What Royal Ambassador is all About: Royal Ambassador Pledge

Royal Ambassadors is a missions discipleship organization for boys in grades 1-6 that helps them develop a Biblical worldview with an emphasis on missions learning and missioner living.   RA’s utilizes activities that are designed to help boys learn about missions and get them personally involved in practical mission’s experiences while having fun.  

The Purpose of Royal Ambassadors is to involve boys in missions. Involvement in missions is living one’s faith daily: personal experience in witness and ministry, and giving and praying to support persons involved in missions. The Royal Ambassador program helps boys to become aware of the needs of people around the world and to respond to those needs. The organization seeks to lead boys to a personal commitment to Christ and assist them in their Christian growth experience. Through Royal Ambassadors, boys are led to an awareness of their responsibility to Christ and encouraged to become His ambassador. This purpose is outlined in the Royal Ambassador Pledge.

RA Pledge

As a Royal Ambassador I will do my best:

• To become a well-informed, responsible follower of Christ
• To have a Christ-like concern for all people
• To carry the message of Christ around the world
• To work with others in sharing Christ
• To keep myself clean and healthy in mind and body

Royal Ambassadors accomplish the points of pledge through these 3 points:

Participation in chapter meetings: Each boy is given opportunities to use his talents and abilities in chapter activities. The chapter also provides fellowship with Christian boys which help them feel their worth as they work or play together.

Participation in mission projects: Mission projects provide opportunities for boys to show their Christian concern for other people. Through these projects boys become conscious of their Christian responsibilities to others, especially those in need, by actually doing missions.  

Participation in interest activities: The use of interest activities can provide fun teaching avenues and learning situations, enhancing Christian relationships and the total program. Royal Ambassadors is a well-balanced mission program which helps boys with spiritual, social, mental and physical needs.  Royal Ambassadors capitalizes on what boys enjoy doing. In addition to mission education, Royal Ambassadors provides an increased understanding of the true values in life, a respect for other people, an increased desire to help other people, experience in working with others, leads to improvements in personal habits, and provides an outlet for many fun and energetic activities that boys need.

How Royal Ambassadors Started: Origin of Royal Ambassadors

I know quite well that, little of Royal Ambassadors will be able to say how the inspiration of this great organization started. I personally cannot even tell you how it happened but there is no how a great organization will be without the origin which I spare my precious time to have a look at with the help of my research.

Woman’s Missionary Union appointed a “Committee on Mission Work for Boys” in October 1907. Miss Fannie Heck, president of WMU, was chose to be the chairman of the committee. Miss Fannie Heck and other committee member, Miss Elizabeth Briggs (now Mrs. T.C. Pittman), attended a young people’s missionary conference in Asheville, N.C. where they heard a song, “The King’s Business,” that was about Christian “Ambassadors.” Miss Elizabeth Briggs suggested the name “Ambassadors” as a good name for a boys’ missions’ organization while Miss Fannie Heck added the “Royal.”

At the 20th annual meeting of Woman’s Missionary Union in May 1908, WMU members voted to sponsor a mission’s organization for boys ages 9-17, the name be the “Order of Royal Ambassadors.” That was how Royal Ambassadors started through the inspiration of Miss. Fannie Heck and Miss. Elizabeth Briggs.

Mrs. W.M. Petway, was so excited about the new organization, she rushed home to form the first Royal Ambassador chapter in the Southern Baptist Convention, which is Carey Newton Chapter of First Baptist Church, Goldsboro, N.C.

By 1909, there were 45 R. A. chapters, involving several hundred boys in the Southern Baptist Convention and by 1915; there were 500 chapters with 4,500 members. Program materials for boys were first appeared in Mission Fields, a WMU publication for women which included materials for several youth organizations. A ranking system was introduced in 1924, featuring the ranks of Page, Squire, Knight, and Ambassador. Ambassador Extraordinary and Ambassador Plenipotentiary were two higher ranks added in 1929 for boys 13 and older. Camping became a very important part of R. A work, create enthusiasm among the boys. The first R. A camp was held at Virginia Beach in 1917. R. A camps were being held in Virginia, South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, and Kentucky by 1925. The 25th anniversary of Royal Ambassadors was celebrated in 1933.

There were 4,369 chapters with 41,864 members during the anniversary. In recognition of the anniversary, M.E. Dodd, pastor of First Baptist Church of Shreveport, LA, arranged for a 45 minute, coast to coast broadcast, one of the first major Southern Baptist broadcasts in the history of the convention.  By 1943, Royal Ambassadors work had grown to the point that a full time convention wide Royal Ambassador Secretary was needed.

WMU employed J. Ivy Bishop to fill the position. J. Ivy Bishop had worked as R. A. secretary for Alabama, Mississippi, and South Carolina, making him the logical choice for the convention wide job. He served until 1st September, 1953.

Royal Ambassadors has served as a guide to many in missions, national politics, professional sports, and businesses, with over 6 million attending RA’s since the organization begin.