Dear Friends:
As you know, the UUA has been involved in discussions with the Boy Scouts
of America regarding the status of our Religion in Life award. In May, 1998,
the BSA informed us that, due to certain language in the Religion in Life
manual, we could not award the Religion in Life emblem to our scouts. We strongly
protested this decision. It pleases me to tell you that this conflict has
been resolved: the UUA has revised its Religion in Life manual to the satisfaction
of the BSA without abandoning the UU values at its core. I want to share with
you a portion of the letter dated April 23 which I received from Thomas Deimler,
Director of the Relationships Division of the Boy Scouts of America. The letter
reads, in part:
"Many thanks for your early response to matters concerning the revision
of the Religion in Life booklet. . . I am very happy to report that the
committee has unanimously expressed their endorsement of this new material.
They are most complimentary of the willingness of you and your staff to
work closely with us in this endeavor. Thus the Boy Scouts of America now
reauthorizes the awarding of the Religion in Life emblem [by the UUA] to
Scouts and the wearing of that emblem on a Scout uniform. . . . . Best wishes
to you."
The UUA will now begin discussions with the Boy Scouts about possible service
on the BSA Religious Relationships Committee. We would like to do this for
three reasons.
First, many of the values of scouting are congruent with our UU principles.
I myself became a Life Scout, and other UU ministers are Eagle Scouts. Scouting
has played a significant role in the lives of many young UUs, no small number
of whom are members of scout troops sponsored by their own UU congregations.
Second, the BSA bylaws contain a statement about the nature of God which
many good people in many traditions would find impossible to accept. The BSA
is already being challenged on issues of religious discrimination. The American
Civil Liberties Union has sued the public schools of Chicago, for example,
over sponsoring Scout units which require a particular form of religious belief.
If the BSA is going to adapt successfully to the religious pluralism of the
21st century, they will need counsel from groups like the UUA -- not just
from religious conservatives.
Third, we believe that the BSA can and should adopt new policies with regard
to volunteers, to membership and to homophobia. Along with many UUs involved
in Scouting, it is our position that local parents, Scout Councils, and troop
sponsors should assume a great role in volunteer and membership issues. Discrimination
on the basis of sexual orientation should not be allowed to continue as a
national policy of the BSA. It will ruin the organization, costing them the
support of millions of people, of foundations, and of the United Way in many
areas.
Congregations and denominations that oppose homosexuality may have some right
to influence the selection of leaders in troops which serve their own youth,
but they should not prevent congregations and denominations like the UUA and
the United Church of Christ (UCC) from conducting themselves in a way that
represents our own religious values. For us, this will include an emphasis
on comprehensive sexuality education and efforts to reduce homophobia.
The new edition of Religion in Life will be available from the UUA Bookstore
this summer. Along with each copy, the Association will separately provide
a letter from me, along with resources appropriate to dealing with issues
of homophobia and religious discrimination.
It is still not clear to me that the BSA can be redirected from patterns
that in the long run will be institutionally self-destructive. I am very pleased,
however, that we have been able to resolve any implication that they wish
to practice an added discrimination toward Unitarian Universalists simply
because we support the belief that it is not homosexuality but homophobia
which is a sin.
Yours faithfully,
John A. Buehrens
