Posted on 08/17/2015 2:20:01 PM PDT by markomalley
A Catholic archdiocese is exercising its right to exclude openly gay scout leaders.
In 2012, after publicly announcing his sexual orientation, scout leader Greg Bourke was forced to resign from his leadership position in Boy Scout Troop 325, based in Louisville, Kentucky and run by Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church.
Following last month's lifting of the ban on openly gay scout leaders by the BSA, Bourke — a parishioner of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church — applied for readmission to the troop; the request, however, was denied by the Archdiocese of Louisville, citing the option of faith-based scout units to deny admission of those that do not abide by Church teachings. In a statement provided to local pastors last week, the archdiocese said
[The Catholic Church has] both the right and the responsibility to choose leaders whose character and conduct are consistent with Church teaching. All pastoral leaders in these ministries should be able to provide a credible and integrated witness in their lives to the teachings of the Catholic Church, including its teachings on marriage, sexuality and chastity.
Following the July 27 BSA decision, the National Catholic Committee on Scouting said the Boy Scouts resolution appears to "respect the needs of Catholic-chartered organizations … to choose leaders whose character and conduct are consistent with those of Catholic teaching."
Bourke — a plaintiff in the recent Supreme Court case that proclaimed same-sex "marriage" a fundamental right — acknowledges that while there is nothing legally unsound about Abp. Joseph Kurtz's decision, "the thing [he] can do is take them to the court of public opinion." Bourke firmly believes that the archdiocese is "going to lose that battle." He goes on to claim that "clearly [they] have to draw attention to the archdiocese, and specifically Abp. Joseph Kurtz for making this decision," which he believes was "really unnecessary" and "quite mean-spirited."
Cecelia Price, a spokeswoman for the archdiocese, reminded those offended by the decision that "it is important to note that the fact that individuals identify themselves as a person with same-sex orientation does not necessarily exclude them from volunteering for the Church," but that ultimately any concerns pertain to an individual's "ability to provide a credible witness to Church teaching."
When asked to provide biblical evidence that prohibits homosexuals from being around or instructing children, Price referenced sections of the Catechism of the Catholic Church concerning marriage, sexuality and chastity, while also noting that these teachings are part of "the 2000-year-plus tradition of the Church."
Protests against the archdiocese's decision are being planned by both the Fairness Campaign, a Louisville-based gay advocacy organization, and Catholics for Fairness, a "Catholic" gay advocacy group. Fairness Campaign director Chris Hartman called the decision "saddening" and accused Abp. Kurtz of spearheading anti-LGBT policies.
"Every step along the way, Abp. Kurtz has had the opportunity to make an inclusive choice — one that's pastoral, in a way that his predecessor Abp. Thomas Kelly did," said Hartman. "And every step he's not only side-stepped the issue, but he's really come down in an embarrassing way that runs contrary to what Jesus would be doing."
The archdiocese of Louisville is not the first major diocese to take action: In early August the archdiocese of Bismarck, North Dakota officially cut ties with the organization following the lifting of the ban on openly gay leaders.
Place Mark
Good move!
Sorry Greg. Erections have consequences.
Let us watch and see what the GBSA does now
Why is it that queers all have that same look about them?
Now he’ll sue and a court will predictably rule that this degenerate has a right to rape little boys.
“Why is it that queers all have that same look about them?”
Getting buggered will do that to a man.
Amen, Brother!
the thing [he] can do is take them to the court of public opinion." Bourke firmly believes that the archdiocese is "going to lose that battle." He goes on to claim that "clearly [they] have to draw attention to the archdiocese, and specifically Abp. Joseph Kurtz for making this decision," which he believes was "really unnecessary" and "quite mean-spirited."
Hell hath no fury like a bitchy faggot scorned.
May God grant our brother Joseph the courage to stand firm in his faith.
That picture has me reaching for an axe handle ...
So it sounds like the pervert’s game plan is
1) Try to use public pressure on the archdiosese
2) Eventually Sue for discrimination.
When the body fights against foreign bodies it creates antibodies.
What do anti-sperm antibodies do? Anti-maleness...anti XY...Anti “Y”?
It could be something that leads to some variety of auto-immunity. I’ve often wondered about it.
Is homosexuality punishment for something else...
the person or persons did?
21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools ...
24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the truth about God for a lie,and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised.Amen.
26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.
28 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. 29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31 they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. 32 Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.
Romans 1:1-27-31 http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans+1%3A21-27&version=NIV
it sure doesn’t sound like this guy is putting others first...
it seems to be all about him, and that is not very scout like.
accept his role as being on the committee and not one to go camping with young men.
It’s because they’re an immune compromised population. Drug addicts and people with chronic diseases are the other two large populations of immune compromised people.
Gay males may not like the idea of people automatically seeing them as child molesters, but when you openly proclaim that you get sexually turned on by other men, and that this is an central part of your identity, then you should not be irked that people don’t want you to have access to vulnerable and impressionable boys.
It isn’t any different than a straight guy wanting to lead a Girl Scout troop.
Where does it say they approved him for committee membership?
If an organization clearly won’t have you as a member, what makes one think that suing to force them to accept you will make them your friends?
I could never understand that logic. Oh, that’s because there is none.
“I want to be Scoutmaster, not some lower level assistant scoutmaster.”
That’s not a position you sue to get. Often it takes years and requires the assent of others.
When I was with BSA, I had the opportunity to start a new troop, that’s when I became Scoutmaster.
A few years later, BSA chose a path our charter organization and troop could not accept so we left. I’m now a Troopmaster with Trail Life USA.
How long before GayBoy Gates and his butt-buddies decide to make another little change?
Prayers for Archbishop Kurtz.
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