Sunny Side Up July 5, 2006 �2006, Kathleen Gibson Are Canadian Christians in danger of extinction? God has blessed Canada with richness in every dimension - our people, our opportunities, our geography, history, diversity, heritage; the list is lengthy. Those blessings, I believe, are directly connected to the spiritual foundations of our country; to our past general willingness to honor God. Early politicians acknowledged that. Our official motto, etched in stone over the Ottawa Peace Tower, remains: "He (God) shall have dominion from sea to sea." (Ps. 72:8) Christian faith in Canada, however, has plummeted to astonishing depths. Renowned evangelical author Josh McDowell, recently interviewed in Servant Magazine, quotes these statistics, freshly gathered by pollster George Barna: "A staggering 91 per cent of evangelical Christian kids in North America believe there is no truth apart from themselves. 65 per cent either suspect or believe there is no way to tell which religion is true. 80-85 percent of them are walking away from the church within twelve months of high school. 63 per cent say 'Jesus Christ is not the son of God.' " He adds this sobering thought, "North America saw the last Christian generation years ago. Now we're seeing the last Christian generation within the body of Christ." The ineffectiveness of the church - until relatively recently a powerful leavening agent within society - not only to retain its own children but to stand up for truth, reflects itself in the institutions of our wider culture, including the media: According to LifeSiteNews.com, last April the governing body of Canadian radio and television communications (CRTC) approved an all-homosexual radio station, the first approved English Toronto FM station since 2001. The article noted that in 2003, the CRTC had rejected another application - from a station applying to feature all-Catholic programming. Most interesting are these statistics: less than 1% of Canadians are homosexual, but two million Catholics reside in Toronto alone. The level of significance granted to the faith of our nation's majority has (long ago) sunk far below the incendiary issue of our nation's sexuality - even that of the minority. Ironically, a ray of hope rises from an unexpected quarter. Western Standard writer Andrea Mrozek, in her June 19th column, explains that in 1799 the first Western missionaries arrived in Africa. Grandchildren of their first converts now say, "We received this message, it transformed us from animism and witchcraft into orthodox Christians." So wholeheartedly did many embrace Christianity, Mrozek reports, that African Christians prepare to return the favor. They're sending missionaries West, to remind us of the liberating power of Jesus Christ. Archbishop Kolini of Rwanda says, "In 1992 and 1993 the world stood by while genocide happened in Rwanda, and did nothing about it. We are seeing a spiritual genocide happen (in the West), but we're not going to stand on the sidelines." Those African Christians understand things Canadians don't like to admit: Spiritual darkness is real. Not all 'belief' is truth. Prosperity can make us spiritual paupers. Lasting peace begins within. Only Jesus Christ can heal broken hearts and broken countries. And God will have dominion. Respond Home |
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