I kid you not.  Canadians are now on the verge of losing their religious and civil liberties.  Private Member's Bill C-250 will potentially outlaw the Bible and the <i>Catechism of the Catholic Church</i> in Canada as hate literature.  What frightens me and other Canadian Christians is that the bill already passed our House of Commons and is on the verge of passing in the Senate as well.

Bill C-250 is a private member’s bill that enshrines “sexual orientation” in Canada’s anti-hate speech laws.  It leaves the expressions  “sexual orientation” and “hate speech” undefined. Yet in recent rulings upheld by Canada's human rights tribunals, simply quoting from the Bible and other religious texts can now land you massive fines with the threat of incarceration.   Perhaps it is providential that <i>Envoy Magazine</i> has added an electronic edition so that our Canadian readership can remain informed.

The sponsor of Bill C-250 is none other than Svend Robinson.  Mr. Robinson hails from the electoral riding of Burnaby in British Columbia.  Besides being a member of the Canadian parliament, he is also Canada’s most well-known homosexual.  Mr. Robinson abandoned his wife midway through his career as a socialist politician to pursue a male lover. Nevertheless, he should not be confused with the Episcopalian bishop of New Hampshire.

Of course, in Svend’s Canada mocking Christians and insulting Americans does not constitute hate speech.  Asked what he thought of born-again Christians, Newsmax reports Svend’s response as follows: “Did they have to come back again as themselves?” 

Even more shameful is Mr. Robinson’s response to a recent Canadian effort to support our neighbors to the south during a time of national tragedy.  “According to Mr. Robinson,” the National Post reports, “9/11 might instead be named ‘Chile Day' - a sneering reference to the fact that Chilean president Salvador Allende died on the same day in a 1973 U.S.- backed military coup that resulted in shameful bloodshed.”

John Pacheco is one of the key individuals organizing a protest against Bill C-250 on parliament hill for this coming weekend.  He discusses the threat this bill poses to religious and civil liberties in Canada on Ottawa's Christian radio station this morning.

John is working with Connie Wilkins who operates FreeDominion.ca -- the Canadian affiliate of FreeRepublic.  Connie has set up the following website detailing the Freedom Day protest on Parliament Hill this Saturday: http://www.freedominion.ca/libertyday.htm

Connie and John also sent me the following press-release detailing this event.  Below it, I've detailed some ideas on what our sympathetic American neighbours can do to help us:

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Ottawa, April 14, 2004 (National Liberty Day Committee)

On Saturday April 17, 2004, thousands of Canadians will converge on Parliament Hill to uphold and defend the fundamental freedoms of speech and religious liberty, and to express their opposition to the totalitarian impulse currently asserting itself in the legislative and judicial branches of the Canadian government. 

The rally has been called to draw attention to the imminent passage of Bill C-250, the proposed legislation which seeks to effectively criminalize the _expression of opinions against homosexual behaviour.  Organizers and participants believe that the passage of the Bill will accelerate the current persecution of Christians, Muslims, and other conscientious opponents of the homosexual lifestyle.  It is feared that the Bill will be used as an intimidation ploy to silence dissent and discussion on the moral and public health risks of the homosexual activity.

Participants are to gather at the Supreme Court at 2:00pm and then peacefully march to Parliament Hill for the demonstration which will feature music as well as speeches from politicians, religious leaders, and other prominent citizens.  Organizers are encouraging participants to bring their Canadian flags as a sign of solidarity and unity. The event is scheduled to end by 4:30pm.

For more information on the rally, visit the National Liberty Day Rally webpage at: http://www.freedominion.ca/libertyday.htm
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Unfortunately, as previously noted, we Canadians cannot go this alone.  Nor can American Christians allow Canadian Christians to fall behind enemy lines in the culture war.  So what can you do to help us? 

Well, come to the protest if it is possible.  If not, please keep us in prayer.  Additionally, please remember that despite the anti-Christian and anti-American sentiment of Canada's cultural left, our government still understands that Canadian tourism depends quite a bit on the American dollar.  So please go to the following website and tell the Ministry of Tourism that you are an American and a Christian with lots of tourist dollars, that you find Svend's comments about 9/11 offensive, and that you feel Bill C-250 is an encroachment of religious liberty in Canada.  The contact URL for our Ministry of Tourism is: http://www.tourism.gov.on.ca/english/feedback/feedback.html

Please pass this along to others as well...