This bill attempts to equate physical discipline with abuse by removing the Criminal Code protection for parents who use physical discipline. ARPA Canada sent a policy report to all MPs and Senators in April, 2013. Please follow-up with your EasyMail letter here.
On December 4, 2012 the Quebec Court of Appeal released a shocking decision, one that has direct implications for Reformed education in Canada. ARPA Canada hopes to organize a legal response, to defend the parental responsibility to raise our children in the fear of God's name. Learn more.
Manitoba: Challenge Bill 18!
Manitoba is attempting to implement a problem-filled anti-bullying law that will impact independent schools too. Find legal talking points and three EasyMail letters here. Take action soon, while changes can be made.
ARPAs will be meeting MLAs and MPPs in BC (Oct 21-22) and ON (Sept 26) Contact you local ARPA for details.
Lennart deVisser, our first intern, is working from our Ottawa office for 2 months.
Design a sign, win a prize, impact a nation! Learn more
Use our sample letter and these email addresses to urge the Senate to stop this dangerous bill!
Lennart deVisser (www.ARPACanada.ca): Last week I attended a conference addressing "Reproductive Justice" hosted by the University of Ottawa and in support of "Canadians for Choice." In her words of welcome, Suzanne Mommersteeg (Executive director, Canadians for Choice) said that women face an increasingly hostile atmosphere when seeking access to reproductive healthcare. She urged the pro-choice movement to fight for reproductive justice because there is a huge disconnect between theory and reality.
The term 'reproductive justice' was not clearly defined. What does it mean to have reproductive rights? The terms 'reproductive justice' and 'reproductive healthcare' obviously refer to human reproduction: producing children. Both sides of the debate would agree that it includes the freedom to choose whom to have a child with and when to have children. Reproductive injustice, therefore, is when one person makes these decisions for another. The point of disagreement however, is what to allow once the reproduction is done, when a new child has formed. To some, once a child (or zygote, blastocyst, embryo and fetus) begins to grow inside the mother, reproductive healthcare should not only be concerned with the health of the mother, but also with the health of the child inside her. However, at this conference 'reproductive justice' almost exclusively referred to the "right" of a woman to choose whether to carry the pregnancy to completion or not. Reproductive justice isn't just about being free to "plan ahead," but also being free to choose to have an abortion.
Read more: ARPA Intern Reports on "Reproductive Rights" Conference
This lesson plan (attached) comes in two parts and is geared to grades 10-12. Human Trafficking is one of the social justice issues of our time. There are millions of men and women, boys and girls who are victims of this crime today. Despite this, many people aren't aware that it is going on. These two lessons provide background information, a biblical perspective, links to videos, and suggested activities with the purpose of opening eyes to the injustice and examining what can be done about it. You can find additional ARPA lesson plans on a range of topics here (scroll down a bit).
 Lesson Plan - human trafficking and prostitution | [ ] | 287 Kb |
Yesterday, BC voters gave the BC Liberal party and Premier Christy Clark the privilege and mandate of serving another term in government. This came as a huge upset, as the sense on the ground and among polls for the past two years has been that the NDP would sweep the province and take over the government again. Romans 13 states that it is God, and God alone, who gives us our authorities and governments. He decides who will lead our provinces and nations. We see this clearly when the outcome of an election is so different than what was expected. But it is something we should always testify to in the way that we show respect to those whom God puts in these positions. Increasingly we live in a culture of disrespect for all politicians. We see this among Christians as well. Yet the most central command that the Bible gives to us concerning our civil authorities is to honour, respect, and pray for them. May the Lord bless BC's new government, and may we stand alongside these new leaders with help, submission, and respect.
BC ARPA groups plan to go to Victoria this fall to meet with our new MLAs. Please get plugged in with your local group to help out and join us.
Wake up preachers of this nation, Let the voice of God be heard!
Preach the gospel of salvation, Lead the people with His Word,
We are without guidance, straying, Men combined have lost their way
Teach us, for His goodness praying, Guide them Lord in what they say.
Man is headed for perdition, When insisting on his rights,
We are dead in our condition, Counter to His Truth's delights.
May all ears to Truth be opened, Come, reside within our heart.
May we all place trust and hope in; May His Spirit never depart.
Update: Click here for full coverage of the service, from LifeSiteNews.com.
It's only the second year where ARPA and Jubilee church in Ottawa have co-hosted a Reformed prayer service before the March for Life and we saw a packed church with standing room only. The service was held at First Baptist Church in downtown Ottawa. From there everyone went to Parliament Hill for the speeches and March. It is so good to see so many people turn their hearts to God in supplication, before taking to the streets.
Dead babies matter more than living babies? The curious case of the dead baby on the balcony delivers a judgment that reveals our government is more intent on protecting dead babies than living ones.
A Supreme Court of Canada commentary by ARPA's legal counsel, André Schutten - On Friday May 3, the Supreme Court of Canada released its decision in the R. v. Levkovic case (click here for our initial and more detailed report). Ms. Levkovic was charged under section 243 of the Criminal Code with improper disposal of a child, whether the child had died before, during or after birth. Her lawyer argued that the law was vague: how far before birth is the court willing to go? Since it's not clear in the law how long before birth this law applied, the lawyer argued any baby who dies before birth and is subsequently disposed of should be exempt from this provision.
As reported earlier, the Supreme Court had struggled during oral arguments with the whole issue of semantics surrounding preborn life: what do we call... "it"? One judge called the preborn child a "thing", another just referred to the subject as an "it" and the Chief Justice preferred the term "being" (but not human being!)
If there remains any doubt about whether the entire Manitoba education system is under attack, consider this recent story from the Winnipeg Free Press: "The union leadership representing Manitoba's 15,000 public school teachers wants all provincial education curricula to reflect sexual orientation and gender-identity issues. A resolution to go before the annual general meeting of the Manitoba Teachers' Society May 23 to 25 would call on the Department of Education to 'ensure that same-sex families and LBGTTQ (lesbian, bisexual, gay, transgender, two-spirited, queer) people and themes are reflected in all curricula.' All Manitoba schools, regardless of whether they are public or private, must follow provincial curricula."
By Lennart DeVisser (www.ARPACanada.ca): Is Canada's Parliament still democratic? Recent events make this question hard to answer with confidence. Green Party Leader Elizabeth May is one of many who are appalled by the abuse of power by party leaders. With her new Private Member's Bill, she is doing something to change this.
At a press conference yesterday, Ms. May explained why she is pushing for an amendment to the Canada Elections Act. An Act to amend the Canada Elections Act aims at putting power back into the hands of MPs and their constituents. She is motivated by what she calls "the noxious effect of party discipline on our democracy."
This proposed amendment would require candidates running for seats in Parliament to be endorsed by members of their political party's electoral district association.
Read more: New Private Member's Bill Would Place Necessary Checks on Party Power
ARPA Canada is a non-profit organization, supported entirely by individuals like yourself who want to see this work continue. Learn more about how you can help us carry out our mission.
If we asked any high school social studies or civics class to identify the most important rights in a democratic society, it’s a fair bet freedom of speech and freedom...
This past week, PBS aired a show called 10 Buildings that Changed America. Host Geoffrey Baer looked at, among others, the Wainwright Building in St. Louis, MO; Frank Lloyd Wright’s...
The Parti Quebecois used to stand for something. These days it seems to take its policy cues from mosquitoes. Its preferred method of governance is to buzz loudly, annoy anyone...
Yesterday’s email alert advising of a “breaking development” had me watching the Hamilton Police Service news conference regarding the Tim Bosma case live online. The chief’s opening words caused my...
Conrad Black refuses to play the victim. At our Cardus Convivium dinner last week in Calgary, where Black was the marquee attraction, he asserted, responding to a question, his innocence...
The mission of ARPA Canada is to educate, equip, and encourage Reformed Christians to political action and to bring a biblical perspective to our civil authorities (learn more).
ARPA Canada is a non-profit organization, supported entirely by individuals like yourself who want to see this work continue. We do not receive financial assistance from churches, charities, government, tax credits, or foundations. Learn more about how you can help us carry out our mission.
Articles from www.ARPACanada.ca that have been authored by ARPA Canada may be republished and used in full or in part elsewhere provided that attribution is given to ARPA Canada, including a link to site.
