"Fred Goodwin, CMA" <fgoodwin@yahoo.com> wrote in message news:1178839163.860958.252050@o5g2000hsb.googlegroups.com... > Boy Scouts set their faith on fire > > <http://www.bowieblade.com/vault/cgi-bin/bowie/view/2007B/ > 05/10-05.HTM> > http://tinyurl.com/ynv38q > > By NATHANAEL T. MILLER For the Blade-News > > Boy and Girl Scouts from Bowie represented the city well > during the > annual Scout Religious Retreat last weekend. Held at Our > Lady of > Mattaponi Catholic Retreat Center in Croom, the three-day > event was an > ecumenical gathering of Catholic and Protestant Scouts to > fellowship > together and grow in their faith. > > The Rev. Scott Woods, assistant pastor at Mt. Calvary > Catholic Church > in Forrestville, acts as chaplain to the Catholic > Committee on > Scouting in the Archdiocese of Washington and was in > overall charge of > the retreat. Although the Archdiocese takes point on > putting the > annual event together, Father Scott, as he likes to be > known, said the > purpose is wider than merely educating Catholic Scouts. > > "Our goal has been to make it friendly for the > Protestants," Woods > said. He explained that the retreat started many years ago > as a > Catholic event. "Pretty much all the troops have people of > both groups > (Catholic and Protestant)," Woods explained. The general > plan during > the retreat is to teach all the young people together at > various > stations, regardless of their specific church affiliation. > "We try to > get them to stay together and only separate for those > parts that are > denominational specific, such as confession for the > Catholics." > > "I like the stations," said 12-year-old Amanda Porter of > Bowie Girl > Scout Troop 542. The various stations were sites of an > activity that > illustrated a particular part of this year's theme of > "Rekindling the > Flame." "I like the one where we did catch-the-flag and > where we built > a fire," she said, referring to a station where the Scouts > would write > down both a sin and a good thing they had done and drop it > into a > fire. The paper being burned was used to illustrate how > God's grace > wipes out our sins, while the white smoke represented how > good deeds > flow from the heart of someone who loves God. > > Krista Bonuccelli, 14, also of Troop 542, said she also > has a great > time just getting out and doing things side by side with > her male > counterparts. "It's diverse between the boys and the > girls, and it's a > chance for us to show what we've got." Assistant advisor > for Girl > Scout Troop 542, Martha Whiteley, agreed that the > opportunity for the > girls to work next to the Boy Scouts was an important > chance for the > girls' growth as future leaders. "There's very much a > 'woman can do > what a man can do' competition," Whiteley said. "It's a > healthy > competition." > > James Whitehead, a 17-year-old with Bowie Troop 1559, was > volunteering > to help run a station called "The Source and the Summit." > After > hearing a lesson, the Scouts had to make their way up a > slippery, > muddy hillside. Whitehead said the muddy climb "makes it > difficult, > which is similar to Jesus' struggle in carrying the > cross." > > Of course, no Scouting camp out would be complete without > a really big > bonfire, and this was no exception. Some young men of > Bowie Troops 403 > and 1250 took point on building a 7-foot high fire and > prepping the > stage area for the final night's events. "We're digging > holes to put > cans in, and we're going to fill them with kerosene and > put a little > paper towel in there," 16-year-old Adam Morehouse of Troop > 403 said. > The improvised kerosene candles acted as stage lights. The > lights > would define the stage area where the last skits and > lessons would be > performed with the larger bonfire as a backdrop. > > As with all Scouting events, one of the retreat's goals is > to provide > a venue for formerly young Scouters to begin stepping > forward as > tomorrow's leaders. Michael Whiteley, 16, also of Troop > 403, said that > was a natural result of his involvement in the religious > retreat over > the last five years or so. "I've been asked to perform an > instructor's > review later today, and I also have to help my one or two > new Scouts > who are here with me today." > > Published 05/10/07 What's your point? (Besides the fact that they misspelled Forestville.)