- 1 - - 2 - - 3 - Contents ADRA -13- Arts & Crafts -27- Health & Science -121- Household Arts -147- Nature -167- Outdoor Industries -257- Outreach Ministries -277- Recreation -311- Vocations -407- Master Awards -449- Produced by the General Conference Youth Ministries Department 2011 This material is protected by copyright All rigths reserved This material may not be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other) without the prior permission of the publisher - 4 - - 5 - Philosophy of the Pathfinder Honors Introduction Each honor is designed to be a course of study that introduces a subject. This 2011 Edition of the Pathfinder Honor Handbook is representative of This subject should have practical value and should enhance the lifestyle the continual growth of Youth Ministry in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. of the person pursuing the honor. Honor study should assist the person in his/her development as a well-rounded Christian by directly affecting the We live in a rapidly changing world , and consequently this book is social, emotional, physical, and spiritual aspects of life. The study of an quite likely outdated as of press time. The honors reflect this fact as they honor should direct the person to a deeper love of the Creator and should now undergo continual systematic revisions in order to provide nothing but increase one’s interest in committing their life in service to God and to the the best for our youth. By design and definition, honors are “windows to be community. opened in the mode of discovery” within the philosophical framework of the church. Honor study is intended to help the person’s spiritual character development. Therefore, every honor should be designed to require high standards of This manual includes all honors currently recognized at the General excellence by clearly stating in all requirements what tasks are to be Conference level of Youth Ministry, and it also includes those specialized accomplished. Fulfilling the requirements should be interesting and fun, honors recognized by various divisions. A few of the patch designs pictured while at the same time providing the person with a sense of achievement. may not match those utilized in the field because it is the desire of the World Pathfinder organization that honors received by Pathfinders reflect in The study of an honor should provide a person with an attractive way to their design that which the reipient can relate to. For instance, the patch for learn about their surroundings or widen their exposure to new horizons the Bird Honor depicts a member of the Corvid family known as a Blue Jay; of adventures. Such study topics might include learning about hobbies, a however, this bird is not known in many parts of the world. Therefore, South special interest, or being introduced to a new vocation. Each honor should be America has chosen to depict one of their beautiful Cardinals, which is much designed to accomodate group study of a club meeting, family, or individual better known. study by a highly motivated person. The entire content of the honor should be capable of being completed in less than three months. The original concept of honors was agreed to at a General Conference Youth Advisory in 1927. They were first called Vocational Merits, then they Because Pathfinder honors are a part of a church-sponsored program, all became Vocational Honors. The first handbook listing the requirements facets of course study should be in harmony with basic church standards. was published in 1928. At that time there were 16 topics selected. While For this reason honor study would normally avoid topics with requirements requirements have changed and names have been modified, those original calling for destruction of plant or animal life as well as types of armed honors remain today. Often these patches were hand-sewn on treadle of unarmed defense. Also, subjects should be avoided that could only be machines; some were sewn in private sewing rooms utilizing the pictured studied by a small group of people in a single local area. design as a pattern. These original patches have a quaint appearance when compared to today’s computer-generated designs sewn on high precision It is the purpose of all honors to help the person to “increase in wisdom and machines at the Lion Brothers plant near Baltimore, MD, USA. stature and in favor with God and man.” Down through the years other honors have joined these original 16, and today there are more than 300 Pathfinder honors recognized worldwide. It is the desire of the General Conference Youth Department that this edition of the Pathfinder Honor Handbook will lead you into many new adventures as you discover the world around you. We also hope that these very enjoyable activities will prepare young people for the world to come. - 6 - - 7 - Guidelines for Participating in the Pathfinder Honor Program Check List for Evaluating New Pathfinder Honors Adventist youth follow in a long tradition of service to humanity. They Check to see if the honor (or a similar one) already exists: can be found all over the world applying their skills to the myriad tasks http://gcyouthministries.org/Ministries/Pathfinders/Honors/tabid/85/ and many vocations and professions needed to carry the “gospel to all the Default.aspx world in this generation.” Many Adventist youth who are now successful in overseas mission service, in business or professional work, trace their vision If no existing honor is found, please complete the following of service to the Pathfinder honor system. requirements: We all should be able to draw from the great book of nature lessons __________ 1. The honor requirements must uphold the standards and philosophy of that will inspire and enable others to emulate the example of Jesus, the the Seventh-day Adventist church. greatest nature Teacher this world has ever known. Youth should know how __________ 2. The honor requirements must include a balance of theory and “hands to place truth-filled literature in the hands of those who may thus be led to on” activities. the Savior. Every young person must be prepared to answer the call of the Master in many fields of endeavor. __________ 3. If possible, requirements should be developed on two levels of study: Basic (ages 10-15), and Advanced (ages 16 and older). Having the basic honor should be the pre-requisite for earning the advanced honor on a The Youth Ministries Department desires to help young people reach given subject. these ideals, and Pathfinder honors enable young people to gain proficiency in many areas. Sometimes study for honors leads to the adoption of a __________ 4. Requirements should be usable in a group setting or by a single vocation or at least a useful hobby. While some may consider Pathfinder individual. honors as just study, theory, and book work, remember that the Pathfinder __________ 5. Requirements should be able to be completed in less than three months. honor system is based on the philosophy, “an ounce of theory to a pound of This is a general rule only as some honors (e.g. Outdoor Industries practice.” Enjoyment and adventure are the keys to any honor achievement. category) need more time. __________ 6. Requirements should clearly state in simple terminology exactly what Advanced Honors: A Glimpse Toward the Future is to be accomplished. (Avoid ambiguous words or phrases such as “explain briefly,” or “demonstrate ability.”) There have always been those persons who would like to see even __________ 7. Requirements must consider care of our natural environment. For greater challenges in a given honor. This desire created the concept of example, to avoid destruction of animal or plant life, ask for photos or Advanced Honors. To reduce production costs and provide interested persons drawings rather than collections. with additional levels, advanced levels will be written for every honor. As __________ 8. Activity requirements of extended time are worded so as to avoid these sets of requirements come into existence, a small bronze star will be conflicts with school or work schedules (e.g. a four day campout could available to be attached to the patch. be done in two weekends). __________ 9. All requirements are to be accomplished in a safe and supervised environment. They must comply with legal requirements and will avoid involvement in armed or unarmed defenses. __________ 10. Requirements should be able to be accomplished without unduly affecting the safety of its participants. __________ 11. The requirements should reflect current practice and language. - 8 - - 9 - Approval Procedure for a New Pathfinder Honor WORKSHEET FOR DEVELOPING NEW PATHFINDER HONORS 1. All new honor requests should be submitted to the local conference Pathfinder director for verification that the honor has met criteria as NAME _______________________________________________________ stated on the worksheet for developing new honors. ADDRESS ___________________________________________ 2. The local conference Pathfinder director then submits the new honor to the Division Pathfinder Specialty Committee chairman. CITY _____________________ STATE ______ ZIP ________ 3. The new honor request is then submitted to the Pathfinder Honor DATE OF SUBMISSION _________________________________ Study Committee for approval. Honors which are not approved are then returned to their author with written explanation for reasons TITLE ______________________________________________ of rejection or need for revision. A copy of the letter should also be CATEGORY __________________________________________ sent to the local conference Pathfinder director. 4. Approved honors are submitted to the General Conference Honor PURPOSE OF ________________________________________ Committee for final approval and processing of the honor. A letter Basic (10-15) of recognition and thanks would be sent to the author by the Honor Level(s) of difficulty: ___________ Committee chairman. ___________ Advanced (16-up) Instructions for Completing New Honor Worksheet References (Include author, title, publisher, date published): ___ ___________________________________________________ 1.