Reply #13: Same here.

[Xithras]

Technically the oath swears allegiance to god, which makes the BSA a quasi religious organization. They have fuzzed their definition of God so that it can apply to pretty much any religion (there are even special badges that can only be achieved by people of various faiths...like Islam), but they do require some type of religion. I'm sufficiently agnostic so that it's never been a problem, and we have never asked any of the boys in our pack to attend any kind of religious service or say any kind of prayer.

What happens on occassion, sadly, is that a fundie will get into a position of power and try to use that religious requirement to push religious indoctrination. This practice is actually opposed by the BSA (all children should be allowed to practice their faiths how they see fit), but the organization is so decentralized that it's difficult to do anything about these pack and den leaders.