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Southern Baptists Move To Cut Ties With Boy Scouts Of America Over Inclusion Of Gay Scouts
International Business Times ^ | May 29, 2013 | Eric Brown

Posted on 06/03/2013 3:15:31 PM PDT by SeekAndFind

Last week, the Boy Scouts of America made its landmark decision allowing gay Scouts to be members (but not adult leaders), and while many liberal organizations are pleased, America’s largest Protestant church organization seems poised to cut off ties with the Boy Scouts in protest.

More than 70 percent of Boy Scout troops across the country are sponsored by religious organizations. Many sponsorships come from the Southern Baptist Convention, America’s largest Protestant denomination with more than 47,000 churches. Now, Frank Page, president of the SBC's executive committee, says it’s time for its congregations to cut all ties with the Boy Scouts of America.

"I think I can say with pretty strong accuracy that the vast majority of Southern Baptists are very disappointed in the latest change in policy ... deeply disappointed," Page told ABC News.

Convention plans to hold a national meeting, where Page and the executive board will officially recommend that all Southern Baptist churches pull their sponsorship from the Boy Scouts. The resolution will not be binding, however, and each church is free to make a decision for itself.

"We don't hate people," said Page. "We don't hate anybody, but we just felt like there's got to be some objective standard, and we felt they were maintaining that until recently."

Despite the likely Southern Baptist move, not all religious organizations are as opposed to the change. The Mormon church, which sponsors many Scout troops, has embraced the Boy Scout decision despite its own disapproval of homosexuality. The Roman Catholic Church is considering its response.

ABC News also reports that the National Jewish Committee on Scouting, the Episcopal Church, the United Church of Christ, the Unitarian Universalist Association and the gay-founded Metropolitan Community Church are all in favor of repealing the ban on openly gay Scouts.

Some churches have already withdrawn their support. Father Derek Lappe of Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Church in Bremerton, Wash., has already removed its sponsorship of a local Boy Scout troop.

Pastor Tim Hester of Southeast Christian Church Louisville, Ky., has already done the same. "Truly, for us it's a logical decision," Hester told the Louisville Courier-Journal. "We cannot be distracted from the mission God has called us to."

Under the Boy Scouts of America’s new policy, openly gay Scouts will be allowed to serve in troops nationwide. But gay scoutmasters and adult leaders are still banned.

"No youth may be denied membership in the Boy Scouts of America on the basis of sexual orientation or preference alone," the resolution passed Thursday states, according to CNN.

"The resolution also reinforces that Scouting is a youth program, and any sexual conduct, whether heterosexual or homosexual, by youth of Scouting age is contrary to the virtues of Scouting," the BSA said in a statement.

The ban on gay Scouts and leaders was instituted in 1991 when the organization determined that gay people were not living in accordance with the Boy Scouts of America oath, which demands that Scouts be "physically strong, mentally alert and morally straight." The point of contention was with the "morally straight" clause. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2000 that the BSA as a private organization had the constitutional right to set its own rules in a case brought by a gay Eagle Scout named James Dale, who was barred from serving as a leader in a New Jersey troop in 1990 because of his sexuality.


TOPICS: Evangelical Christian; Moral Issues; Religion & Culture
KEYWORDS: boyscouts; bsa; gay; homosexualagenda; homosexuality; sbc; seeya; southernbaptist
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1 posted on 06/03/2013 3:15:31 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
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To: SeekAndFind

What would a contraction by at least a third mean to the GLB-SA?


2 posted on 06/03/2013 3:21:16 PM PDT by fwdude ( You cannot compromise with that which you must defeat.)
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To: SeekAndFind

MOVE? Hell . . . do it!


3 posted on 06/03/2013 3:29:14 PM PDT by laweeks
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To: SeekAndFind
Do it.

Scouts Out! Cavalry Ho!

4 posted on 06/03/2013 3:43:29 PM PDT by wku man (Amnesty? No Way, Jose (No Se Puede!) by 10 Pound Test http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsTUQ8yOI2c)
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To: laweeks

Some in this state-AL-have already done so. They are getting all kind of hatred from those who think it is wrong for the SB to cut ties.


5 posted on 06/03/2013 3:49:56 PM PDT by MamaB
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To: SeekAndFind
There's reason the bible says to shun associations with them.

They are demented disease ridden two legged plague rats!

6 posted on 06/03/2013 3:57:21 PM PDT by rawcatslyentist (Jeremiah 50:32 "The arrogant one will stumble and fall With no one to raise him up; And I will set)
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To: SeekAndFind
More than 70 percent of Boy Scout troops across the country are sponsored by religious organizations

What this means is that if the churches would stand up for Biblical principles, the Boy Scouts of America may reconsider their decision.

7 posted on 06/03/2013 4:21:26 PM PDT by Former Fetus (Saved by grace through faith)
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To: Former Fetus
7 ... What this means is that if the churches would stand up for Biblical principles, the Boy Scouts of America may reconsider their decision.

The BSA National Executive Board lobbied the religious institution leaders very hard during JAN-APR 2013 to go along with the BSA regardless of how the vote went.

BSA YEA -

1. LDS = Mormon
2. PCUSA = Presbyterian
3. ELCA = Lutheran
4. TEC = Episcopal
5. UCC = United Church of Christ
6. American Judaism = Reformed and Conservative branches
7. U/U = Universal Unitarian

BSA Probably -

1. DoC = Disciples of Christ/Christian Church
2. Moravian
3. Cooperative Baptist Fellowship
4. Alliance of Baptists
5. The Association of Welcoming and Affirming Baptists
6. The American Baptist Churches USA

BSA Fence Sitters -

1. UMC = Methodist - leaning YEA
2. RCC = Catholic - remains to be seen

BSA NAY -

1. SBC = Southern Baptist Convention
2. AOG = Assembly of God
3. LC-MS = Lutheran
4. PCA = Presbyterian
5. American Judaism = Orthodox branch

8 posted on 06/03/2013 4:34:28 PM PDT by MacNaughton
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To: MacNaughton

So sad!


9 posted on 06/03/2013 4:50:40 PM PDT by Former Fetus (Saved by grace through faith)
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To: SeekAndFind

The gay agenda is not to force gay kids into the BSA. The agenda is to force the BSA into declaring they will accept gay kids, thereby costing BSA the support of millions of $$ in support. Set, spike, game.


10 posted on 06/03/2013 4:52:49 PM PDT by STYRO (War sucks. Living in slavery sucks even worse.)
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To: SeekAndFind

The church has gotta do what they gotta do.


11 posted on 06/03/2013 4:57:23 PM PDT by DesScorp
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To: rawcatslyentist

if you don’t it’s tantamount to approval of their position.

you don’t see queer groups bringing in speakers and groups that don’t approve of homosexuality and welcoming them as friends.


12 posted on 06/03/2013 5:16:00 PM PDT by Secret Agent Man (Gone Galt; Not averse to Going Bronson.)
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To: MacNaughton

I notice that the institutions that voted YEA or MAYBE ( Except maybe the LDS) are the one’s LOSING members while those that voted NAY are the ones MAINTAINING or GAINING or GROWING in numbers


13 posted on 06/03/2013 5:17:24 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
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To: MacNaughton

don’t forget MCC - yes bsa - the ‘gay’ church


14 posted on 06/03/2013 5:17:49 PM PDT by Secret Agent Man (Gone Galt; Not averse to Going Bronson.)
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To: rawcatslyentist
First, I think the Scous are dead wrong to have made this decision, and if I repesented a church which sponsored a troop, I would say,"Time to go."

However, up to this point Scouting had, in effect, a "Don-t Ask, Don't Tell" Policy, which allowed boys who might be having some sexual/gender difficulties, to join the Scouts and remain in the troop as long as he didn't "come out," i.e. make an issue out of sexuality.

I think that policy was right. And I don't think you can call an adolescent boy who is experiencing some degree of sexual turmoil, a "demented disease ridden two legged plague rat." He may well just be a confused and lonely boy.

Not "coming out," not making a point of sexuality, and having a chance to interact on a wholesome basis with normal boys and men, can help affirm the kid's true gender/sex identity and bring him through to manhood on an emotionally healthy basis.

Boys need that.

Boys don't need to be called demented plague rats.

15 posted on 06/03/2013 5:20:28 PM PDT by Mrs. Don-o (On my honor.)
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To: SeekAndFind

http://theblacksphere.net/2013/06/the-boy-scout-fallout/


16 posted on 06/03/2013 5:27:23 PM PDT by squirt12 (SBC is not the only denomination caught up in the crossfire)
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To: SeekAndFind

The libs have long prepared for this day. They will move in and fund the BSA, carefully removing all influence to Godliness in the process. What will be left will be a zombie organization that leads kids to evil instead of good. Get out now - try to starve the corpse before the libs pump formaldehyde into it. No more money, no more use of facilities, don’t buy the popcorn. Check your charitable deduction at work, make sure not a dime is going to BSA (like many others I dropped contributions to my employer’s charity-of-choice because they defunded BSA - betcha the bucks start flowing again). Sad for the millions of current and former Scouts, but it’s no longer your father’s BSA. Salt that loses its flavor is worthless.


17 posted on 06/03/2013 7:04:14 PM PDT by Some Fat Guy in L.A. (Still bitterly clinging to rational thought despite it's unfashionability)
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To: Mrs. Don-o
>"Boys don't need to be called demented plague rats."

No, boys don't need to be called that.

Sodomites do!

18 posted on 06/03/2013 7:15:55 PM PDT by rawcatslyentist (Jeremiah 50:32 "The arrogant one will stumble and fall With no one to raise him up; And I will set)
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To: SeekAndFind; HoosierDammit; TYVets; red irish; fastrock; NorthernCrunchyCon; UMCRevMom@aol.com; ...
+

Freep-mail me to get on or off my pro-life and Catholic List:

Add me / Remove me

Please ping me to note-worthy Pro-Life or Catholic threads, or other threads of general interest.

19 posted on 06/03/2013 7:17:34 PM PDT by narses
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To: STYRO

The gays and marxists want control of the BSA brand to indoctrinate kids. The boy scouts are not going away. It’s similar to how they took over the Girl Scouts a couple decades ago.


20 posted on 06/03/2013 7:21:50 PM PDT by lodi90
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