A Roman Catholic committee has urged Catholic churches to keep sponsoring troops despite the Scouts’ decision to permit openly gay leaders.
A Roman Catholic committee that acts as a liaison with the Boy Scouts of America has urged Catholic churches to continue sponsoring Scout troops despite the Scouts’ decision Monday to permit openly gay leaders.
While the group, the National Catholic Committee on Scouting, does not speak officially for the church, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops “defers to them” on issues concerning the Boy Scouts, said Don Clemmer, a spokesman for the influential bishops conference.
The committee’s stance, in a statement issued late Monday, suggests that wholesale defections from the Boy Scouts by religious sponsors are not likely any time soon, despite the markedly more negative response from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which said it would consider severing ties.