By Alan E. Sears
President, Alliance Defense Fund
September 19, 2003

(AgapePress) - Radical homosexual activists who demand public approval for their behavior have mounted another significant legal attack on the Dominion of Canada.

A bill scheduled for a vote in Parliament this week in Ottowa would add those with a "sexual orientation" to the list of "identifiable groups" protected in the hate crimes section of the Canadian Criminal Code. As Thomas Langan, president of the Catholic Civil Rights League points out, existing law already has satisfactory provisions "to stop people from advocating violence against" those who are "homosexually inclined" or homosexually "active."

Langan says "advocating hatred is always seriously wrong. But laws making it illegal must respect fundamental social, religious, and legal traditions, as well as relevant political realities. Bill C-250 fails on all counts."

In section 318 of the Canadian Criminal Code, "colour, race, religion or ethnic origin," make up the existing "identifiable" categories of those protected from so-called "hate propaganda," but a member of the Canadian socialist New Democratic Party wants to add "sexual orientation" to the list.

If you think this has no effect on you here in the United States, think again. Canadian law influences us more than we realize. Remember, when the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its ruling in June finding that those engaging in sodomy enjoyed special protection under the Constitution? The majority opinion cited foreign law as a guiding light. Former federal court of appeals judge Robert Bork says "The internationalization of law, particularly constitutional law, is further along than you may think." We need to be wary of freezing legal cold fronts sweeping south.

Canadian pro-family activists are not going to absorb this assault on their right to live and share the Gospel without resisting. In the words of Laurie Geschke, president of REAL Women of BC, (www.realwomen.bc.ca) they plan to do something "very American" this week to combat the seemingly inevitable passage of C-250 and to save freedom of speech and religious liberty for their children.

Pro-family organizations plan to "flood Parliament with phone calls." It is thought that Canadians have never besieged their national legislature with opinions on one targeted issue. They sign petitions, write letters, and take a more passive approach to activism than their American cousins. As Geschke told the Alliance Defense Fund, the "governing elite thinks we’re stupid." The pro-family activists will surely be criticized by these same cultural and political elites for trying something "American," but we will be praying for their success.

You don’t have to be a Canadian jurist or lawyer to understand the possible legal outcomes of bill C-250. The problem is the open-ended nature of "sexual orientation." It will mean those who engage in homosexual behavior will now have more special privileges; but it also may mean much more. The proposed Canadian law -- like most other brave new world efforts -- fails to define what "sexual orientation" means. Does it mean such things as the American Psychiatric Association calls Pedophilia, Paraphilia, Exhibitionism, Frotteurism, Voyeurism, and Sadism? Confusion prevails even among the most radical activists about what such terms really mean, because of their desired to be fully "inclusive."

In an affront to thousands of those with homosexual inclinations now living now living a celibate or even heterosexual life, supporters of the legislation claim that homosexual behavior cannot be controlled. It’s a "natural occurrence on a global scale" and homosexual behavior is just like being "of African American, Aboriginal or religious descent." Therefore, those engaged in homosexual behavior "deserve the right to equal treatment in society the same as any other individual." Supporters also believe C-250 "would extend special protection against hate propaganda to people based on their sexual orientation."

That "special protection" includes silencing the church.

As Bruce Clemenger, president of the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada, wrote almost a year ago: "The inclusion of sexual orientation could do much more than criminalize speech that motivates people to acts of violence. Since hate is not defined, and because sexual orientation does not distinguish between the person and the sexual practice, this bill could silence reasonable public discussion about the immorality of certain sexual practices and even implicate the Bible."

The Canadian Bible Society knows what’s at stake. In a news release this summer, the society said the "mission of the Canadian Bible Society is to translate, publish, and distribute the Bible in the languages of the world, and to encourage its use. That mandate, however, may be threatened by ... Bill C-250 .... The Canadian Bible Society neither supports nor condones the promotion of hatred or acts of violence against any person, nor does it condone speech that incites people to violence. Thus, the Society is not troubled by the objective of prohibiting these. The Society is concerned, however, that the proposed legislation may be used to silence reasonable debate and the traditional teachings of the Bible and the Church by making the expression of moral disapproval of certain forms of sexual activity a criminal offence ....The Bible Society also encourages Canadians to speak out in order to ensure that the Criminal Code not be used to censor the Bible and to guarantee that the freedom to express moral views not be lost in Canada. Please protect religious freedom in our country."

No one can credibly claim to be a person of faith and yet advocate acts of violence or hatred against those ensnared in destructive behavior. But no one can credibly claim to advocate free speech while planning to persecute people of faith for speaking their consciences regarding morality, biblical teaching, and sexual conduct.

We can only imagine how bad things will be stateside if our Supreme Court continues to seek guidance from foreign law to "interpret" our Constitution. It’s time for people of faith north of the border to flood parliament with calls -- but it’s time for all of us, here and in Canada, to pray for both countries.