Synodical Conference Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1954, Page 83

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Ev. Luth. Synodical Conference of North America, 1954 83

Now, surely we cannot object to this kind of program. I men-
tion it in detail, because it indicates the concern of the Boy Scouts
of America for the conscience of the individual as well as for his
personal religious obligations. It is indicative of the way in which
the Boy Scouts of America and local congregations can work to-
gether in the training of the young boy or girl.

This makes it quite logical for The Lutheran Church — Mis-
souri Synod to have placed the responsibility for decision in this
matter on the local congregation. That is where the Boy Scout
movement operates, and that is where it has developed a program
to encourage the youth of the church to be concerned for the life
of the church. The local congregation alone can determine whether,
in its given situation, a member of the church may belong to a troop
or whether a congregation may sponsor a troop of its own without
compromising the faith of the individual and the principles of the
church at large.

One of the objections, and, perhaps, the most serious one,
raised against the Boy Scouts of America is that it is a religious
movement. To this the Missouri Synod replies that it is not a reli-
gious movement in the full sense of the word. Now, there is, of
course, a way of using the word “religion” to apply to any attitude
or interest an individual or a group may have with respect to some
Supreme Power. In that sense, naturally, the Boy Scouts is a reli-
gious movement. It does believe that there is a God. In fact, it
will not accept any one into membership unless he professes a
belief in God. The public school system is a religious movement in
the same sense; for it teaches people to pledge allegiance “to the
Republic . .. one nation, under God, .. .”

There is, however, another way of using the word “religion.”
We speak of the Mohammedan religion, for instance, or of the
Hindu religion. In this context the word has quite another mean-
ing; and when the Missouri Synod insists that the Boy Scout move-
ment is not a religious organization, it wants to say that the Boy
Scouts of America does not teach a particular religion. It is not
concerned with the question of eternal life. That responsibility it
turns over to the church to which the Scout belongs.

Perhaps it is not out of order at this juncture to point out that
there is no necessary contradiction between the statements “There
is a God” and “God is triune.” Every Christian is aware of the
fact that there is but one God and that He is triune. It is also true
that when the Boy Scouts of America speaks of God, it says nothing
about the Trinity. It has as little right to do so as a court has
when it puts people under oath “to tell the truth, the whole truth,
and nothing but the truth.” Such an oath is concluded, also by
Christian people, with the words, “So help me God.” The Chris-
tian, quite naturally, thinks of the triune God. That is the God
whom he has learned to know and in whom he believes. Taking
the oath is not necessarily a denial, therefore, of that God who is
triune.

The belief that there is a God lies in the area of civil righteous-
ness. The Lutheran Confessions have some rather laudatory state-
ments to make on this matter of the iustitia civilis. In fact, the
Apology applies to it the words of Aristotle: “Neither the evening
nor the morning star is more beautiful than righteousness” (Trigl.,
p. 127). The leaders of the Boy Scouts are aware of the destructive
force of atheism. They know from the history of Europe and from