News from Toronto

I was in Canada recently for Prison Fellowship International's Quadrennial Convocation, a wonderful gathering of Christians from 120 countries with thrilling reports of how God is at work in the lives of prisoners and their families. While there, I read -- as everybody in Canada does -- the Globe and Mail, about as liberal a newspaper as there is in the western hemisphere. But that's fitting. Canada is, after all, one of the most liberal countries in the world. The conservative party barely exists. The Christian Church has been under attack. And same-sex "marriage" has been legalized by judicial fiat in two provinces. There is now legislation in Parliament that will make it the law of the land for all of Canada, and the prime minister backs it. You can imagine my surprise on seeing the Globe and Mail headline "Liberals Planning Revolt on Same-Sex." It turns out that as many as forty liberal backbenchers, that is, junior members of the liberal party, are working on a plan to force the prime minister and his cabinet to back down on the same-sex "marriage" proposals. We might expect a backlash from conservative Christians, but from liberals? A revolt within the ruling liberal party? How come? One member put it simply, "because our constituents are forcing us in that direction." Another member said he received 450 letters; yet another said there are boxes of mail, sitting unopened in his office, from constituents. And yet another had more than 200 letters, phone calls, and e-mails. Ordinary people in one of the most liberal nations in the world are fighting their own governing party over the imposition of same-sex "marriage." Why? Because something inside of them is telling them this isn't right, because of truth that we cannot not know. Listen to what Wayne Easter, solicitor general of Canada, said. "There is a difference between heterosexual couples when they get married. It's procreation. That can't happen with same-sex couples." Not only does he come to the right conclusion, but he also comes almost intuitively to an understanding of the natural order. There are biological differences between men and women, we have different roles, and procreation is the essence of marriage. Those of you reading this commentary may be motivated by the Scripture. I'm glad you are. But in the public square, the solicitor general has the right argument. Procreation can't happen in a gay or lesbian relationship -- it cannot be marriage. And to call it that demeans the institution of marriage so vital to society's survival. As a result of letters pouring into Parliament members' offices in Canada, it now looks like the government same-sex "marriage" bill could be defeated in Parliament when it is voted on in the next couple of weeks. What I want to know is why aren't Americans expressing similar outrage? In the wake of the Lawrence decision, legalizing sodomy and declaring private consensual sexual conduct constitutionally protected -- a prelude to same-sex "marriage" -- there has been relative calm. Same-sex "marriage" is a court decision away. We need to wake up. Call us here at BreakPoint (1-877-3-CALLBP) so that we can send you a packet that will equip you to debate this issue in the public square. Canada is one-tenth the size of the United States, but Canadian members of Parliament are getting hundreds of letters. U.S. representatives should be getting thousands. Let's get busy. For further reading and information: Jane Taber, "Liberals planning revolt on same-sex," Globe and Mail, 7 August 2003, A1. Brian Laghi, Kim Lunman, and Campbell Clark, "Liberals facing defeat in same-sex free vote," Globe and Mail, 14 August 2003. Campbell Clark, "Tory Leader wants Ottawa to get out of marriage," Globe and Mail, 14 August 2003. Stephanie Levitz, "Tories still divided on same-sex issue," Cnews, 14 August 2003. Richard Morin and Alan Cooperman, "Majority against Blessing Gay Unions," Washington Post, 14 August 2003, A01. BreakPoint Commentary No.030807, "The Struggle for Marriage." Call 1-877-3-CALLBP for the BREAKPOINT MARRIAGE AMENDMENT INFORMATION PACKET. It includes this article by William Bennett, a chapter from Bennett's book The Broken Hearth on marriage and family, this article by J. Budziszewski, the text of the Federal Marriage Amendment, and a chart showing the amendment's legal impact. Andree Seu, "Saying Hard Truths Differently," BreakPoint Online, 29 July 2003. Gina Dalfonzo, "Speaking Different Languages," BreakPoint Online, 31 July 2003. J. Budziszewski, What We Can't Not Know: A Guide(Spence, 2003).

08/18/03