[MarkL]

Suppose they decided being a black kid was a basis for not being a scout, either. Would they still be allowed to recruit at schools? what does believing in a Sky God have to do with learning to pitch a tent? Is the BSA teaching self-reliance or religion?

The Scout Oath includes the words "On my honor, I will do my best, to do my duty, to G-d and my country." Taking that oath is part of being a Boy Scout. It doesn't specifically say "what G-d," which is why Boy Scouts were found in nearly every country of the world, generally with the exception of many communist countries.

If you don't want to take that oath, to profess a belief in G-d, you don't have to. In fact, I think that you should form your own "Athiest Scouts," where you don't have to take that oath. In fact you could set up an oath disavowing any belief in G-d for your members.

Mark

[JoeFromSidney]

It doesn't specifically say "what G-d," which is why Boy Scouts were found in nearly every country of the world, generally with the exception of many communist countries.

One evening I was walking down the beach at a resort in Turkey. I came to a sunken pit like a basketball court. Right in the middle of it was something that looked like what I learned in my Boy Scout days as a "Council Fire." On my return to the hotel I passed the place again, and this time there were several young men in scout uniforms standing around the thing. Yes, they were Turkish Boy Scouts, probably Muslim to the last one, and I still know now to recognize a Council Fire when I see one.