{"id":3572,"date":"2025-01-27T11:01:29","date_gmt":"2025-01-27T10:01:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/?p=3572"},"modified":"2025-01-28T16:13:06","modified_gmt":"2025-01-28T15:13:06","slug":"becoming-a-ranger-was-a-real-highlight-for-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/becoming-a-ranger-was-a-real-highlight-for-me\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cBecoming a Ranger was a real high\u00adlight for me\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I\u2019ve been pursuing this hobby for 16 years now, and when I was finally allowed to join the Rangers at the age of six, it was an absolute high\u00adlight for me. Royal Rangers are Chris\u00adtian scouts, and their mission is to tell chil\u00addren and young people about God and inspire them to do their bit to serve God and the commu\u00adnity \u2013 while engaging with nature and learning scouting tech\u00adniques.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are different age groups in the Royal Rangers: The three to six-year-olds are called Ranger Kids followed by the Discovery Rangers. Chil\u00addren aged nine to twelve are called Adven\u00adture Rangers before they join the Trail Rangers and, from the age of 15, the Expe\u00addi\u00adtion Rangers. If you like, you can also become a Junior Leader at the age of 15. Other\u00adwise, you serve as a volun\u00adtary leader from the age of 18.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Julian Knoll has been a Royal Ranger for 16 years.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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He is now a leader in the Senden outpost.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Learning through play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I, myself, am a member of Outpost 293 in Senden and was previ\u00adously the leader of the Lion Monkey team. This consists of chil\u00addren aged six to nine, and in this age group, we focus on doing lots of fun things together and learning about the Bible and Ranger rules in a playful way. We do crafts, pursue outdoor games, or cook together.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Learning scouting tech\u00adniques in nature is the focus of the Rangers Kids.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Getting ready for the evening program at the Royal Rangers camp.<\/p><\/div>\n

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There is also plenty of time to relax together as a team.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

In September 2024, I changed teams and am now with the Adven\u00adture Rangers. This is where the chil\u00addren are intro\u00adduced to scouting tech\u00adniques and learn what they need to put up a tent, build a fire and use it to cook a meal, or navi\u00adgate with a compass. But even at this age, it\u2019s still impor\u00adtant to offer breaks involving games and activ\u00adi\u00adties. That\u2019s fun for us leaders too, and it\u2019s nice as adults to be able to act a bit like a kid again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The camps are always a very intense time for me \u2013 espe\u00adcially with God. But the fun is not neglected.<\/p>\nJulian Knoll, Royal Ranger<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Chris\u00adtian back\u00adground<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Royal Rangers are a Chris\u00adtian orga\u00adni\u00adza\u00adtion, which is why prayers play an inte\u00adgral part in all age groups. Every week, all leaders prepare an inspi\u00adra\u00adtional talk during which they recite stories from the Bible and about Jesus or God. In the younger age groups, this is done in a playful manner or by putting on short plays. When the chil\u00addren are older, we give them the oppor\u00adtu\u00adnity to make up their own prayers and thus become acquainted with Chris\u00adtian themes and the Bible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Devo\u00adtions are an inte\u00adgral part of the Royal Rangers for all age groups.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Natu\u00adrally, being a Ranger is also about earning badges. In the case of \u201cmy\u201d former Discovery Rangers, we still use book\u00adlets with an over\u00adar\u00adching theme, for example owls. The booklet is filled with stories, craft ideas, and puzzles. On completing the booklet, the kids get a matching badge. At a more advanced level, to earn a badge in scouting tech\u00adniques requires completing a test, with increasing levels of diffi\u00adculty. A badge always includes a Bible ques\u00adtion\u00adnaire, for which the chil\u00addren study the Bible and answer ques\u00adtions about it. As Royal Rangers, faith is all-impor\u00adtant and the basis of every\u00adthing we do. That\u2019s why it\u2019s an inte\u00adgral aspect of the program.<\/p>\n\n\n

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The Royal Rangers are here!<\/p><\/div>\n

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During the camps, partic\u00adi\u00adpants sleep in simple tents.<\/p><\/div>\n

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They are often rewarded with fantastic views.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Instead of comfort, the camp partic\u00adi\u00adpants have to cope with rain and mud.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Soaked tent floors are also part of this.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Above all, camp life means commu\u00adnity, games and action.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Scout high\u00adlights: Hajks and camps<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are various advanced training courses avail\u00adable for leaders, such as the National Training Camp for adults or the Junior Leader Training Camp for teenagers. As a Ranger, so-called \u2018hajks\u201d are also part of the program. During these orien\u00adteering events, you hike for a few days with your back\u00adpack and sleep outside using the simplest of means. You have to carry and take every\u00adthing you need with you. Good prepa\u00adra\u00adtion is crucial. The same applies when you\u2019re plan\u00adning your routes as cell phones are only intended for emer\u00adgen\u00adcies. To navi\u00adgate, you have to rely on nature, maps and a compass. For our younger Adven\u00adture Rangers, there are overnight stays with short hikes instead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The high\u00adlight of every Ranger\u2019s year is the camp, which usually takes place once a year. Which outposts come together and how varies. Every four to five years there is a regional camp in which all the outposts in a specific region take part. Senden is in the Bavarian Swabia region where there are some 750 active Rangers.<\/p>\n\n\n

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There are also culi\u00adnary high\u00adlights at the ranger camps.<\/p><\/div>\n

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The oblig\u00ada\u00adtory barbecue sausage and a shared meal are part of it.<\/p><\/div>\n

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The commu\u00adnity also cele\u00adbrates birth\u00addays.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

At the camp, people live together in tents in the coun\u00adtry\u00adside for a week, cook over a fire, and bond as a commu\u00adnity. During the day, there are usually work\u00adshops or an Olympics-themed camp. After dinner, the evening program starts with the singing of Chris\u00adtian songs. The program also includes a play with a suit\u00adable motto for the camp that also serves as an acces\u00adsible intro\u00adduc\u00adtion to the sermon. For me, this is always a very intense time \u2013 espe\u00adcially with God. But there\u2019s plenty of fun to be had as well. And there\u2019s no shortage of culi\u00adnary delights either: At the 2022 National Camp, the teams even managed to conjure up entire menus over the fire.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A passionate Royal Ranger, Julian Knoll, who is completing a dual degree in elec\u00adtrical engi\u00adneering with us, is involved in Chris\u00adtian scout work. Here he talks about what his duties entail and what he finds partic\u00adu\u00adlarly inspiring about them. [\u2026]<\/p>\n

Read More\u2026 from \u201cBecoming a Ranger was a real high\u00adlight for me\u201d<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":3574,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3572","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pactuell"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3572","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3572"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3572\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3627,"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3572\/revisions\/3627"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3574"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3572"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3572"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pactuell.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3572"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}