EagerLeader

Kittle, My sons don't know because they have never asked, and I feel that a person's faith or lack of it is a personal choice. Going to church is something their friends do, and they don't, and they have never asked why. We attended Scout Sunday, and my Webelos asked me only "is all religion like that?" I told him I didn't know, and he dropped the subject. There are other things they don't know about me either, like that I have a tattoo. It's just not relevant to daily life in our house.

OldGreyEagle, I'm not trying to "set anyone up", and I apologise if it appeared that way. Scoutndad posted a thread about an agnostic parent he was having a problem with, and posed the question about others in Scouting who may be in the same religious situation. I only expressed my opinion, being one of those "religiously challenged" people. I am now sorry I did. Maybe this is why the military has a "don't ask, don't tell" policy regarding homosexuality. No one in my Pack is going to find out about my lack of faith, and whatever decision I make will be my own and not the result of my

Uncleguinea, "However, you can not, by definition fulfill an obligation to God because you don't believe in Him and therefore can not teach others to do so." Where does it say that the DL needs to teach others about God? Cub Scouts is a family-oriented organization, and most rank requirements need to be worked on at home. The religion requirements should be completed in the home, with the parent and the religious leader. To try and teach religion in a Den meeting would be nearly impossible, as there are bound to be boys of differing faiths in the group. It isn't a requirement to

Are you all also going to tell me that, since I don't believe in God, that I can't live in the USA because I can't recite the Pledge of Allegiance without being a hypocrite? That I shouldn't be allowed to handle US currency because it all has "In God We Trust" printed on it? So now I know that BSA has a religious requirement for their adult volunteers. And yes, BSA is a private organization and as such can require anything they want of their members, however ambiguous the requirement may seem. Apparently I have a decision to make, and unfortunately the Pack just rechartered with my name a

CubsRgr8, No, I don't wink at them when I recite the Pledge and Promise. No, I don't skip the phrase "to God". And no, I'm not teaching anybody to be dishonest with themselves. No one in my den, including MY OWN SON, knows that I do not believe in God or any other related ideal. How can you accuse me of being deliberately deceptive???? I don't try to discuss religion with anyone, and when the topic comes up I either don't participate in the conversation or gently change the subject. As I said before, I was unaware of the religious requirement to be a leader. I only learned of it

In our Pack there are two Wolf Dens, of which I am the leader for one. Three of the five active members of my den (two dropped out) are earning their Wolf at the April Pack Meeting. One is only two partial achievements away from finishing. And one, well, he won't get it. We started meeting with the other Wolf den about 8 weeks ago. These boys aren't even CLOSE to finishing! I was asked by a boy from the other den, as I was handing out Instant Recognition beads, "will I be getting my Wolf badge too?" and I had to tell him "no, not this time". He nearly broke down! His den hadn't had a meet

Scoutndad, This entire topic hasn't been an issue for me until I read your thread about the Agnostic Parent. Now I am questioning whether I am a fit human being, capable of teaching second-graders how to recycle. I am not a bad person! I'm not a homosexual, or a pervert, or anything else BSA declares is not "morally straight", I just don't happen to believe in a "higher power that grants favors". The whole issue of the Declaration of Religious Principle was not explained to me, and I honestly do not recall seeing it on the Adult Application I signed. There was also no mention of it at all

I had religious training as a child, in a Congregationalist church. After I completed Sunday School and was old enough to attend church with the adults, my parents asked me if I wanted to go to church. My reply was, and still is, "no, this is all a big fairy tale". I hope I don't offend anyone by saying this, this is how I feel. I have asked both my boys if they want to explore religion, and they have both said no. Should I force them to? No. I don't remember Girl Scouting having such a strong religion component to it, and I was a Girl Scout for 9 years. I truly think Cub Scouts is a terr

Good afternoon to all! I followed this Agnostic Parent thread with great interest, both as a Wolf DL and parent. My older son is a Webelos I, and I have had a difficult time myself with the religion thing. We do not practice religion in our family, and while I was aware of the religious aspect of Scouting I have to plead ignorance on the Declaration of Religious Principle. My son will not be moving into Boy Scouting next year because of the religion requirements, and that's not at our insistence, it was his choice. He feels that being forced to practice religion and pledge faith to a