No Fags
2015-07-29 07:29:42 UTC
Closely linked since 1913, the Boy Scouts of America royally
pissed off the LDS Church this week. The reason? Allowing gay
troop leaders.
The relationship between the exclusively male leadership of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the
predominantly male leadership of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA)
has been one of the Americas longest bromances. Now, that
relationship has entered a rough patch from which it might not
recover.
The potentially irreconcilable difference? Gay male leadership.
On Monday, the National Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of
America (BSA) ratified a resolution ending the organizations
blanket ban on openly gay adult leaders and employees, following
the National Executive Committee's July recommendation to that
effect. Chartered organizations, however, can continue to use
religious beliefs as criteria for selecting adult leaders,
including matters of sexuality, according to a BSA statement on
the resolution.
This change allows Scoutings members and parents to select
local units, chartered to organizations with similar beliefs,
that best meet the needs of their families, said the BSA.
As the decision came down, all eyes naturally turned to the
Mormons. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,
commonly known as the Mormon or LDS Church, has maintained a
close relationship with the BSA since 1913. A century later, the
church sponsored 17 percent of all youth in scouting, according
to the New York Times.
But the Mormon Churchs stubbornness on issues of sexual
orientation could be stronger than their love for the BSA. After
going all in for Californias Proposition 8 in 2008, the church
has remained morally opposed to same-sex marriage and campaigned
for religious freedom protections in the face of anti-
discrimination ordinances.
The church is now decidedly discontent with the BSAs decision
to leave the matter of gay leadership to the local level. On
Monday, the church released a scathing statement, saying that
they were deeply troubled by the BSAs decision. The church
even criticized the timing of the boards vote, which they said
took place at a time when top Mormon leadership is out of the
office. The statement continued:
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. The Church has always
welcomed all boys to its Scouting units regardless of sexual
orientation. 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.
It is perhaps the most definitive sign that the Mormon Church
and the BSA could part ways since the latter began to reexamine
its policies on homosexuality a few years ago.
But the Mormon Churchs cited justification for potentially
leaving the BSA behindthat the admission of openly gay leaders
is inconsistent with the doctrines of the Churchis also a
puzzling one. Not only would a chartered organization like the
Mormon Church maintain control over leadership under the new BSA
policy, the churchs own internal policy toward adult gay men
actually allows them to serve in religious leadership roles,
albeit with a disclaimer.
Current Mormon policy on men who experience same-gender
attractionchurch leaders intentionally avoid language like
gay menallows them to hold the priesthood and serve in
leadership roles provided that they remain celibate and abide by
other moral standards. This marks a shift from pre-1990 policies
under which lesbian, gay, and bisexual Mormons could be
excommunicated based on their identity rather than their
behavior.
If the Mormon Church sounds like someone going through a
breakup, thats because the BSA and the Mormon Church have
basically been in bed with one another up to this point.
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.
The Mormon Churchs threat to leave the BSA behind also comes as
a shock given the religions prior handling of BSA policy shifts
on this issue.
When the BSA moved in 2013 to allow gay youth to openly
participate in the organization, the Mormon Church approached
the matter cautiously, saying in a statement that [s]exual
orientation has not previously beenand is not nowa
disqualifying factor for boys who want to join Latter-day Saint
Scout troops, provided that gay scouts, like straight scouts,
abstain from sexual relationships in accordance with church
doctrine.
In those more courteous times, the church emphasized the
strong, rewarding relationship they had with the BSA. But as
soon as the policy on adult gay leaders entered the
conversation, the Mormon Churchs official language grew cold,
ominously promising in May of this year to assess how [any
changes] might impact our own century-long association with the
BSA.
In Mormon dating culture, this is called doing a DTR: defining
the relationship. And if the Mormon Church sounds like someone
going through a breakup, thats because the BSA and the Mormon
Church have basically been in bed with one another up to this
point.
According to an article in the church magazine Ensign, the
Mormon Church was the first nationally chartered organization
to affiliate with the [BSA]. In addition to currently
sponsoring a large percentage of scout troops, the churchs
programs for young men are now built around the scouting
program. Furthermore, earlier this year, Mormon apostle Jeffrey
R. Holland was elected to the BSA National Executive Board. He
voted against the policy change.
In the past, the church has attempted to wield the scale of
their involvement in the BSA to influence judicial perspectives
on its leadership policy. In the year 2000, the Mormon Church
filed a brief (PDF) with other churches in the Supreme Court
case Boy Scouts of America v. Dale, which upheld 5-4 the BSAs
right to exclude gay leadership.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saintsthe largest
single sponsor of Scouting units in the United Stateswould
withdraw from Scouting if it were compelled to accept openly
homosexual scout leaders, the brief read.
Only those who live in harmony with the teachings of the Church
and Scouting are asked to serve as scout leaders, it added.
Fifteen years later, the BSA has decided to accept gay leaders
without the pressure of a Supreme Court rulingbut perhaps with
the help of some substantial legal threatsand the Mormon Church
may finally make good on its threat, with some in the media
speculating that the church could create a new international
organization to replace scouting.
So, after a century of mutual love, its come to this: one male-
dominated group wrestling another male-dominated group over the
issue of men who sleep with other men. Its too soon to say who
will come out on top but love has already been lost. As we know
it, the warm history of Mormon involvement in scouting is over.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/07/28/boy-scouts-
break-up-with-mormon-church.html
pissed off the LDS Church this week. The reason? Allowing gay
troop leaders.
The relationship between the exclusively male leadership of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the
predominantly male leadership of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA)
has been one of the Americas longest bromances. Now, that
relationship has entered a rough patch from which it might not
recover.
The potentially irreconcilable difference? Gay male leadership.
On Monday, the National Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of
America (BSA) ratified a resolution ending the organizations
blanket ban on openly gay adult leaders and employees, following
the National Executive Committee's July recommendation to that
effect. Chartered organizations, however, can continue to use
religious beliefs as criteria for selecting adult leaders,
including matters of sexuality, according to a BSA statement on
the resolution.
This change allows Scoutings members and parents to select
local units, chartered to organizations with similar beliefs,
that best meet the needs of their families, said the BSA.
As the decision came down, all eyes naturally turned to the
Mormons. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,
commonly known as the Mormon or LDS Church, has maintained a
close relationship with the BSA since 1913. A century later, the
church sponsored 17 percent of all youth in scouting, according
to the New York Times.
But the Mormon Churchs stubbornness on issues of sexual
orientation could be stronger than their love for the BSA. After
going all in for Californias Proposition 8 in 2008, the church
has remained morally opposed to same-sex marriage and campaigned
for religious freedom protections in the face of anti-
discrimination ordinances.
The church is now decidedly discontent with the BSAs decision
to leave the matter of gay leadership to the local level. On
Monday, the church released a scathing statement, saying that
they were deeply troubled by the BSAs decision. The church
even criticized the timing of the boards vote, which they said
took place at a time when top Mormon leadership is out of the
office. The statement continued:
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. The Church has always
welcomed all boys to its Scouting units regardless of sexual
orientation. 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.
It is perhaps the most definitive sign that the Mormon Church
and the BSA could part ways since the latter began to reexamine
its policies on homosexuality a few years ago.
But the Mormon Churchs cited justification for potentially
leaving the BSA behindthat the admission of openly gay leaders
is inconsistent with the doctrines of the Churchis also a
puzzling one. Not only would a chartered organization like the
Mormon Church maintain control over leadership under the new BSA
policy, the churchs own internal policy toward adult gay men
actually allows them to serve in religious leadership roles,
albeit with a disclaimer.
Current Mormon policy on men who experience same-gender
attractionchurch leaders intentionally avoid language like
gay menallows them to hold the priesthood and serve in
leadership roles provided that they remain celibate and abide by
other moral standards. This marks a shift from pre-1990 policies
under which lesbian, gay, and bisexual Mormons could be
excommunicated based on their identity rather than their
behavior.
If the Mormon Church sounds like someone going through a
breakup, thats because the BSA and the Mormon Church have
basically been in bed with one another up to this point.
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.
The Mormon Churchs threat to leave the BSA behind also comes as
a shock given the religions prior handling of BSA policy shifts
on this issue.
When the BSA moved in 2013 to allow gay youth to openly
participate in the organization, the Mormon Church approached
the matter cautiously, saying in a statement that [s]exual
orientation has not previously beenand is not nowa
disqualifying factor for boys who want to join Latter-day Saint
Scout troops, provided that gay scouts, like straight scouts,
abstain from sexual relationships in accordance with church
doctrine.
In those more courteous times, the church emphasized the
strong, rewarding relationship they had with the BSA. But as
soon as the policy on adult gay leaders entered the
conversation, the Mormon Churchs official language grew cold,
ominously promising in May of this year to assess how [any
changes] might impact our own century-long association with the
BSA.
In Mormon dating culture, this is called doing a DTR: defining
the relationship. And if the Mormon Church sounds like someone
going through a breakup, thats because the BSA and the Mormon
Church have basically been in bed with one another up to this
point.
According to an article in the church magazine Ensign, the
Mormon Church was the first nationally chartered organization
to affiliate with the [BSA]. In addition to currently
sponsoring a large percentage of scout troops, the churchs
programs for young men are now built around the scouting
program. Furthermore, earlier this year, Mormon apostle Jeffrey
R. Holland was elected to the BSA National Executive Board. He
voted against the policy change.
In the past, the church has attempted to wield the scale of
their involvement in the BSA to influence judicial perspectives
on its leadership policy. In the year 2000, the Mormon Church
filed a brief (PDF) with other churches in the Supreme Court
case Boy Scouts of America v. Dale, which upheld 5-4 the BSAs
right to exclude gay leadership.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saintsthe largest
single sponsor of Scouting units in the United Stateswould
withdraw from Scouting if it were compelled to accept openly
homosexual scout leaders, the brief read.
Only those who live in harmony with the teachings of the Church
and Scouting are asked to serve as scout leaders, it added.
Fifteen years later, the BSA has decided to accept gay leaders
without the pressure of a Supreme Court rulingbut perhaps with
the help of some substantial legal threatsand the Mormon Church
may finally make good on its threat, with some in the media
speculating that the church could create a new international
organization to replace scouting.
So, after a century of mutual love, its come to this: one male-
dominated group wrestling another male-dominated group over the
issue of men who sleep with other men. Its too soon to say who
will come out on top but love has already been lost. As we know
it, the warm history of Mormon involvement in scouting is over.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/07/28/boy-scouts-
break-up-with-mormon-church.html