In reply to Jen.

This is more than an emotional attachment.

And maybe I'm incorrect in thinking that the LCMS has Boy Scout organizations that meet in their churches and has charter troops. I am not a legal expert, so I don't know the actual relationship that our church body has with the Boy Scouts of America.

On a practical level, I do know that, through chaplains and troops, churches, including Lutheran Church Missouri Synod churches, are able to reach young men and women, and have positive influences in an arena beyond typical church ministry. There are individuals who have chosen to dedicate time to make positive and godly impacts on the scouts as well as the leaders with whom they work. It is not all we do, but just one of our ways of participating in the community. It is one of the ways that we have stood for Christ, in a world where many don't have positive encounters with Christians.

What other organizations do we need to speak against, companies, political parties, civic organizations, governmental bodies so that we can declare our righteousness? We should just live at church and worship; all else has an element of sin attached.

I don't agree with the decision passed by the executive board of the BSA, and I know better than to think it will go away. I love my friends who have begun Trail Life groups and participate in American Heritage Girls, but I agree with my husband, who serves as a scout leader, in staying involved in our boys' troop, because, there is a need for people to continue working with these boys...not always saints...but always in need of good leaders to stand up for them. There is a need at the local level for leaders who don't just talk about serving others and living moral lives. This need hasn't changed by a policy change. Isn't it even more important then, that those who have a strong center in the truth, stay and stand for it?

My original comments were meant to bring awareness that there are individuals (and I know there are more than just my family) who are engaged in this issue on a very real level; who are not just looking at it from a philosophical or theological viewpoint. For those involved in more than just policy, I continue to humbly ask for prayer.

Sincerely,
L. Warrick