This LDS press release on scouting makes me feel sick

[MikeWaters]

http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/articl...outing-program

It's complete amateur hour in the church newsroom. This is just embarrassing and bordering on dishonest in implying that the BSA has suddenly moved in a shocking direction that surprised LDS leaders.

I literally feel sick.

This is what it must have felt like in the 1960s and 1970s to hear the church justify it's exclusionary policy towards blacks.

[MikeWaters]

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is deeply troubled by today’s vote by the Boy Scouts of America National Executive Board. In spite of a request to delay the vote, it was scheduled at a time in July when members of the Church’s governing councils are out of their offices and do not meet.

The meeting and vote were over the phone. This press release makes it seem like LDS leaders did not have the opportunity to vote. All they had to do was make a phone call from their place of vacation. Deceptive.

When the leadership of the Church resumes its regular schedule of meetings in August, the century-long association with Scouting will need to be examined.

"Need" to be examined. It's either going to be examined or not. Who wrote this? Someone that believes it needs to be examined. Not someone who apparently has the power to say that it WILL be examined.

The Church has always welcomed all boys to its Scouting units regardless of sexual orientation.

I wonder about this. The LDS church has historically not been super gay friendly. I don't recall ever hearing any gay-tolerant official voices, until that practically defunct website was put up. The idea that LDS scouting troops were refuges for gay boys....on the other hand, I don't think there were many if any witch hunts for gay boys. Or that Bishops sought to kick out boys who admitted they had same sex attraction. So I guess I'll give the writer a pass on this.

However, the admission of openly gay leaders is inconsistent with the doctrines of the Church and what have traditionally been the values of the Boy Scouts of America.

Why say "openly gay"? Why not just "gay"? As in "gay leaders." So is the church fine with gay leaders who are not open about it? I thought the church was fine with gay folks being in good standing in the church as long as they did not break the law of chastity. So this statement isn't even true. I think what they wanted to write was "the gay lifestyle" which is code for "gay sex". But that would have been in-artful, so this was the proxy statement. "Openly gay." Unbelievable.

As a global organization with members in 170 countries, the Church has long been evaluating the limitations that fully one-half of its youth face where Scouting is not available. Those worldwide needs combined with this vote by the BSA National Executive Board will be carefully reviewed by the leaders of the Church in the weeks ahead

What about all the female members whom the church doesn't support joining any kind of scouting (Venturing)? There's half right there.

The idea of abandoning scouting over the gay issue is just ridiculous in my view. There may be many good reasons to get rid of scouting. This is not one of them. The only reason would be to signal to the world "we still are in political battle with people that support gay right and we are not giving up." This would be sacrificing our boys over a political fight.

Now there may be good reasons to quit scouting. For example, the crappy way that scouting is usually done in the church. The fact that it's a game that is increasingly anachronistic in this world. Do we really need to spend out time camping and doing orienteering? It's great fun for some, but it's not great for everyone.

I think the reservation is that there is no program the church can put on that will have the tradition, excitement, and built-in safety that scouting has. We are already the most dangerous folks in scouting. Now take scouting rules and oversight out of the picture and we will really be unsafe.

The thing I don't understand is why tip your hand now with this "indecision" press release. This just weakens scouting in the church, and emboldens those that hate scouting in the church and those that are political conservatives and oppose gay rights.

"Oh btw, we decided to stay in scouting." THEN WHAT WAS THE PURPOSE OF THIS POORLY-WRITTEN PRESS RELEASE????

I keeping thing back to the former CG poster "Sleeping in EQ". How he ripped on me, accusing me of dishonesty when I criticized a prior half-baked press release from the church that opposed gay marriage. Like it was a written by a college freshman.

Such wisdom from our former CG elders. Such foresightedness. Such willingness to be the tip of the spear for those opposed to gay rights.

Ironically, I'm not some huge advocate for gay rights. I'm not beating the drum. I just couldn't and still can't get on the anti-gay bandwagon. There's no future in being the anti-gay church. And this is not about bowing to society and anti-religious forces. OUR OWN RELIGION CANNOT EXPLAIN WHY PEOPLE ARE GAY OR WHAT IT MEANS. We have no doctrine of gayness. And we don't know what to do with gay people that don't choose to be celibate. So families get split. When one branch goes, other branches tend to follow.

I could say more, but I'm just too disheartened right now.

[MikeWaters]

I was just given a lifetime ban from the "gay" category on Cougarboard.

The mullahs (Jefe) continue their program of censorship.

[MikeWaters]

The sad thing here is that I feel myself starting to not care.

The old me would have been apoplectic. Now it's like "just do what you want. I don't care."

Scouting come, scouting go, who cares. Gay rights battles? Whatever, do what you want. I've got other concerns. I have no stake here. My voice is not included, not wanted.

[MikeWaters]

The Catholic statement.

http://www.nccs-bsa.org/pdf/letters/...ent-150727.pdf

[MikeWaters]

BCC weighs in. Reflecting a lot of what I feel.

http://bycommonconsent.com/2015/07/2...they-get-back/

[MikeWaters]

The church supported the legislation in Utah which prohibited employment discrimination on the basis of sexuality. Yet, they oppose the BSA from adopting that very same policy.

Some rules for them, other rules for us.

[MikeWaters]

The new stupid of the day I saw online: three people asking how a person can be in scouting and still answer yes to this temple recommend question--

"Do you affiliate with any group or individual whose teachings or practices are contrary to or oppose those accepted by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or do you sympathize with the precepts of any such group or individual?"

This is how far we have come. Congratulations.

[MikeWaters]

http://www.thedailybeast.com/article...on-church.html

A 2007 pamphlet for gay Mormons (PDF) includes the following assurance: “President Gordon B. Hinckley has promised that those with same-gender attraction who do not express these inclinations may ‘go forward as do all other members of the Church.’ If you live by the standards God has set and fill your days with worthwhile things, your life will be full of hope and you may expect opportunities for meaningful service, social inclusion, and spiritual growth in this life.”

When asked by The Daily Beast how a celibate gay man serving as a scoutmaster would necessarily be “inconsistent with the doctrines of the Church” given this policy, the Mormon Church did not immediately respond to request for comment.

I'll be very curious to hear what the answer to this question is.

Because there are two answers: the official answer is that it is theoretically possible (in contradiction to the press release). The true answer is that our current leadership would never let it happen.

A unicorn is more likely to become a scoutmaster than an "openly gay" man in this church.

[Archaea]

Originally Posted by MikeWaters

I was just given a lifetime ban from the "gay" category on Cougarboard.

The mullahs (Jefe) continue their program of censorship.

The Church's response makes it worse, not better. Does the Church believe gay scout leaders are going to be coming out of the woodworks? There would still be Church sponsored troops.

Sometimes it seems as if nobody is thinking it through.WTF?!?