Peregrinator

Hymns during Mass are a rather recent innovation. During the Middle Ages one would only hear hymns and anthems (an anthem is a song that doesn't have the structure of a hymn -- "Salve Regina" is an anthem while "Hail Holy Queen Enthroned Above" is a hymn) during the Divine Office (the fixed prayers prayed by priests and members of religious orders made up mostly of Psalms; all 150 Psalms would be prayed weekly). The Mass itself doesn't have any hymns; most of its chants come directly from Holy Scripture (e.g., Psalm 25 (26 in Hebrew numbering)).

I don't think he said that all Protestant services are free-for-alls, but rather that free-for-all-type services are Protestant in origin. Which is true enough but some distinctions should be made. I think the free-for-alls are more characteristic of Pentecostalism so even most "low church" Protestant services would have some kind of structure.

Thurible. Just so everyone's clear that Catholics don't smoke pot during Mass. ;-)

Actually if you look at the current statistics for Scouts Canada you will see that the modest increase of prior years has been followed by a modest decrease: http://www.scoutscan.com/issues/membershipstats.html It's true that membership has been more or less stable since 2006. But look at what Scouts Canada themselves say about these numbers - "The membership decline is not stopping. Although recent numbers (2009-12) show a slight increase in membership, this is due to the inclusion of near-Scouting numbers included in with true Scouting membership." Now I don't believe that the decline of Scouts Canada is solely due to "liberalism" -- that has probably accelerated the decline, however. I think it is more likely that boys of scouting age are playing organized sports, especially hockey, in lieu of scouting. What's interesting is how far Scouts Canada's membership numbers have fallen despite being open to an ostensibly larger pool of youth and adults (they became fully co-ed in 1998 and "inclusive" around the same time). My understanding is that the Canadian Girl Guides have experienced a similar decline (I don't think they publish their numbers).

Maybe they like not being co-ed.

Isn't there a difference between exaggeration and lying on the one hand, and having an inaccurate memory on the other? That someone claims to have fought in a battle he didn't actually fight in does not at all imply that the memories of that battle of someone who actually fought in it are inaccurate.

Yes, because they are forced to, not because they want to.

How long does it take for a snack during a 1-1.5 hour meeting? I would think 15-20 minutes at least. That's valuable time that could be spent playing a game, learning a knot, etc.

　 Yes. On occasion Baden-Powell himself demonstrated that same fatal bravado. 　 Physical Scoutcraft skills made Scouting so wildly popular with boys, that the founders never in their wildest nightmares anticipated that professional Eagles would use our government-imposed monopoly to convert Scouting to an "ideals trump skills" program in which the highest rank did not require a single night of camping. You mean like all that silly talk about good turns and the like?

Kudu, I think you are confusing indifferentism (which is what B-P was criticized for) with pantheism.

If mainstream Republicans are going along with them, then by definition they are not a minority, at least in the House of Representatives. There are probably very few Democrats who are completely unwilling to compromise on ACA - are they, too, "extremist ideologues"? But it's not outside the legal process. All spending bills originate in the House. That is not merely a Congressional rule -- it is a Constitutional one. Again, that the ACA is the law of the land, for now, does not at all imply that it can't be debated, defunded, revoked, etc. It wasn't that long ago (1974-1995) that a 55 mph speed limit was "the law of the land."

There's a difference between saying that a pantheist can be a scout (which is what you're saying) and saying that B-P was a pantheist (which is what I'm arguing against). I don't deny that a pantheist could be a scout ... I deny that B-P was a pantheist. I will have to take your word for that since I don't have my copy handy, but I don't see how that argues against my point either. I don't see why a Buddhist could not practice what Baden-Powell calls "applied Christianity." But a pantheist is unlikely to call the scouting method "applied Christianity." Not sure what your point is here ... I was simply pointing out that Baden-Powell had friendly relationships with some churchmen and gave some examples (which, by the way, were not exhaustive). So to state that B-P had a troubled relationship with clergy or with organized religion or whatever is not telling the whole story. Of course we might all focus on the parts of B-P's life that meet our own preconceptions ... maybe we try to see ourselves in him. But having troubled relationships with clergy does not make one a pantheist (*cough* St. Joan of Arc *cough*). Of course there is room for such, but Jeal's contention that B-P was a "repressed homosexual" was highly speculative, a conclusion for which evidence is scanty, if not non-existent.

Pack18Alex, it's interesting that you mention Catholics in your post as extemporaneous prayers really aren't part of our tradition either. Grace before and after meals are fixed prayers. Admittedly the structure of things has gotten much looser in the past 50 years or so and there is a lot more "interfaith" stuff than there used to be.

Sure, but being "confused" doesn't make one a pantheist or a repressed homosexual

Palestine has a rather mild climate. Also the summer tends to be dry (most of the rain in Bethlehem falls in November, December, and January) so sheep would almost certainly not be in pasture at that time. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bethlehem#Climate Hope this helps.

Well, yes, the issue is settled -- for now. That the ACA is law does not at all mean that there cannot be further debate on the subject.

Maybe this article will help correct your understanding: http://www.touchstonemag.com/archives/article.php?id=16-10-012-v

In my diocese any adult that is to be around children on a regular basis (which is defined by the diocese as more than two times per year) must take the diocesan abuse prevention course. So it applies to all leaders.

Wouldn't the Boy Scouts encourage a tepid JW to become more devoted to his religion?

The difference between the BSA and all those other companies you mentioned is that the word "scout" (unqualified) is not trademarked and probably can't be because it is too generic. It is protected because of the Boy Scouts' congressional charter and not because of trademark as is the case with Pizza Hut, McDonald's, Kleenex, etc. The other thing is that "Hacker Scouts" is not a scouting organization at all, it's simply a youth organization, so there is little chance of confusion. All that said, there is nothing keeping an atheist from starting a "scout-like" youth organization and calling it something else. I also know that the BPSA accepts atheists -- in fact their chief commissioner is an atheist.

I have a copy of the 1911 Handbook (an original, not a reprint). Pg 10 lists the twelve points as an "abbreviated form of the Scout Law". It is this form to which the scouts "are to commit to memory". Pg 15 Provides the laws "which relate to the BSA, are the latest and most up to date". 11. A scout is clean. He keeps clean in body and thought, stands for clean speech, clean sport, clean habits, and travels with a clean crowd. True ... he added it to the Scout Law in 1911: I wonder if he added it under the influence of friends in the United States? However, it seems very much in keeping with what he professed and taught anyway.

When I was growing up our public schools had off on certain Jewish holidays (Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah). I believe this is still the case in that school district. On the other hand, "minor" Catholic holidays (e.g. Ascension, Immaculate Conception, Ash Wednesday, etc.) were never school holidays despite the large number of Catholics among the student body.

I don't see how believing that marriage is a lifelong commitment would rule out a widower (or widow, for that matter) serving as a leader. Second, believing that marriage is a lifelong commitment and actually putting it into practice are two different things. I'm not aware of any Protestant churches that don't recognize remarriage after divorce but I could be educated on this point.

With what I've seen from Trail Life USA, I can say that as a Catholic I would not want my sons to join. It seems like it is basically a Protestant organization. I'm not lumping Protestants, I'm lumping Trail Life USA. To say that Trail Life USA is essentially a Protestant organization doesn't mean that all or even most Protestants agree with them. I hope they do well, but what they offer isn't for me and my family.