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Stories about the Ontario legislature and the Lord's Prayer:
 Proposal to scrap Lord's Prayer crashes gov't website, sparks 5,700 submissions
A proposal to scrap the reading of the Lord's Prayer in the Ontario legislature has prompted 5,700 submissions from the public - temporarily crashing the legislature's website - and hundreds of phone calls from many who want the province to preserve the Christian tradition.
Canadian Press, May 5
Mom's wrath and public outcry won't change his mind on Lord's Prayer: Ont. premier
Neither the wrath of his Catholic mother nor the thousands of e-mails and petitions from the public prove Ontario should cling to the tradition of opening the daily proceedings of the legislature with the Lord's Prayer, Premier Dalton McGuinty said Tuesday. Although at least one Jewish Conservative says the Liberals should listen to the more than 6,000 people who have written to the province so far about the proposal to replace the Lord's Prayer, McGuinty said it's the government's job to lead and ensure the daily reading at the legislature reflects the diversity of Ontario.
Canadian Press, May 6
Lord's Prayer and 'inexperience' take down Government of Ontario Web Site
A Web Site meant to allow Ontarians to comment on a proposal to scrap the Lord's Prayer from the legislature crashed this week after a sudden surge in traffic. But the director of information systems at Queen's Park blamed the crash on inexperience rather than traffic volume.
CanWest News Service, May 7
McGuinty's mom upset by Lord's Prayer plan
Tinkering with "Our Father" has got Premier Dalton McGuinty into trouble with his mother. McGuinty said yesterday his mom, Elizabeth, is one of thousands of Ontarians concerned by his move to eliminate or scale back the recital of the Lord's Prayer in the Legislature.
Toronto Star, May 7
Stories about the Anglican schism over same-sex blessings:
Breakaway Niagara Anglican churches consider appealing order to share with diocese
As three breakaway Ontario Anglican parishes decide whether to appeal an interim court ruling that requires they share their churches with the diocese, efforts are underway to figure out what to do about this Sunday's services. Because Monday's ruling is so vastly different than that of an earlier judge, Anglican Network in Canada director Cheryl Chang said the breakaway group is seriously considering an appeal and has seven days to make a decision.
Canadian Press, May 6
Ruling may keep parishes from splitting
A court decision that said three breakaway Anglican parishes in Ontario do not have exclusive rights over their property may keep some congregations opposed to same-sex blessings from leaving the Anglican Church of Canada to go to a more conservative authority.
National Post, May 7
Earlier: Stories about the Anglican schism over same-sex blessings
Stories about the church bell in Ajax:
Church's bell ringing hits sour note
Constant tolling bugs some Ajax residents, as parish and town go to court over issue
Toronto Star, May 6
Bell tolls for noisy Ajax neighbourhood church
The loud and frequent bells of St. Francis de Sales church in Ajax have brought a possible summer court date for the parish as the town acts on long-standing complaints from area residents. The Catholic church has violated a bylaw that states that no person may create a sound by a bell which will disturb the town's inhabitants.
National Post, May 7
Stories from Douglas Todd's series on Cascadia:
Cascadia: Naive dream or the next frontier?
I first heard about the idea of changing the name of the Strait of Georgia to the Salish Sea in this American city. It was a month before B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell made headlines by asking citizens to consider the switch as a gesture of respect to aboriginals, whose ancestors lived here before the 49th parallel was created.
Douglas Todd, Vancouver Sun, May 6
Dream of cohesive Cascadia never dies
Most advocates for Cascadia don't seriously think about creating a separate, free-standing nation. But they do talk a lot about what could come of closer political, cultural and economic ties
Douglas Todd, Vancouver Sun, May 6
Cascadians: Shared Cultural Traits, Values
Residents of the region have a subtle separatist streak and a passion for outdoor activity
Douglas Todd, Vancouver Sun, May 7
Stories about the age of sexual consent rising to 16:
Age of sexual consent rises to 16
Canada's age of sexual consent will be bumped up two years to 16 beginning Thursday. The change means adults who have sex with boys or girls aged 14 and 15 years old could face criminal charges. Canada's age of consent has been 14 since 1892.
Canadian Press, April 30
New sexual consent law may confuse teens
When it comes to sex, 16 is the new 14. Under a law that went into effect yesterday as part of the federal government's omnibus crime bill passed in February, a teen under the age of 16 cannot consent to sex with an adult five or more years older. The bill is intended to target sexual predators, but many youth advocates say that by focusing on age, the new law will confuse teens, make their sexual activities more clandestine and expose them to other risks, including abuse, early pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections.
Globe and Mail, May 2
Age of consent rises to 16
Mother who lobbied for changes believes they will help parents protect 'at-risk' teenagers
Vancouver Sun, May 5
Earlier: Move to raise age of consent causes stir
Stories about the polygamist communities in Bountiful and Texas:
Where 'the handsome ones go to the leaders'
Last month's raid on a Texas ranch gave a rare peek into a mysterious polygamist church. But as Robert Matas reports, a B.C. teen found there could reveal its most shocking secret yet: a trade in young girls across the U.S.-Canada border
Globe and Mail, 3
Parents seek Ottawa's help
Daughter is among children in custody after raid on compound in Texas
Globe and Mail, May 5
Crackdown at the Canadian border urged
Raid on Texas compound of fundamentalist group sparks calls for Canada to police the movement of 'celestial brides'
Globe and Mail, May 6
Earlier: Stories about the polygamist cult at Bountiful
Stories about the Toronto Jewish Film Festival:
Jewish comedy not just a punchline
If comedy is your poison of choice, you're in luck: There's a nine-day supply available at this year's Toronto Jewish Film Festival. . . . And finally, something called Circumcise Me (also known as It's not in Heaven: The Comedy of Yisrael Campbell), about a Catholic convert to Judaism. A stand-up star in Israel, Campbell -- who will be making an appearance here -- has actually converted three times -- once Reform, once Conservative and once Orthodox. The film is directed by former Torontonian David Blumenfeld and Matthew Kalman, a former Globe and Mail correspondent in Jerusalem.
Michael Posner, Globe and Mail, May 2
So this Catholic goes to Israel ... and other jokes from the Holy Land
If you were introduced to someone named Christopher Campbell, it's a pretty safe bet he wouldn't be an orthodox Jew. There are certainly Jews named Campbell (although almost invariably the name has been anglicized by a previous generation) and there are, no doubt, even a few Jewish Christophers to be found. But the likelihood of a man named Christopher Campbell wearing the traditional garb, observing the Sabbath and the other 612 commandments of Judaism, living in the holy city of Jerusalem, praying three times a day and studying with rabbis, is more than a little remote.
Michael Posner, Globe and Mail, May 5
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Stories about Israel and the 60th anniversary of its founding:
A creature of anti-Semites -- and now their sustenance
Israel, the lifeboat that anti-Semitism built, is 60 years old. Its flag first flew on May 14, 1948, and it took 53 years to raise it. Its keel was laid in 1895 when the Viennese journalist, Theodor Herzl, started jotting down the first words of his pamphlet The Jewish State: An Attempt at a Modern Solution of the Jewish Question.
George Jonas, National Post, May 3
Israel's real friends are on the Right
As the world watched former U.S. president Jimmy Carter, a Democrat, embrace terrorists from Hamas and lay a wreath at the grave of Yasser Arafat recently, it is worth considering which side of the ideological divide includes Israel's real friends. For more than a generation, even before Republican president Richard Nixon prevented the Soviets from entering the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Israel's allies and defenders have most commonly been found on the right, among the ranks of conservatives and Christians.
Theo Caldwell, National Post, May 5
If Israel can't survive the onslaught of militant Islam, neither can the rest of the world
Israel is Western civilization's canary in the coal mine. If Israel cannot survive, perhaps Western civilization -- pluralistic, democratic, individualistic, secular, free-trading and devoted to the rule of law -- will be unable to last, either.
Lorne Gunter, National Post, May 5
Israel should be the plaintiff, not the defendant in the court of public opinion
Anti-Zionists -- in particular Arab anti-Zionists -- have been very successful in convincing soft-hearted westerners that the "cycle of violence," as it is so often, and so erroneously referenced (the "cycle" would stop immediately if Arab terrorists would stop their violence toward Israel) is about land. It isn't about land. Israel is a hangnail-sized piece of land with no oil and no resources other than those produced by the sweat and brains of its inhabitants. Surrounding this minuscule plot, demonstrably the Jews' ancient homeland, are 22 Arab countries covering a tenth of the world's land mass, 640 times more land than Israel occupies.
Barbara Kay, National Post, May 6
Israel's ambassador to Canada replies to the CIC's "attempts to delegitimize the very existence of the State of Israel"
A recent article by Canadian Islamic Congress national president Mohamed Elmasry -- as referenced on Monday by Jonathan Kay's posting on this blog -- attempts to delegitimize the very existence of the State of Israel by casting aspersions on the circumstances of its founding and by distorting the history of the conflict. This biased piece lays the blame for the Palestinian's suffering solely at Israel's doorstep, ignores the decades of Arab violence and terrorism that have taken so many innocent Israeli lives and completely absolves the Palestinians of any responsibility for their own fate.
Alan Baker, Full Comment, National Post, May 6
Why Christians should care about Israel
In particular, it was a question I had to think seriously about a few years ago when I was invited to join the board of directors of the Canada-Israel Committee, the branch of organized Jewry in Canada that defends the cause of Israel, works to enhance Canada-Israel relations and promotes Israel in Canadian public opinion. Before accepting, I wanted be sure that there were theological reasons for joining. I did accept, for three reasons which I think answer the broader question of why Christians ought to care about Israel.
Father Raymond J. De Souza, National Post, May 7
Stories about Islam and the West:
A voice of moderation
Islam's message of peace overshadowed by politics, author Tarek Fatah says
National Post, May 5
Terrorism suspect tries to walk out of his own trial
An Islamic convert facing terrorism charges was re-arrested after trying to walk out of his own trial Tuesday -- saying simply that "I'm outta here" -- after telling the court he wouldn't recognize Canadian law.
Globe and Mail, May 6
Earlier: Stories about Islam and the West
Other stories from the past week:
Architectural history threatened: foundation
Other historic buildings facing a date with a demolition crew range from the Winter Street Prison in Sherbrooke, Que. and Old St. Patrick's Church in Calgary, to the railroad roundhouse in Biggar, Sask. . . . Lost to the wrecking ball are such pieces of history as Edmonton's Central Pentecostal Tabernacle.
CanWest News Service, May 2
Christianity without Christ
There is a Bible on a pedestal in Gretta Vosper's West Hill United Church in Toronto. She would prefer it did not have a special place, she said, because it is just a book among other books. In a similar way, the cross that is high above the altar has no special meaning, but there are a few older congregants for whom the Bible and the cross are still nice symbols so there they remain.
National Post, May 3
Tax Bill Fuels a Canadian Debate on Film Censorship
There have been witnesses, however, who do want the government to judge the morality of films before granting tax credits. Most prominent among them is Charles H. McVety, president of Canada Christian College in Toronto and president of the Canada Action Family Coalition.
New York Times, May 3
Earlier: Stories about Bill C-10
Building bridges with Jewish wisdom
But, among Jews living today, the person arguably most successful at bringing Jewish wisdom to the non-Jewish masses is Harold Kushner, author of the multimillion bestseller, When Bad Things Happen to Good People. At 72, Kushner is still building bridges with his gift for storytelling, emotional insight and Biblical interpretation.
Douglas Todd, Vancouver Sun, May 3
Taking on Sikhism's Canadian extremists
On World Press Freedom Day, May 3, we usually think about journalists in far-away conflict zones under attack -- or those living under repressive totalitarian regimes struggling to practice their crafts. But increasingly, journalists here in Canada, and the subjects we interview, are also under threat. We face death threats and hate-filled rhetoric spewed at us online, over unlicensed radio airwaves and in ethnic newspapers.
Kim Bolan, National Post, May 3
Earlier: Stories about Sikhs and Sikhism
Sign spreads good word
When the Church of the Redeemer installed a street-front sign at the corner of Bloor and Avenue Road in 1980, Bishop Joe Fricker made his marching orders clear. "Not too sugary, or anything that might smack too much of religion," remembers Jack Howard, a Royal Ontario Museum librarian who today finds the quotes for display.
National Post, May 5
All hail breaks loose over fast-food slogan
A fast-food chain is pulling a marketing campaign that promotes its chicken sandwiches with the phrase "Hail Mary" after a Roman Catholic bishop complained the ads were offensive. Bishop Douglas Crosby, who represents a diocese in western Newfoundland, said yesterday he was taken aback by a flyer produced for Mary Brown's Inc. after he spotted it in a local newspaper last week.
Canadian Press, May 6
The Hollywood Holy Grail
New film takes Da Vinci Code conspiracy theories and shaky evidence to new heights
National Post, May 6
Earlier: Grappling with the Da Vinci juggernaut
What Rev. Wright did wrong
The American phenomenon of religious theatre that rocked Barack Obama's campaign will go down as shame - Rev. Jeremiah Wright's example of how to do it wrong. A powerhouse of a preacher, activist, social engineer and author, Mr. Wright ran afoul of Jesus's directive to his disciples to be "wise as a serpent, harmless as a dove." Instead he went off like a bomb, and as The New York Times and NBC News charged, Mr. Wright immediately made the presidential campaign about himself.
Lorna Dueck, Globe and Mail, May 6
Earlier: Stories about Barack Obama and Jeremiah Wright
Montreal cabbie fined for religious icons in taxi
A veteran Montreal cabbie who's been fined a total of $764 for having photos of his daughter, two mezuzahs -- or parchments with religious text --and a Remembrance poppy in his car has filed a complaint with the Quebec human rights commission. Arieh Perecowicz is seeking $5,000 from the City of Montreal for a "discriminatory and unlawful" bylaw, saying it infringes on his freedom of expression, guaranteed in the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms.
National Post, May 7
Victory Church closing
Inner-city refuge that feeds hundreds of homeless to shut its doors on Friday
Edmonton Journal, May 7
May 8/2008
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