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[quote=Anonymous]I am Scoutmaster of a Troop in the District and was one of those who was in the room when the vote was taken to re-establish the BSA as a welcoming organization.  It has now been 5 years since that vote and we are a much better organization for it.  We lost many broad-minded members when the ill advised “don’t ask don’t tell” policy (no openly professed gays, lesbians, Trans, etc.) was adopted by previous national leaders in the early 90s.  We then lost many conservatives when we ended the policy.  It was a regrettable episode for the BSA – but I hope people reading this consider the organization as it is today and not 5 years ago.  I have personally only recently begun to get over bad feelings for the people who caused adoption of those policies.  They had no right to disadvantage so many people and in the process make the BSA into a cultural punching bag.

Religion in any Troop I have ever been exposed to (including my own church-sponsored organization) is a matter between the Scout and the family.  The BSA policy is essentially that a child should believe in “something”, but the BSA is not a religious institution and embraces no religious dogma.  “Something” can mean “anything”, including a child who does not know what or whether to believe.  If a parent is a committed atheism advocate, my response will probably not satisfy them – but 40 families in our group believe the policy is acceptable.  Most other “scout-like” organizations are part of church religious education departments and profession of specific beliefs.  For instance, “Trail Life” requires its leaders to confirm in writing belief in a triune Christian God and other related beliefs and behavioral standards.  The BSA is as low-key on religion as you are going to find anywhere.

The BSA is now going through a reorganization bankruptcy because like most elements of society, it did not do a sufficient job of preventing child abuse in the early 80s and before.  Significant payments will be made to thousands of claimants in the process.  However, since the 80s the BSA has enforced very strict youth protection background checks and activity policies that have become the “gold standard” for youth protection.  This bankruptcy, combined with COVID, is going to shrink the size of the BSA for a few years.  However, the organization will come back as strong as ever.
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