifically, Psalm 130:5: “I wait for the Lord; my soul waits, and in his word, I hope.” He ponders, What kind of spiritual focus is nee…
Scouts Read Sacred Texts—proposed by Scouting America’s National Religious Relationships Committee—encourages Scouts to commit time each week to reading a sacred text from their tradition. The activity is held in conjunction with the National Day of Prayer (May 1, 2025).
This year, the Northern Illinois Conference scouting ministry invites Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and youth in other organizations and from all religions to join them in supporting faith. They will read their texts on May 1 or another convenient day that week.
It started with Scouting America's proposal to support one of the Boy Scout oaths, “to do my duty to God.” Eventually, members of Girl Scouts of the USA (which has a similar vow), youth groups, and others joined the Boy Scouts in this activity.
Last May, 3,673 Scout participants made history by taking time to read and log their participation on May 2, 2024. This greatly exceeded everyone’s expectations. Scouts spent over 800 hours reading sacred texts.
Most Scouts read at home with their families. In addition to the United States, Scouts from Kenya, Nigeria, Puerto Rico, Belgium, Bangladesh, Chile, Singapore, Okinawa, and the Philippines participated.
Here are the components of this activity in the NIC:
To learn more about Scouts Read Sacred Texts, watch this video.
To learn more about how the NIC relates to Scouting, contact Jim Loeppert ( [847] 721-5578), NIC scouting coordinator.
Bishop Schwerin looks ahead to 2026 by turning to scripture; specifically, Psalm 130:5: “I wait for the Lord; my soul waits, and in his word, I hope.” He ponders, What kind of spiritual focus is nee…
Rev. Lora Zink, a retired member of the Northern Illinois Conference, passed away on Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2025.
Mrs. Freda Whittle, surviving spouse of Rev. Paul Whittle Jr., a deceased member of the Northern Illinois Conference, passed away on April 16, 2025.
This summer, churches across the conference brought vacation Bible school to life, each one putting its own unique spin on the beloved tradition. From creative scheduling and special…