Mormon Church To Cut Ties With Boy Scouts

SALT LAKE CITY, UT -- Scouting BSA and the Mormon church announced they were parting ways Tuesday, ending a more-than century-old partnership. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints published a joint statement saying the religious organization will end ties with the former Boy Scouts of America starting December 31, 2019.

More than 300,000 LDS youth are enrolled in scouts, and the Mormon church is one of the largest sponsors of local troops. The statement said that the church will start its own youth leadership and development organization that will focus on the global characteristics of the Mormon church.

The church "continues to support the goals and values reflected in the Scout Oath and Scout Law and expresses its profound desire for Scouting’s continuing and growing success in the years ahead," the statement said.

The rift has been brewing for years, beginning when the BSA leadership agreed to end the ban on gay scout leaders in 2015.

Boy Scouts of America voted to allow girls to join the scouting organization this year, and officially changed its name to Scouting BSA May 2, with the announcement of a new co-ed program called "Scout Me In."

"As we enter a new era for our organization, it is important that all youth can see themselves in Scouting in every way possible," said Michael Surbaugh, chief scout executive of the organization.

More than 3,000 girls have already enrolled in the BSA's Early Adopter Program and are participating in Cub Scouts, the organization said.

The organization says they support "nearly 2.3 million youth members between the ages of 7 and 21 and approximately 960,000 volunteers in local councils throughout the United States and its territories."

Joint Statement LDS church and Boy Scouts of America by JeanLotus on Scribd

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