The foundations of Plast, outlined by its founder Dr. Oleksander Tysovskyi and expanded during Plast’s early development, are built on a Christian worldview and the idea of loyalty to the Ukrainian nation and its ideal of nationhood. They are briefly expressed in the Three Principal Obligations of the PLAST Scout:
To be faithful to God and Ukraine,
To help others,
To live by the Plast Code and obey Plast leadership.
Faithfulness to God is paramount, because Plast has an idealistic worldview that commands belief in a higher meaning of life, in the Creator of the whole world. Plast doesn’t teach religion, but requires from its members practical religiosity based on Christian principles. Plast doesn’t discriminate among faiths and respects each religious faith, but requires living in accordance with Christ’s teachings and the requirements of the faith to which the Scout belongs.
The second part of the first obligation: to be faithful to Ukraine means to feel oneself as an organic part of the Ukrainian nation in Ukraine and in the diaspora, to be equally responsible for its well-being and for its reaching complete independence. To this end, the Scout must care about the purity of the Ukrainian language, actively and creatively take part in Ukrainian social and cultural life in his own community, and bring the principles of Plast into it. In sum, faithfulness to Ukraine means that the Scout is always prepared to serve her.
The second principal obligation of the Scout is to help others. This is one of the fundamental commandments of the Christian faith, to love one’s neighbour. Plast, similarly to the World Scouting Movement, included this godly and chivalrous law into its principal obligations. The call to help others pertains to the Scout’s relationship with his community. It also signifies the duty of a Scout to be a useful member of the society in which he lives and to which he is connected. This is why Plast has always included a daily good deed in its requirements, so that the Scout develops the habit of doing good for others.
The third principal obligation of the Scout is to live by the Plast Code, which specifies 14 character traits of the Scout, and appends to that obedience to the Plast leadership, which is necessary for the development of individual character and a sense of order in society.