Just
as I did in my previous Boy Scouts of America posting (5 June 2013), I’m
(again) quoting from a blog – Ponderings of
a Pilgrim Pastor – written by Jason A. Van Bemmel. This pastor of Faith PCA in Cheraw, SC says all teens need to be taught by their parents,
teachers, pastors and mentors that their sexual desires are not their identity,
nor do they need to be controlled by them. Who we are is so much greater than our
appetites, sexual or otherwise. And all
of us can learn, by God’s grace, to master and subdue our desires.
Let’s
think about reality: Boy Scout troops now have to welcome openly homosexual
scouts as members. This means that
openly homosexual scouts will be going on camping trips with other boys,
sleeping in the same tents, showering together, etc. How is this fundamentally different from
allowing a boy to go on a Girl Scout camping trip? Imagine the uproar if an overnight high school
field trip allowed boys and girls to sleep together in the same hotel room. Imagine the uproar if high schools started
allowing the boys and girls basketball teams to share the same locker room and
shower and dress together. Heads would
roll and rightly so. It would be insane.
So,
the Boy Scouts of America have decided to welcome openly homosexual scouts. What’s the big deal? Why would we want scouting to discriminate
against teenage boys based on their sexual orientation? This is no different than accepting racial
minorities or physically challenged children, right? At least, that’s the politically correct line
we’re all supposed to repeat.
The
problem is that reality is not quite so politically correct. Teenagers with hormones are teenagers with
hormones, homosexual or heterosexual.
Now
someone might object and say, “Just because the homosexual scout may be
sexually attracted to some of the other males in the troop doesn’t mean they’re
going to be attracted to him. So it is
different.” Maybe, as long as the scout
troop has only one homosexual member; but what about when it has two or three
or four? Would they be allowed to share
the same tent? Again, I’m not accusing
them of being any more sexually promiscuous than any other teen, but if we
wouldn’t think of allowing a heterosexual male and female scout to share a tent
on a camping trip, then why would we allow two homosexual males to share a
tent?
Then,
another question: What about all of the evangelical churches that charter
(sponsor) Boy Scout troops? Several
years ago, when the Boy Scouts stood by their decision to ban homosexual scout
leaders, many churches opened their doors to scout troops who were dislodged
from public spaces. Now what are those
churches to do? Can they continue, in
good conscience, to sponsor Boy Scout troops, sending off openly homosexual
scouts on overnight camping trips together?
Rev.
Bemmel offers his solution … mindful we don’t have any good options, given the
realities of our society. “We cannot
tell homosexual teens that they are ineligible for team sports or gym class. If they insist on being ‘open’ about their
sexuality, it creates problems for everyone, including them. Personally, I think all teens should be
sexually abstinent and should be encouraged to discuss their sexual desires and
struggles privately with their parents, pastor and perhaps a counselor. As teens struggle with desires they do not
understand and cannot control (all teens do, not just homosexual-oriented
teens), they should be encouraged to keep these struggles private, between them
and those they can trust. I’m not saying
they should keep everything bottled up inside and tell no one. Parents have a responsibility to so love their
children and provide them with security that their children will feel
comfortable opening up about their struggles and desires. But these do not need to be broadcast to the
world. I know those are radical thoughts
in our time, so ‘backward’ and ‘hateful.’ I suppose I should be ashamed of myself for
wanting teens to rise above their sexual desires and see themselves not as
fundamentally homosexual or heterosexual but as created in God’s image and made
for a life of loving fellowship with Him. Still, my heart breaks for the teens who have
been sold a lie – that if they feel same-gender attraction, then these feelings
define who they are and must be allowed to control their lives. God wants so much more for all of us.”
This
blog is not trying to be hateful, but trying to think through practical
realities. This new world of openly
homosexual teens is complicated and the problems are real. No one should hate anyone ever. No one should call other people names, bully
them, ridicule them, intimidate them, etc. That is wrong. Period. Christians who bully and intimidate others – whether
they are homosexuals or Muslims, atheists or Wiccans – are dishonoring Christ
and disobeying Scripture, which commands us to love our neighbors as ourselves.
Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel
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