FOXNews.com: BOY SCOUTS POLICY: Southern Baptists Slam Lift Of Ban on Gay Members

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BOY SCOUTS POLICY: Southern Baptists Slam Lift Of Ban on Gay Members Jun 12th 2013, 19:30 June 14, 2010- City-owned Boy Scouts headquarters in Philadelphia.AP/Matt Rourke HOUSTON –  The Southern Baptist Convention, which represents thousands of churches that sponsor Boy Scout troops, approved a resolution opposing accepting gay scouts - with a top church leader predicting a "mass exodus" of youths from the program that has been a rite of passage for more than a century. The move came as the convention held its annual, four-day meeting in Houston, and three weeks after the Boy Scouts of America voted to allow gay youth to join. With more than two-thirds of Boy Scout troops sponsored by religious organizations, and Baptists being the nation's largest protestant denomination, the strongly-worded resolution could have a crippling effect on the Boy Scouts. "There will be a mass exodus over time." - Frank Page, president of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee "There will be a mass exodus over time," said Frank Page, president of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee. "Churches are finally going to have to come to realize – there is a point when you say, 'sorry, no more.'" The resolution did not call on churches to stop sponsoring troops, but urged ones that do to push to have the decision to admit gay scouts reversed. It seemed to be largely aimed at what church leaders believe is the inevitable inclusion of gay scout leaders. "We express our well-founded concern that the current executive leadership of the BSA, along with certain board members, may utilize this membership policy change as merely the first step toward future approval of homosexual leaders in the Scouts," the resolution said. The Southern Baptist Convention claims to represent more than forty-five thousand churches and church-type missions as well as nearly 16 million members. "Over time we will see a dramatic drop in overall scouting numbers," added Page. The church already sponsors what some believe could emerge as an alternative to the Boy Scouts, in the Royal Ambassadors. The resolution also called on the Boy Scouts to remove executive and board leaders who worked to allow gays as both members and leaders without input from religious groups that sponsor Scout troops. Mormons, Methodists and Catholics have all urged their churches to continue to sponsor Boy Scout troops in the wake of the policy change. Fox News' Todd Starnes contributed to this report

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