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SMS

wrote:
I haven't the stomach for
the religious freaks who want to use their faith/religion as a club;
never have.

The problem is that there are some of those freaks, almost always
adults, that will use the BSA "duty to god" clause to force religion
into the pack or troop. It never seemed to be a problem back before the
"Moral Majority" and other right-wing religious groups started appearing.

To become a WEBELOS cub scout you are _required_ to:

Either “[e]arn the religious emblem of your faith” or do two of the
following:

“Attend the church, synagogue, mosque, or other religious
organization of your choice, talk with your religious leader about your
beliefs, and tell your family and Webelos den leader about what you
learned.”;

“Tell how your religious beliefs fit in with the Scout Oath and
Scout Law, Discuss this with your family and Webelos den leader: What
character-building traits do your beliefs and the Scout Oath and Scout
Law have in common?”;

“With your religious leader, discuss and write down two things you
think will help you draw nearer to God. Do these things.”;

“Pray to God or meditate reverently each day as taught by your
family, and by your church, synagogue, or religious group. Do this for
at least one month.”;

“Under the direction of your religious leader, do an act of service
for someone else. Talk about your service with your family and Webelos
den leader. Tell them how it made you feel.”; or

“List at least two ways you believe you have lived according to your
religious beliefs.”

Most packs simply pay no attention to this requirement. Most scouts have
no "religious leader" at all, and couldn't even fulfill many of those
items (though only two are required). But a parent could demand that the
pack enforce the requirement. We has a pack master that tried to not
have anything to do with religion in the pack because he said that he
didn't want to offend anyone that was a non-believer. He was reminded by
some parents that non-believers were not allowed in scouts and that he
had to do the religion bit.

If a pack consisted only of boys from a particular church then it
wouldn't be a problem, but that doesn't seem to be the case very often
around my area. The units sponsored by the churches I know of are very
diverse. I expect that few non-Jews (and even many Jews) would join a
pack or troop sponsored by a conservative or orthodox synagogue, not
because of anti-antisemitism, but because there are no overnight trips
that can occur on Friday night to Saturday. I expect that Mormon
church-sponsored units consist only of Mormons, but I could be wrong.

I'd love to see scouting separated completely from religion, as is the
case in most other countries. I'd also like to see it become co-ed as is
the case in most other countries, and a little bit in BSA, with co-ed
Venture Crews (of which my daughter is a member). I remember when my son
was in Cub Scouts, and most day outings included families, and how my
daughter was upset that she couldn't go on the overnight outings. Girl
Scouts just didn't cut it, they were more into crafts and such things.
If she thought joining a Venture crew would help her meet boys she was
disappointed, as the crews around her are mostly girls.