Mormon Church to pull teens from Boy Scouts to start own program

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced today that, as of next year, it will no longer allow teenagers aged 14-18 to participate in the Boy Scouts of America’s Varsity and Venture programs.

In a release announcing the change, the Mormon Church said that activities for young men instead "will focus on spiritual, social, physical and intellectual goals outlined by the Church."

The Mormon church, the biggest sponsor of Boy Scout troops in the United States, will pull as many as 185,000 older youngsters from the organization and start its own scouting-like program, the Associated Press reported.

The church said the two Scouting programs have historically been difficult to implement within the church. The Church will continue to use the Cub Scout and Boy Scout programs for boys ages 8 through 13.

Opening up the possibility of transgender members, the Boy Scouts announced in January it would begin accepting members based on the gender identity listed on the Boy Scout application, a departure from the century-old practice of deferring to the gender on birth records. Lately, leaders of the Boy Scouts have also discussed adding more opportunities for girls.

The Mormon Church was among several churches that criticized the Boy Scouts' 2015 decision to begin allowing openly gay adult leaders. The Mormon Church did not address that controversy directly in the statement Thursday.

“In every discussion with the Boy Scouts of America, they have expressed a shared desire to do what is best for young men. We are grateful for their continued support with this new change and look forward to continuing our strong relationship in the Cub Scout and Boy Scout programs,” the church statement read.

Boys in the church will still be able to earn merit badges and work toward the rank of Eagle Scout if they are properly registered as scouts, the statement said.

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