Articles About Scouting

Greensboro News & Record

Gays and Scripture: What Bible really says

I am dismayed by recent letters to the editor whose writers hold the view that the Bible justifies the ban on all homosexuals in the Boy Scouts.

The Bible was not originally written in King James English, or in any other form of English. Over the centuries, as additional manuscripts have been discovered, such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, translators have sometimes found it necessary to revise prior translations to achieve greater accuracy.

Although a number of New Testament passages condemn same-sex relations in specific contexts, the term "homosexuality" was not coined until many centuries after the books of the Bible were written.

When we see the word "homosexual" in an English-language Bible, we have to remember that the original Hebrew or Greek word was a different word, subject to interpretative translation centuries later.

The people of Corinth described by Paul in the New Testament were indeed very evil, but we know that prostitution and idolatry often accompanied both homosexual and heterosexual practices of the religious cults of that day who were not followers of Jesus or the God of Abraham.

I believe that the God of Abraham and Jesus still acts in history today, and he admonishes us to "love thy neighbor as thyself."

Both homosexual and heterosexual relationships can be immoral and destructive. Both homosexual and heterosexual relationships can be authentic, faithful and loving.

Linda Stroupe, Greensboro

Letter To the Editor, Greensboro News & Record, Nov x, 2000 by Bob Conn

The Rev. Mark H. Creech, executive director of the Christian Action League of North Carolina, is ignoring the growing body of scientific evidence that being gay is not a choice but an orientation established at birth. According to a press release from the American Psychiatric Association, issued just last week, "A new study of twin and non-twin sibling pairs reinforces the theory that sexual orientation is significantly influenced by one's genes. The study is the only one known to have used a large national probability sample.

"The study involved a final sample of 1,588 identical and fraternal twins (794 pairs), and 1,380 non-twin siblings. The subjects' sexuality was assessed as either heterosexual, or non-heterosexual (homosexual and bisexual combined). Concordance for sexual orientation was greater in the identical twins (32%) than in the fraternal twins (8%). Further analysis indicated that genetic factors more strongly influence sexual orientation than does familial environment; however, the authors note that family environment may also play a role. The results are published in the November 2000 American Journal of Psychiatry."

Identical twins result from the dividing of a single egg in the womb, and are genetically identical. Fraternal twins develop from two different eggs.

As the evidence piles up that sexual orientation is inherited, then only one logical conclusion remains from a religious perspective: the Lord God Almighty intended it that way. And if that is the case, then we must re-examine the divinely inspired words of the Bible to see if we have been misinterpreting them. The original Hebrew of the Old Testament had no vowels, and multiple translations are possible for many passages. Perhaps we've been misreading the Bible all along.

If that is the case, it is easy to see that the policy of the Boy Scouts is overtly discriminatory.

Robert Conn Winston-Salem

In targeting Scouts, gays have gone too far

11-19-00

THE REV. MARK H. CREECH

Greensboro News & Record

Recently, the Chapel Hill Town Council passed a resolution calling on the Triangle United Way to withhold money from organizations that discriminate based on "sexual orientation." The Triangle United Way decided to continue giving money to the Boy Scouts but has expressed its desire that the Scouts reconsider their ban on homosexual Scout leaders. And in an Oct. 26 meeting, the Orange County United Way Board of Trustees voted to recommend to the Triangle United Way Board that nondiscrimination based on sexual orientation be the minimum standard for deciding who receives funding. The Triangle United Way is responsible for determining the criteria or standards recipients must meet to receive funds from Durham, Orange and Wake county United Way chapters.

This battle in the Triangle is just one front in a nationwide campaign homosexual activists are waging to punish the Scouts in the wake of the Supreme Court's late June ruling that the Scouts are a private organization with the right to set their own membership standards. In other words, the government cannot force the Scouts to open their doors to homosexuals or anyone else who does not adhere to their values.

Despite the widespread attack on the Scouts, public opinion is very much in favor of this pro-family and quintessentially American organization. A June Gallup Poll found that 64 percent of Americans think the Scouts should not be required to accept openly homosexual leaders. And the U.S. House of Representatives voted 362-12 to keep the Scouts' federal charter, granted in 1916. For most Americans, it seems, the Boy Scouts have done too much good to be punished in a political vendetta spearheaded by homosexual activists.

Unfortunately, the outpouring of public support in favor of the Scouts has not stopped numerous organizations, businesses and government agencies from adding sexual orientation to their nondiscrimination policies or passing resolutions against the Boy Scouts. The effort is all designed to shut off the flow of public and private dollars. Moreover, homosexual activists know that if they can break down the barrier standing between them and this private organization, then other private groups -- such as churches -- won't be far behind.

By picking a fight with the Boy Scouts, however, homosexual activists have gone too far. It's likely their targeting of the Scouts will create a backlash of enormous opposition. The legitimization of the homosexual lifestyle is one of the most serious issues facing us today, yet many people have remained ignorant and/or apathetic about it. This is in spite of the fact that the media have repeatedly reported on same-sex unions, health insurance benefits for same-sex partners and hate crimes legislation and nondiscrimination policies.

But attacks against the Scouts are now making people aware of the homosexual agenda, and, in so doing, their mask is slipping. "Live and let live," it turns out, is not what they really seek. "Tolerance" is just a rest stop on the road to the gay lobby's final destination: the imposition of homosexual immorality on all of society and the silencing of all opposition.

Will the Scouts survive? Nonprofit groups such as the Boy Scouts cannot operate without financial contributions. This method of attacking their pocketbook could prove detrimental if pro-family citizens don't step up to the plate and fill the gap.

My friends, the Boy Scouts shouldn't be punished, they should be applauded. It's time for pro-family citizens to stand bravely with those who stand up to the homosexual agenda. Here are a few things that you can do to help the Boy Scouts:

1. Stop giving to those who have ended their funding of the Scouts.

2. Stop doing business with organizations that have cut their ties to the Scouts, and let them know why you are doing so.

3. Consider making direct contributions to the Boy Scouts of America, instead of going through organizations that may have nondiscrimination policies in place.

4. Encourage churches and other pro-family groups to step in and help raise money for the Scouts and others who are battling the homosexual agenda.

The homosexual threat, once unobserved and nearly imperceptible, is now evident in this attack on the Boy Scouts. Gay leaders will settle for nothing less than our silence. While we still can, we must speak God's word: the hard truth that homosexuality is still sin and the wonderful news that God offers forgiveness, cleansing and deliverance through the shed blood of his son, Jesus Christ.

(An insert box in the article titled BOY SCOUTS IN THE TRIAD, reads 

"Triad boy Scouts have not been under as much attack as in other places.  United Way funding has not been pulled, and a recent school recruiting drive was successful, said Bill Brackett, Scout executive for the Old North State Council, which oversees eight counties, including Guilford.)

The Rev. Mark H. Creech is executive director of the Christian Action League of North Carolina, which is based in Raleigh.

James Dale, the Supreme Court and fond memories of Troop 148

7-30-00

By ALLEN H. JOHNSON

News & Record I

Its creases sharp, its colors still rich and vivid, the shirt looks almost new.

On crisp, forest-green cotton fabric, several bright patches lend an official, almost military bearing. In bold white letters against a red background, one patch proudly proclaims "Troop 148." On the right sleeve is a small American flag and an insignia denoting the "General Greene Council, North Carolina." Six gold stars frame a silhouette of Nathanael Greene on horseback. And on the left breast pocket is the most important patch of all, a round, red-and-silver one emblazoned with an eagle.

John Faulkner was an Eagle Scout 23 years ago, a proud, skinny kid with soft features and brown, David Cassidy-style hair that touched the nape of his neck. Fleetwood Mac was singing about "Rumours" in those days and disco hadn’t yet become a four-letter word.

Posing for a snapshot in the summer of 1977, Faulkner wore that same green shirt, a pair of straight-legged khaki trousers and a sash loaded with merit badges -- 24 of them to be exact. He was the best and brightest among the Boy Scouts. On Aug. 8, 1977, Faulkner officially became an Eagle Scout. He was on top on his young world that day. He also was gay.

Today, Faulkner, 40, is an investment portfolio manager. The once-thick brown hair is now close-cropped and thinning, but Faulkner is still earning merit badges of a sort. Since graduating first in his class from Greensboro Day School, he has received an undergraduate degree from Wake Forest and an MBA from UNCG. He has coached high school track and volunteers with youth and summer mission programs at West Market Street United Methodist Church.

There have been many ways for him to measure his personal and professional success. But he’s always held on to that scout shirt and keeps it hanging in a closet as if he might wear it tomorrow. "I held on to it because it is a part of my history," he says. "I wouldn’t want to throw it away. It represents a lot of what I did and who I was."

He remembers his Eagle project, an outdoor chapel in the woods behind Christ United Methodist Church on Holden Road. He and fellow scouts built pews and a lectern out of thick, hand-hewn wooden beams. They fashioned a cross by lashing together two dogwood limbs that they attached to an oak tree.

Part of scouting’s appeal, Faulkner says, was activities like that Eagle project. Even derisive banter among fellow scouts who had no idea at the time that he was gay fail to blemish the memories. It was tough-guy talk, he says, the kind of things you say or do to impress other boys, like sneaking a puff on a cigarette or cussing. "It was typical among kids in church and kids in school and kids in the scouts," he says, matter-of-factly.

So Faulkner holds fast to that shirt and a green scrapbook stuffed with color snapshots and scouting mementos. He pulls it out every now and again and flips the pages. He pulled it out the day the Supreme Court upheld the Boy Scouts of America’s right to restrict gays as leaders and members. The high court ruled 6-3 on June 29 that the scouts, a private organization, could say no to gays—that they had the right of "expressive association."

The case involved James Dale, 29, an assistant scoutmaster and former Eagle Scout who was ousted from scouting nine years ago when the organization discovered that he was gay. Coincidentally, that same year, Faulkner decided, at age 31, to come to terms with his homosexuality. Up until that point he had just been plain scared. "I was frightened at the prospect of being a reject," he says, his thoughts shared in halting, staccato bursts. "I felt relieved ... but I was also fearful because I didn’t know ... I had to assimilate into the realities that go with recognizing the truth of my identity."

As for the Supreme Court decision, Faulkner says he was angry. "I was angry with the Boy Scouts of America. I was not angry with the Supreme Court. Their policy to ban gay men from participating denies the truth that many men who happen to be gay have made significant, wholesome contributions to the growth and development of young boys in scouting." Faulkner notes that, by all accounts, Dale had been an exemplary leader. Why punish him for who he was, not what he did?

"My greatest concern is that youth who are questioning their sexual identity will be shamed into feeling inferior to their peers and into a critically wounded sense of self-worth," Faulkner says.

Bill Brackett, scout executive for the Old North State Council, which oversees scouting programs in eight area counties, says the scouts’ policy bans "avowed gays"—a similar stance to the don’t-ask, don’t-tell approach of the military. "We really try to teach kids to be tolerant of others," he says. The policy is not intended to exclude gays, Brackett says. "We just don’t want to be a platform for that message."

All this, of course, doesn’t mean you can’t be gay and a Boy Scout; you just can’t say you are. You must "pass" as straight.

So, what would Faulkner’s old scouting buddies think of him today? "I would hope that they’d say that they remember those days as a time when we had a lot of fun and that I was a good leader in the troop," he says. "And I would hope they would say there are a lot of good memories for them of those days in Troop 148.

"There sure are for me.”