Kansas City Archdiocese Cutting Ties With Girl Scouts Over ‘Troubling Trends’ : The Two-Way : NPR
The Archdiocese of Kansas City says it is severing its years-long relationship with Girl Scouts in nearly two dozen Kansas counties because the organization promotes materials “reflective of many of the troubling trends in our secular culture.”
“The decision to end our relationship with Girl Scouting was not an easy one,” Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann said in a statement released Monday. He asked pastors to “begin the process of transitioning away from the hosting of parish Girl Scout troops.”
Instead, he calls for chartering American Heritage Girls troops, which he describes as “based on Christian values.” According to its website, the organization was formed in 1995 by a former Girl Scouts volunteer who was “uneasy with the way her troop was asked to handle matters of faith.”
Now, local pastors will choose whether to end Girl Scout programs immediately or “over the next several years, ‘graduate’ the Scouts currently in the program.”
Girl Scouts of the USA identifies as a secular organization with ties to faith, and the national organization and the Catholic Church have had a relationship that dates back a century.
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