Battle continues on marriage issue
by John Syratt

Since Spring of this year, a dark cloud of controversy has plagued this country. The Liberal government has been playing a political game of hot potato with the judicial system over the redefinition of marriage.

From coffee shops to prayer rooms across Canada there’s been an outcry from concerned citizens appalled at the lack of moral fortitude displayed by the powers that be.

On June 10, 2003 the Ontario Court of Appeal ruled unanimously that the definition of marriage, as the union of "one man and one woman," was discriminatory and that this discrimination is not justifiable in a free and democratic society. Similar cases also took place in BC and Quebec.

The Court then redefined marriage as the "voluntary union for life of two persons to the exclusion of all others." One week later Prime Minister Jean Chretien announced the government of Canada would not appeal the court’s ruling.

At the same time the Minister of Justice unveiled draft legislation to redefine marriage as "the union of two persons to the exclusion of all others." He also made a reference to the Supreme Court to review three aspects of the Bill. He plans to introduce the Bill into the House of Commons later this year.

With the conviction that the courts should not be making laws in this country but only enforcing them, the Canadian Alliance introduced a motion affirming marriage as "being between a man and a woman." This motion had been passed in Parliament by a wide margin in 1999. On September 16, 2003 the motion to protect the accepted definition of marriage as being between a man and a woman was defeated by a vote of 137 to 132.

It appears the Liberal caucus had been ordered by the Prime Minister to vote against the motion. Meanwhile, 53 backbench Liberal MPs showed their courage and commitment to their constituents by voting for the motion.

Many MP’s received huge amounts of correspondence on this issue. In almost every case there was strong support for defending marriage as a heterosexual institution.

On September 7, Sanctity of Marriage prayer rallies were held outside constituency offices across the country with nearly 100,000 people, including close to 1,000 clergy, in attendance.

Bruce Clemenger, president of The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada (EFC), was in Calgary on September 18, speaking to a gathering of Alberta pastors on the outcome of recent court rulings and parliamentary proceedings regarding same-sex marriages and other issues.

The EFC affiliates include over 115 denominations, ministry organizations and educational institutions and nearly 1,000 local churches. The EFC has more than 15,000 supporting individuals and teamed up with other faith-based organizations, including Focus on the Family Canada, to appeal the rulings.

In his two-part message to members of the Calgary Evangelical Ministerial and guest pastors from central and southern Alberta, Clemenger explained the underlying philosophies driving many of the social issues facing the Canadian society today.

"The politics of liberalism is about maximizing freedom," Clemenger said, "Its emphasis is on choice. Its goal is to remove all barriers to human choice." Clemenger identified liberalism as a constructivist and secularist philosophy. "It can be constructed or deconstructed if it no longer meets our approval."

When asked what the next step for EFC was, Clemenger answered, "We will be seeking to appeal the Ontario Court decision and we’re moving ahead in the Quebec case."

"I see this as a rich opportunity to revisit how we seek to be present in a hyper-modern context," Clemenger continued. "What does it mean to be authentically Christian in the world forum? As the church, hopefully we’ll be forced to be more countercultural."

Clemenger noted, "I think that ultimately we’ll become a clarion where we’re going to stand apart in terms of our speech and in terms of how we understand the world. It’s going to cause us to be more and more peculiar and distinct. It’s a refining time, a time to get on our knees."

For a plan of action on these and other issues visit, The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada at their website: www.efc-canada.com