Newsletter  -  Dec. 2009

Keeping Christmas in Canada ;

Righteousness prevails at long last ;          

Christian Horizons being sued in court ;

The Manhattan Declaration

Dear Friends & Members of C S C F,

At this season of remembering the birth of our Lord Jesus,  we wish everyone of you have a wonderful Christmas holiday period.  The following items deserve your attention and action, if deemed appropriate to you.

Keeping Christmas in Canada

Since October, we have motivated our members and friends to send out emails to 5 major Canadian companies that are reportedly moving away from using the name Christmas in their advertising materials.  After getting replies from 2 of them [Save-on-foods & Canadian Tire] that claimed they would keep on with the name Christmas, we then requested our friends to concentrate on the rest 3 companies [Superstore, Shoppers Drug Mart, & Home Depot ]. While the campaign has ended for this year, next autumn we shall seek your help again in pressurizing these 3 companies to consider your view about Christmas.

Righteousness prevails at long last

After 7 years of suffering from persecution by Alberta Human Rights Commission, Stephen Boissoin was vindicated of hateful speech.

In 2002 Boissoin wrote a letter to the editor of his local newspaper in Red Deer, Alberta, in which he warned against the homosexual agenda, especially for the sake of the youth. His job as a community youth worker made him witness first-hand the devastating impact of this agenda on teens.

A university professor filed a human rights complaint against Boission because of this letter. The HRT ruled that Boission’s letter was guilty of being likely to expose a person or group to hatred. As a result, he was ordered to pay a substantial fine, publicly apologize in a local paper, and never again publish anything about homosexuality in a disparaging manner. That would apply to preaching as well.

In his decision, Justice Earl Wilson said that whatever one thinks about Mr. Boissoin’s comments, they didn’t violate Alberta

Mr. Boissoin concluded with a heartfelt thank ,” Over seven years have passed and what I have learned most throughout this time, is that God is incredibly faithful along the way.  Never be ashamed to speak what God has put on your heart.  Speak with courage and trust that your faithfulness with never return void.”

Christian Horizons being sued in court ;

A very important case was proceeded around mid-December in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. Christian Horizons, the largest care home provider for the disabled in Ontario, is appealing the Ontario Human Rights Commission ruling against the ministry. In the case of Heintz v Christian Horizons, the Commission ruled that the ministry must not require its employees to sign a lifestyle agreement and that all current employees had to receive “human rights training” because of their views of homosexuality.

Aside from the fact that the complainant in this case has expressed same gender attraction, the case has nothing to do with sexual orientation. The situation Ms. Heintz found herself in would have occurred if she had been involved in a heterosexual relationship outside of marriage, substance or resident abuse, or any other potential violations of the Christian Horizons community’s Lifestyle Policy. This case is about “religious orientation.”

Christian Horizons’ residential care focuses on the spiritual, physical, intellectual, emotional and social interaction needs of each person entrusted into their care. The organization was established, and expanded at government request, as a religious community. The staff is composed of individuals with a common Christian belief. Each resident is respected for his or her “intrinsic value as loved by God and bearing His image.”

The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) has recognized the right to religious freedom of a religious community as in the case of Trinity Western University v B.C. College of Teachers , wherein the SCC decided a religious community could require its students to sign agreement with a statement of faith and a code of conduct.  In short, the religious community defines what it believes and how those beliefs translate into practice.

Let us all pray that the right of Christian bodies to practice what they believe  be protected by the judicial systems in Canada.

The Manhattan Declaration

In November, a group of American Christian leaders released a declaration which warns on moral issues of great concern. Chuck Colson, founder of Prison Fellowship Ministries, helped draft the Manhattan Declaration.  The unprecedented pro-life, pro-marriage and pro-religious freedom Manhattan Declaration, is a non-denominational statement that challenges Christians to face up to a culture that is increasingly encroaching upon the rights of Christians who hold to traditional moral values, especially on the issues of marriage and the right to life. The enormous popularity of the document appears to arise largely from its ability to bind together Christians from diverse theological and denominational backgrounds to fight for a common cause - the right to life, the preservation of true marriage, and the right to religious liberty.

It won the support of Tony Perkins, head of the Family Research Council, and Dr. Albert Mohler, the President of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Dr. Mohler admitted that he usually does not sign on to such statements, which often require the signatories to compromise on key doctrinal issues.  However, he said, “the Manhattan Declaration does not subvert confessional integrity.” Rather, “It is a statement of urgent concern and common conscience on these three issues - the sanctity of human life, the integrity of marriage, and the defense of religious liberty.”

Concluding this letter

Are you like Mohler, who has read the signs of the times and come to believe that the public square is becoming increasingly hostile to basic Christian values ?  If you are, you may click the following link to join the over 300,000   who have signed in order to reach the target 1 million Christians’ support.

http://www.manhattandeclaration.org/

Christians should take Rev. Boission’s exhortation above and speak out whenever necessary. The Manhattan Declaration is available at such a time as at present.

Yours faithfully,

Rev. Wayne Lo,

Exec. Director