In an effort to be more ‘inclusive’ the Girl Guides in Britain have dropped references to ‘God’ and ‘country’ from their pledge. Guides now pledge instead to “be true to myself” and to “develop my beliefs”. This is almost beyond parody.

Essentially, instead of the pledge being focussed on something external, it is now focussed purely on the individual member and their feelings and personal beliefs. It’s the ‘me generation’ yet again.

What the Girl Guides’ decision shows that is once an organisation decides to be more ‘inclusive’ it almost invariably gives up belief in something objective and external such as God or country and instead adopts individualism as its core value.

The Girl Guides’ decision was taken some time back. Now a number of Girl Guide leaders face expulsion for insisting on sticking to the old pledge. That is, they must be excommunicated for not believing in the new Girl Guide doctrine of individualism.

An atheist girl guide leader is now saying her conscience rights are being violated by the insistence her local branch make him take the old pledge. And of course she’s right, given the new doctrine of the organisation.

But if the Girl Guides had stuck to their old belief in God and country, she could have had no such complaint. She would have known what the Girl Guides stand for and would have been perfectly free to set up a rival organisation that reflects her own beliefs, or lack thereof.