I've noticed that Boy Scouts and Mormonism go together like brownies and ice cream. Why aren't there just as many Girl Scout troops in the LDS churches? I'm not naieve. I know why. What is the official reason (if there is one), as I can't seem to find it.

"I am convinced that Scouting is a mighty activity arm to hold these boys close while they learn to appreciate the honor of holding the priesthood of God.
The thing that concerns me, brethren, is that we must have a goal, and that goal must be eternal salvation for every boy. Scouting can help us move along that pathway to eternal life in a glorious way, in making a boy a whole boy, a whole man." Elder Robert L. Backman

"This program builds boys, builds their futures, leads them on the right path so they can make something of their lives." President Gordon B. Hinckley

"Scouting teaches a boy to take care of himself and stand on his own two feet. It is an inspired program for a demanding time." President Ezra Taft Benson


"If a ward does not have a good, active Scouting program that attracts and helps to hold boys close to the Church, it does not have the total Church program." President N. Eldon Tanner

Girl Scouts: Where girls grow strong

I think the GS tag line is why.

I said I'm not naieve. I know why. Exchange boy for girl and man for woman in each of these quotes and imagine these guys saying it. You can't, at least not with a straight face. What is the LDS Inc given reason? Surely someone else has asked. They must have SOME reason!?!

The main reason: mormonism does not have control over the organization.

I was told it was because the Girl Scouts do not require a belief in God.

This is what I've heard as well. Girl Scouting is a lot less mixed up with religion, therefore the Morg doesn't find it a useful tool for brainwashing their future tithe-payers... ah, I mean, they don't see a reason to support a secular organization like the Girl Scouts.

My girls were in scouts for a while (even though we are atheists). I justified them taking the oath because keeping a pledge to serve a non-existent being wouldn't require faith, just good works.

"The Girl Scout Promise

On my honor, I will try:
To serve God and my country,
To help people at all times,
And to live by the Girl Scout Law.

The Girl Scout Law

I will do my best to be
honest and fair,
friendly and helpful,
considerate and caring,
courageous and strong, and
responsible for what I say and do,
and to
respect myself and others,
respect authority,
use resources wisely,
make the world a better place, and
be a sister to every Girl Scout."


Girl scouts encourage girls to learn about all subjects and gain skills in all areas, including science. I would say it seemed to be a feminist organization, because Girls are taught that that can do anything and be anything, not limited by gender roles. No wonder the church doesn't like it.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/08/2014 12:57PM by imaworkinonit.

Yes, precisely! Mormon women are supposed to stay home and cook, clean, watch the children, and always obey the penis. Any organization-- such as girlscouts--that teaches women to have skills other than housework or independence must be of the devil.

"Scouting teaches a boy to take care of himself and stand on his own two feet. It is an inspired program for a demanding time." President Ezra Taft Benson

I like this one the because it show that these qualities are some how less important for girls.

No official reason because likely they did not think to make one, as they did not even consider it.

After all, women are invisible.

Women in the cult are just furniture, expected to remain obediently in the background - until summoned.


And why, Girl Scouts might just produce an Amelia Earhart or Marie Curie.
And that would be disgraceful.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/08/2014 12:42PM by zenjamin.

1. Mormons don't control the GSA like they do BSA.
2. GSA supported the ERA.
3. Tends to be a little more "feminist" than they are used to.

Boy Scouts is easily adapted to the YM program. YW in the view of the church really don't need to learn the skills and traits that BSA or GSA, for that matter promote.

Gosh, no wonder girls camp was so boring.

My wife worked for the Utah Girl Scout Council for a few years before we moved back to So. Calif. She had many stories of Mormons wanting to do the same things as they have done to Boy Scouts and being turned down flat. Among others:
1. Girl Scouts requires leaders to be trained
2. Girl Scouts teaches confidence and independence
3. Gold Award and other high achievement is based on actual performance and not based on position at church

SoCalNevermo Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
>
> 1. Girl Scouts requires leaders to be trained

I just took the "training" in November. It was one 2 hour evening plus an online fluff piece about making girls strong women.

The in-class training was how to fill out the forms.

That's it.

I heard it was because gs were more supportive of gays/lesbians?

Besides, yw already have an EXCELLENT yw program!
*giggle/snort*

The unofficial reasons:

1. They don't like the fact that GS empowers girls to become strong women.

2. GS tends to be run by more liberal (read: able to think for themselves) women and they don't want that spreading.

3. No requirement to be religious like the BSA.

4. They don't have their national board under its thumb.



The irony is that for all the touting they do about the tight relationship between TSCC and the BSA, LDS Boy Scout troops are the WORST run troops in the whole program. Untrained leadership that changes out every 6 months doesn't lead to good results. It's pathetic how many mothers I've seen earn their son's Eagle Scout badge for them.

In meetings not run by BSA, the LDS church says the purpose behind the BSA program is to teach the boys to become worthy priesthood holders. The problem is that LDS troops never teach real leadership because the boy leader is at most 1 year older than the boys he leads, and he is artificially moved to a different scout group a couple months after being ordained leader.

Girl Scouts is run by women. The "brethren" would have no say in how to run things. They don't like that. They need to control EVERYTHING.

I work in Utah. Two employees we used to have were a very liberal woman and a very hard-core, conservative TBM guy. The woman asked the TBM guy if he'd let his daughters join Girl Scouts, and he told her no. When she asked why he said, "Because they encourage independent thinking in women."

So that's not an official statement from the cult. But bottom line I think it's a very good summary of why the mormons won't support Girl Scouts.

I also think they don't like that the Girl Scouts teach girls that they can think for themselves, and that there are more options in life than being a SAHM. They also won't be able to control it like they do with the Boy Scouts.

Girl Scouts also train their leaders, and everyone must pass a criminal background check that includes the sex offender registry before they're allowed to work with minors. It's also a strictly volunteer organization at the local level as those leaders are there because they actually WANT to be there, and not because a religious leader "called" them to the job. LDS Boy Scout leaders are there because it's a church calling, and there is no training involved, and nobody has to go through a background check.

There are two reasons that come to mind:

1. It's expensive and the church won't pay for it. Only the boys are deserving of the costly program.

2. They are some how tied into Planned Parenthood. Several of my Catholic friends have left Girl Scouts for American Heritage Girls.

But the main reason is money. Have you seen the difference between the budgets alloted to the youth? Girls get significantly less and they blame the difference on the expensive Boy Scouts program.

Well you can't have the women learning to be strong and independent. Then they wouldn't be completely dependent on the men. That's just no good. That would never do.

I was only in Girl Scouts for a year. Before joining, I had visions of hiking and camping. Then we learned to set a table, made yarn bunnies, sold cookies and had a gingerbread house building competition.

I did not return for year two though some told me that it would get better if I did.

My experience was right in line with church programs.

lol.

My daughter complains that activity days isn't as good as Cubs.

My wife used to complain that young woman's wasn't as fun either. Now that she's in young woman's they've done some fun stuff (like play laser tag), but the older leader still has them sewing and stuff.

Personally I don't mind arts and crafts and I'll help my wife with them. But sometimes you definitely need to light some fires and blow stuff up :-)

When I was a young mens leader we did an activity where we took cub cars, glue rocket engines to them, ran wire lines down the parking lot and let em go. It was pretty awesome :-).

If they weren't so big on segregration and let the young men and young women plan activities together I think the entire program would be way more fun for everybody.

Because they have "YWMIA"
Y young
W women's
M mandatory
I intimidation
A association

I asked this question in the 1980's, of the leaders of the Girl Scout council in Provo, Utah. The answer I was given was that TSCC had approached Girl Scouts shortly after Boy Scouts became part of the YM program. TSCC church wanted to make some changes to their proposed LDS version of Girl Scouting, just as they had made changes to the Boy Scouting organization (names of ranks, requirements for advancement, etc.) to make it fit with YM. GIRL SCOUTS SAID NO and since then, there has been a separation between the LDS church and Girl Scouts.

I am a lifetime Girl Scout. When I first joined TSCC at age 18 and got involved in the YW program, including camp, I was appalled at the lifeless, watery instruction and activities that TSCC provided for girls. In no way did the YW program come close to the YM program, which in and of itself was a bastardized, watery version of Boy Scouts. Believe it or not, this was one of many issues that eventually led me out of TSCC.

Today, I am a happy Girl Scout Leader, and my 15 year old daughter has completed her Bronze and Silver Awards and is working on her Gold Award. As a Girl Scout, she has had so many experiences and adventures that she NEVER would have had if she had been raised in TSCC, in the YW program. The Girl Scout organization of yesteryear had wisdom and foresight when it said NO to TSCC hijacking its tenets.

No 'good' mormon woman would want to be confident, use her talents, and be self fulfilled. Thats not why she's on this earth.

She's here to get married to a PH and have babies. My PB states very clearly thats the one and only reason I'm here on earth. To aspire to anything else would be following Satan.

Girl Scouts empowers girls - why would the church want girls thinking they might actually be able to be independent...?! I recently heard a woman who has the young women talk about how most of their activities revolve around cooking and crafts. Seriously how lame! Girl Scouts does things like camping and has more varied activities that (gasp) might be considered 'boys' activities...

I asked the same question as a girl. This is what I was told:

1. You don't need Girl Scouts because Young Women's already has similar activities for you--Girl's Camp, Wednesday night activities sewing, cooking, etc.

2. You don't need Girl Scouts because the boys are being taught the survival skills in Boy Scouts. Every priesthood member will be prepared to know what to do for his own family. Aren't you lucky to be a girl so you don't have to worry about those things?

I am a former Girl Scout Leader. It is not expensive to run a troop. There is not set fee for dues, each troop decides for themselves. They also decide how to spend the money they have from dues and cookie sales. As a leader you help the girls decide what badges they want to work on together as troop as well as individually. There is a religious award that can be earned and each major religion has their own requirements.
The bottom line is the church would not want to use valuable resources to educate and encourage free thinking for any young woman. They suck!

because the girl scout dont hate on rationalists and gays?

Has something to do with cookies.

Because the church does not respect women, and it is best to start early in telling them they are second class.

Boys scout troops sponsored and funded by the church...
Girl scouts, you are on your own...

Get used to it.

Beginning with Joe Smith and Bring'em Young, women are to be used, not respected.

It is a sad commentary, but true.

Sick---sick---sick