Canada Day a challenge for Christians
There is no denying it and no other way to say it. The 2018 celebration of Canada Day is more challenging for people who embrace the Christian faith than previous year’s celebrations.
On one side of the ledger Canada remains, hands down, the best or one of the best places on the planet to live. We have unparalleled blessings which move us to gratitude and cause us to celebrate our country without reservation. We embrace the call to pray for and encourage those in leadership. I think I speak on behalf of most members of the Christian faith when I declare that I remain extremely proud to be Canadian and would trade it for no other place on earth.
On the other side of the ledger has been a series of moves and decisions that run contrary to deeply held values by those who claim to follow the person of Jesus, the founder and leader of the Christian faith.
These are moves that prove troubling not just intrinsically but because of a trend line they represent. There was Governor General Julie Payette’s speech to the Canadian Science Policy Conference in which she stated that it is incredulous that in this learned society some Canadians still believe in Divine intervention.
She proceeded to compare faith in God to a list of superstitions. There was the infamous requirement for groups seeking grants to hire summer students to sign documents contrary to their faith stances. There was the recent Supreme Court ruling against Trinity Western University supporting the contention of several Law Societies that someone who receives legal training in a school that upholds traditional Christian values on marriage could not possibly be a competent, unbiased lawyer. Add to these the legalization of marijuana and assisted suicide legislation and one wonders if this trend line, made in the name of progress, will prove to be wise 20 years down the road.
Naturally, when a series of moves occur that run contrary to one’s deeply held values it raises the question of how to respond. One only need look south of the border to realize that the answer to a “far left trend line” is not a “far right response.” The resulting polarization and antagonistic behavior is beneficial to no one and certainly does not reflect the Christian way. New Testament scholar N.T. Wright has suggested that these kinds of issues are nothing new. In the first century, there were three common responses when culture seemed at odds with personal religious beliefs. One response was to give in. Many people compromised their beliefs in order to go along with cultural norms.
That is hardly an option if you truly embrace your beliefs. A second response was that of first century Zealots who fought against culture. They condemned, criticized and fought against everything they disagreed with often with bloody results. Again, hardly a Christian option.
A third, often practiced response has been to withdraw. Throughout history groups have secluded themselves from the surrounding culture, huddling away in counter-cultural cocoons or communes. None of these is the way of Jesus of Nazareth Whom we claim to follow.
Jesus carried on with a loving, gracious, redemptive lifestyle. He sought to show people a higher way by inviting them into meaningful relationship with the Heavenly Father. He suggested that once lives were transformed by love, lesser issues would take care of themselves. It wasn’t heavy handed but neither did it bend to cultural norms that ran counter to higher values. He didn’t protest or rail against society, He lived above it. Admittedly, He did rail against one part of society, the evil and hypocrisy inside the church.The conclusion being that if Christians want to protest we need to begin with our own behaviour, not that of society.
This Canada Day exposes a number of trends I cannot celebrate. They are trends that run contrary to my beliefs. However, it also causes me to evaluate my response, to refrain from a critical and negative attitude and renew my efforts to live by the higher standard of love. If I can maintain that response I believe I will stand on guard for Canada in the best possible way.
Tim Schroeder is pastor at Trinity Baptist Church in Kelowna. This column appears Saturdays.