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Trudeau-era multiculturalism is more and more now seen as having undermined the coherence of Canadian life and loyalty to fundamental values that framed Canada’s formation

Canadian Christians and the election



Since the end of World War II, Canadian society has been radically secularized, much more so than American society. What can be the impact of Canadian Christian voters on the election of May 2, especially in view of Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s evangelical faith, and the likelihood that Canadian Christians proportionately vote in larger numbers that their generational secular counterparts?

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The religious demographic conditions in Canada in comparison to those in the United States are quite different.

AMERICA

In the United States recent estimates are: Religious in one way or another, above 83%. Estimate of Christians, 78%: Protestant, 53%. Roman Catholic, 25%. The post-Kennedy era trend: two-thirds of American voters say that religion is not a significant factor in their voting decision (at least 10% less a decade ago), while nearly 80% of Protestants say that. American Catholic voters pay less attention than in the past to what Catholic clergy say about politics, except for some older, traditional Catholics in the northeast and midwest of the country. The electoral lock on these by Democrats is fading. The new generation of Catholics is much more committed to personal profession of faith – the new breed of evangelical Catholics. Add to this the increased role of women in public worship and the rise of large numbers of younger, more conservatively minded Hispanic Catholic voters. These are much more willing to espouse conservative social and economic policies. Conservative Catholics are prominent in the news media. Traditional American Protestants (Presbyterians, Methodists, Liberal Baptists, some American Blacks, and liberal Black leadership) are rapidly fading in political influence. These have divided or are in the process of dividing over social policy issues such as abortion, gay marriage, gay ordination, and welfare. Conservative Episcopalians, though small in numbers, are influential in the media. Strong Protestant voices in American public life have virtually disappeared -- at the founding of America they were its religious backbone. Today, evangelicals (chiefly Baptists, Pentecostals, Nazarenes, Church of God, Christian and Missionary Alliance, most Black churches, many other smaller denominations and most independent churches) comprise a large, rapidly growing voting bloc who customarily vote conservative. While estimates vary between 33-47% of the population, a reasonable guess is that today 40-45% of Americans would call themselves evangelical in faith. At least 40% of the vote for George W. Bush in 2000 came from evangelicals. American evangelicals are now less prone to vote single issues such as abortion, and and less prone to vote the guidance of ministerial gurus.

CANADA

The contrast between the United States and Canada on religious demography is large. In Canada the population of Roman Catholics is far greater than that of Protestants, and the percentage of Evangelicals is significantly less. When updated this year, the data will likely show further deterioration of traditional Protestantism in Canada, but growth among Roman Catholics and Evangelicals. The following represent 2001 census data: Overall Christian, 77% (comparable to the United States). Roman Catholic, 43.6% (slight 10-year gain). Protestant, 29.2% (significant 10-year loss). When one considers that all evangelicals are included in the 2001 Protestant numbers, the percentage of evangelical population in Canada is far less than in the United States. Very significant is the percentage of the irreligious: 16.2% overall, but 35.1% in British Columbia, surprisingly 23.1 % in Alberta, and in the mid to high teens in Manitoba, Northwest Territories, Ontario, and Saskatchewan. Only New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nunavut, and Quebec fall below 8%, Nova Scotia 11.6%, with Newfoundland registering the lowest for those professing no religion (2.5%). During the past half century or more support for the Liberal party among conservatively minded Christians and evangelicals has waned, as it has for the New Democratic Party. This is due in part to the strong left-wing support among Liberal and NDP leadership to legalize gay marriage, and attempts in recent years by Liberal Party leaders to marginalize evangelicals. It is important to note that the positions and attitudes taken by Canada’s Christians are indigenous; they do not take their cue from American conservatives or evangelicals. Back and forth clergy and scholarly contacts between the two countries are chiefly fraternal and informational. The affiliation of Canadian Christians with the United Church of Canada dropped by over 8% in the Census of 2001, of Anglicans by 7%, of Presbyterians by 35%. A further drop is expected in the numbers of the past decade. Anglicans can take heart from the splendid on-going renewal of traditional Christian faith and ministry generated from Wycliffe College in Toronto. That in the past the United Church of Canada and Anglicans were snidely regarded as the Liberal Party or NDP or left-wing minded Christians at prayer still holds true, except that their numbers and influence have faded quickly. Evangelicals have grown modestly, especially Baptists, the Christian Missionary Alliance, Pentecostals and independent churches, but their political influence at the ballot box has remained static as a percentage of the voting population.

WHAT NOW?

Conservatively minded Christians and evangelicals could make a significant impact in the election next week. With the rising tide of poll-indicated support for Stephen Harper, increased voter participation by Christians who can be jerked from their comfortable middle-class political somnolence to not only vote, but encourage others to do so, could swing a few seats to the Conservative Party. This political dynamic in Canada, in comparison with political conservatism, evangelicalism, and the rise of the Tea Party movement in America, is quite different but can be significant. In Canada, new generations of Roman Catholics, conservatively minded Protestants, and evangelicals are more strongly committed to personal Christian faith, are less likely to vote single social issues such as abortion or homosexuality, and are much more concerned about the economy, jobs, onerous bureaucracy, the stability of marriage and family life, and the educational and economic future of their children. How can candidates standing for election, especially Christian candidates, attract the votes of conservatively minded Christians and evangelicals? First, no doctrinaire sentiments whether on matters of personal faith or on public policy issues -- social or economic -- whether Roman Catholic, Protestant, or Evangelical will be tolerated by voters. As a Christian a candidate should frame the campaign from the standpoint of a general Christian frame of reference – a Christian world view consistent with fundamental Christian beliefs as expressed in the Apostles Creed and the Nicene Creed -- and then emphasize Canada’s heritage of religious and political tolerance as a core principle. Positive, direct, identification of oneself as a Christian and how that faith impinges on public policy issues are crucial in order to contrast one’s views from the value-less arbitrariness of secularists and any relevance of alien Shariah Law. Along with this they should emphasize that their Christian heritage represents the largest and most generous segment of Canadian life that altruistically and regularly support the needy as a matter of committed life style. Trudeau-era multiculturalism is more and more now seen as having undermined the coherence of Canadian life and loyalty to fundamental values that framed Canada’s formation. That foundation is clearly Judeo-Christian, in relation to the meaning of justice and social justice, as I argued in my recent Canada Free Press series.


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Dr. Samuel J. Mikolaski -- Bio and Archives

</em>Dr. Samuel Mikolaski, is a retired theological professor.  His curriculum vitae and published work are on his website: drsamstheology.com</em>


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