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THE FEDERAL election results in two suburban Vancouver
ridings have some interesting aspects, viewed from a Christian perspective.
The newly-elected Conservative MPs in those ridings are
Alice Wong (Richmond) and John Weston (West Vancouver/Sunshine
Coast/Sea-to-Sky).
Both, as it happens, are Christians who have allowed
their faith to be a matter of public record. And both ran and lost to
Liberals, previously, in the ridings they won this time: Wong in 2004 and
Weston in 2006.
In both those contests, political opponents and some
media pundits used those faith stances as marks against them, implying at
times that what they stood for was reflective of a right wing socially
conservative religious “takeover” of their party.
In the 2008 election, however, those critiques were
much more muted. And the coverage of the candidates themselves, both in
party publicity and in the mainstream media, emphasized non-religious
aspects of the candidates’ profiles and experience.
Wong’s 1993 PhD in curriculum and instruction
from UBC, as well as her experience as manager of international programs at
Kwantlen College (now Kwantlen Polytechnic University), have been heavily
emphasized.
Beyond that, however, her studies at Regent College, a
Christian graduate school at UBC, are well-known in the Christian
community.
Wong has also been cited for a broad range of community
initiatives, some of which likely emanated – in part, at least
– from faith motivation.
They include bilingual business management teaching for
new immigrants, board work with several seniors’ service
organizations, advocacy for green space preservation and improved passport
service – as well as fundraising for Chinese earthquake relief.
John Weston is known for his community-based law
practice and advocacy on aboriginal rights issues.
He established law offices in both Vancouver and
Taiwan, and helped to establish a Canadian trade office in the latter
location.
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The one indicator of a Christian perspective coming
through in his candidacy biography is his chairmanship, for several years,
of Canadian Food for the Hungry International (CFHI), a Christian
international humanitarian agency.
With regard to that involvement, Weston points out:
“A democracy’s true character is reflected in the way
their weakest and most vulnerable are treated – and I have always
tried to fight for the rights and liberties of those who cannot defend
themselves. As chair of CFHI, I have seen first-hand the
difference that Canadians are making to help some of the poorest people on
earth.”
Both Wong and Weston have been cited by pundits as
being potential cabinet material, either now or later. As of press time,
Prime Minister Stephen Harper had not yet unveiled his new cabinet.
– Lloyd Mackey
November 2008
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