If you have been around Scouting very long, you have probably heard the term: "Chartered Org Rep" or "COR". This person is supposed to be the main contact person for scouting within the chartering Organization. They would work with Packs, Troops or Crews.

First, let me give you the Official BSA version of what this position is about, then I'll make some observations.

Chartered Organization Representative

The chartered organization representative is the direct contact between the pack and the chartered organization. This individual is also the organization's contact with the district committee and the local council. The chartered organization representative may become a member of the district committee and is a voting member of the council. If the chartered organization has more than one unit, one representative serves them all.

Qualifications: Is at least 21 years old, subscribes to the Declaration of Religious Principle, and agrees to abide by the Scout Oath or Promise and the Scout Law. Possesses the moral, educational, and emotional qualities that the Boy Scouts of America deems necessary to afford positive leadership to youth. Is a member of the chartered organization other than the unit leader or assistant unit leader. Is appointed by the chartered organization to serve as its official Scouting representative and is registered as an adult leader of the BSA.

Responsibilities: The chartered organization representative's responsibilities are to

• Help select the right leadership for the unit.
• Encourage unit leaders and committee members to take training.
• Promote well-planned unit programs.
• Serve as a liaison between the units and the organization.
• Organize enough units.
• Promote the recruiting of new members.
• See that boys transition from unit to unit.
• Help with the charter renewal.
• Suggest Good Turns for the organization.
• Encourage the unit committee to hold meetings.
• Cultivate organization leaders.
• Encourage outdoor program activities.
• Emphasize advancement and recognition.
• Utilize district help and promote the use of district personnel and materials.
• Use approved unit finance policies.
• Encourage recognition of leaders.
• Cultivate resources to support the organization.
• Represent the organization at the council level.

As with many BSA positions and responsibilities, It doesn't always match what what happens in the real world. Many units have no Chartered Org Rep, or  have one on paper only because it is required for rechartering.

Even among those few Chartered Org Reps who are involved with their units, I know of none other than myself who are active within District or Council Committees.

The Biggest role that I see for a COR is to be a link between the Church and the Scouts. That means helping the scouts find service projects to benefit the church, and finding volunteers within the church to work with the scouts. Someone has to be up there with a bullhorn on Sunday Mornings, trumpeting the good stuff the scouts are doing... And also, making the families in the scout unit know that they are welcome to come to any of the church's non-scouting events.

One other Note: the Chartered Org Rep is one of the few positions that can legitimately be dual registered in a unit. They can simultaneously be a Committee Chair, or Committee Member, while being the Chartered Org Rep.

Faith Modeling vs. Faith Teaching

For those of us who view our scouting program as part of our church's ministry, this can be a very tricky line to tread. This is true especially for those serving in a role like Chaplain in a multifaith Boy Scout Troop.

Within Scouting, generally speaking, we don't want to try to impose our specific religious beliefs on others. These scouts each come from families which have their own faith tradition. As a Scout Leader, It's not my role to give religious instruction to the scouts. If they have questions, I can answer them, but my main role in regards to faith is to set a good model for them to follow. As I've heard it stated before, "We should be able to set an example, so that people around us will know we are Christians, even if we don't tell them." But from a scouter's point of view, I want to encourage the scouts to follow their family's faith. This is Faith Modeling, where I can show the boys what someone who sincerely follows their faith looks like. That means I've got to be on my best behavior and set a good example for them at all times.

Faith Teaching is something quite different. This is what one might do as a Sunday School teacher, or at Vacation Bible School, or in some specifically religious setting. If you have done a good job reaching out to the scouts in your unit and inviting them, hopefully some of the youth from scouts will also be in the sunday school class. But at any rate, their presence there at this kind of event means that the parents have entrusted you and your congregation to lead the child in a religious education. Although it might be the same leader, and the same kid, and in some cases even in the same classroom in the church basement... It's two different settings.

It doesn't mean that you quit being a Christian when you put on your scouting uniform. But it does mean that you respect the differences in situation, and remember that some parents have entrusted you with imparting Scouting's Values, while other parents have entrusted you with imparting specific religious beliefs. Although there is a HUGE overlap between the two, there is a distinction, and that's the difference between Modeling your faith and Teaching your faith.

Scouting as an internal ministry

A large amount of the posting that I have done here assumes that most scouting sponsored by churches is an outward facing ministry. That is, it is done with community involvement in mind. It welcomes people of all faiths,    and is not intended to include specific religious teaching from a particular set of beliefs.

There are certain exceptions to this. This would include cases where the scouting group is assumed to be open only to people already in that faith, and is run at least partially as an internal youth group would be run.

I wouldn't say one approach is superior to the other, but it is important to understand the difference between them. In a scouting group open to the community, a wide variety of faiths will be represented. In order to welcome others in, it is sometimes necessary to avoid focusing on the specifics of one's faith.

As an internal group, where all members are from within the same denomination, A scouting organization has a great deal more flexibility to incorporate important parts of the faith, and emphasize those, without worrying about what those in other faiths might think, since they wouldn't be part of the group, or hearing that particular lesson.

There is one major group that I can think of that utilizes scouting as an internal ministry. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (i.e. Mormon Church) commonly runs Boy Scout Troops and Cub Scout Packs that are intended to be primarily for members of the church. They utilize the framework of scouting as an integral part of their youth ministries.

It's definitely an important decision to make when a church begins a scout unit... Is this going to be primarily for us, or primarily for the community.

What makes a good Chaplain

If a Scout troop is chartered by a religious organization, the head of that organization, or someone he recommends will become the chaplain. In a case where the troop has no religious affiliation, a local member of the clergy can be approached to perform this role.

Note, that most Pastors, Rabbis, etc. are very busy, with a number of demands on their schedule. While the BSA documents assume they will have plenty of time for this role, that's not always going to be the case. In many cases, there will be one or more older people in the congregation with the spiritual background who may be able to fill this role, with the Pastor's endorsement.

Because most troops have multiple faiths represented, this can be far trickier than picking out someone to work with a youth organization that is wholly made up of church members.

This person must be able to work with boys from various faith backgrounds, and encourage each boy to grow in their religious faith... even if the chaplain himself follows a different one.

The chaplain would certainly be able to invite families to join the church at weekly worship service, but should not proselytize, or push his faith upon families or youth within the unit.  This person should be accessible to the youth and their families, sensitive to their needs and be willing to help them.

What is a Chartering Organization?

The Boy Scouts of America relies on a "Chartering Organization" model for each of it's units. A Chartering Organization could be a business, a civic group like the VFW, or an educational institution, like the PTA of a local school. However, a large number of these chartering organizations (Almost 70%) are religious institutions.

The BSA has some statistics here about what kind of groups charter units.

Each chartering organization agrees to serve families and youth via their scouting program.

Some organization focus primarily on serving the current members of their group. Examples might include the LDS Church, who uses the Cub Scout / Boy Scout Programs as an integral part of their church's youth program, or a Private School that operates a Pack that is open only to boys who attend that school.

The majority of units serve the larger community, meaning that boys from families outside the organization are welcome to join. Particularly for religious chartering organizations this can lead to some confusion where religious advancements are concerned, as you may frequently have a situation where a unit meeting at a United Methodist church  has boys from families who attend Catholic, Baptist, or even Muslim or Buddhist houses of worship. I'll get into this in more detail in later posts.

The Chartering Organization agrees to 

• Conduct Scouting in accordance with its own policies and guidelines as well as those of the BSA.
• Include Scouting as part of its overall program for youth and families.
• Appoint a chartered organization representative who is a member of the organization and will represent it to the Scouting district and council, serving as a voting member of each.
• Select a unit committee of parents and members of the organization who will screen and select unit leaders who meet the organization's leadership standards as well as the BSA's standards.
• Provide adequate and secure facilities for Scouting units to meet on a regular schedule with time and place reserved.
• Encourage the units to participate in outdoor experiences.

In my personal experience, I find that a large number of Chartering Organizations primarily focus on providing meeting facilities, and assume the rest of it will be taken care of by parents inside the unit. This often leads to a unit that is poorly supported.