A common refrain that has been invoked for many years, usually by politicians and thought leaders in our institutions, is that certain attitudes and actions are “not who we are” as people. That is certainly true for thought leaders in Canada. Like every theory coming from the progressive left, they operate from unproven premises and myriad assumptions that pit their presumed virtue over their ideological opponents. This was true when our country claimed to hold to a Judeo-Christian ethic and has redoubled under secular progressivism. The inherent flaw in this thinking is:

1. An objective moral duty is assumed for all Canadians. To either fulfill or fail to meet a certain behavioural and ideological standard, this requires the existence of an objective “ought;” an external reality against which this truth claim is measured. While the moral duties have fluctuated wildly, the sanctimony and self-assuredness have not changed. How can one claim to be an authority regarding what constitutes a “true Canadian?” If the standard isn’t fixed, one Canadian disputing with another about what makes for a true Canadian proves there is no objective measure. We are left with either might makes right or a show of hands and neither of these are satisfactory methods.
2. Who is the “we” that are presumed to be bound to act in a prescribed way? Since the left highlights uniquely the sins of Canada, then being a true Canadian can be at odds with what it means to be a true American, Aussie, Indian, or Scotsman? Are some attitudes and actions permissible or even admirable in other countries that warrant condemnation in Canada? If so, I’d love the arbiters passing this judgment to show their work.
3. Who is imbued with the inside track and unique ability to pass judgment on the determination of who we are or are not as a people? If there is no true north for objective moral duties, then how can anyone claim to pass moral judgment? As I see it, those who reject God can only ground their worldview to themselves and their personal opinions shaped by their experiences. There is no way for this to be a valid tool for claiming the right to cast judgment. Furthermore, anyone who sets themselves at odds with biblical teachings is placing themselves over God and presuming to be imbued with higher authority than the one who created them.

The issue du jour for maligning the collective heritage of Canada as not who we are has been in the controversy over the residential schools that existed from 1886 to 1979. This was the brainchild of the Canadian government whose Department of Indian Affairs partnered with Catholics and selected Protestant denominations (Catholics managed ¾ of the schools while the remaining ¼ were under the purview of either Anglican, Methodist, United or Presbyterian churches). The intent was to “civilize” the indigenous population by raising them in the values of white society including those of Christianity. Children would be uprooted from their homes and transferred into these indoctrination centres under this church and state hybrid. Like the “not who we are” narrative, this was founded on a hubristic view whereby moral betters should dictate what must be imposed on the “ignorant masses.”

The crimes reportedly visited upon many children subjected to these residential schools are horrendous and include physical and sexual abuse as well as food deprivation as a form of punishment. Recent reports highlight the existence of mass graves located by “ground penetrating radar.” This disturbing and ambiguous find has been glommed onto by many self-righteous Canadians to condemn “the church” collectively and stoke animus. This has fed the fervor that has resulted in the burning down or vandalism of numerous churches across Canada.

I want to be clear that in no way do I minimise the damage done nor cast doubt on the reported abuses. On the contrary, I believe we need to get a detailed accounting of just what took place as simply riding on emotion can wreak needless destruction to accrue even more victims. We can only come to terms with the sins of our past by thoroughly delving into who was complicit and the underlying worldview that allowed such barbarity. The murky undercurrent of the residential school debacle has been an open wound for a long time with no attempt to bring to light a satisfying accounting of what took place and how it was able to happen.

First, I believe the bodies ought to be dug up, undergo an autopsy and clarify to the best of our ability the identity of the individuals, their cause of death, and then allow for a proper burial in marked graves in the communities where they lived. To adapt the famous quote from Stalin, a single death is a tragedy, hundreds of deaths is a statistic. We need to give a face to each true victim of this travesty and that cannot be achieved by leaving matters in the realm of speculation. It is only by investigating the bodies buried on these sites where we can get answers, clarity and closure. We need to confront the suffering head on rather than as an academic exercise; thereby allowing for greater accountability for those responsible.

For those eager to condemn the church for their complicity, get in line. Even agreeing to take part in this program is indefensible. There is no basis for ripping children from their parents other than to prevent abuse, but for individuals to exploit the trauma they have caused is beyond comprehension. I base this analysis on my Christian belief that everyone has inherent worth as God’s unique creation. Nowhere in scripture can any part of this be defended. Yes, Christianity is evangelical in nature and therefore proselytizing is integral to spreading our faith, but a decision to embrace Christianity cannot be coerced. It is impossible to force anyone into the kingdom and anyone attempting to do so does not understand the basics of Christianity or are simply acting in contravention of this fact. This isn’t a side issue, but the issue. Anyone who participated in the residential schools were not representing the body of Christ, but were agents of the state, organized “religion,” and/or were pursuing some other self-serving agenda.

All of this is before we even get to the treatment of the children. We as Christ-followers are tasked with feeding even our persecutors (Romans 12:20), so denying basic needs to dependent children in our care is unconscionable. For all who did physical or sexual harm to a child, it would have been better that a millstone was tied around the neck and they were thrown into the sea. As for murder, the Bible is unequivocal in condemning this. While the rage is being visited on buildings is certainly better than individuals within the church, we all know that this is intended to send a message of contempt and hostility toward the Christian faith in general. I don’t doubt many would go further if the risks of getting caught and punishment for such actions did not carry an onerous cost. Christians would not be permitted to engage in such retribution if secularists were the perpetrators and Christians were being thus victimized. The Christian faith obliges one to forgive. Besides, it is highly unlikely that most of the churches being razed had any association with the residential school initiative.

While churches are in the crosshairs, there is plenty of blame to go around and many with red in their ledger because of this debacle. Many of those institutions responsible have representatives smugly throwing stones and Molotov cocktails at the church.

1. The government: While statues of Sir John A. McDonald, Queen Victoria, and Queen Elizabeth were toppled, architects of the residential school project were legion. McDonald may have presented the case and rationale, but he was not the first to hatch this idea. Furthermore, it received the support of the House of Commons in order to come into fruition. The institution of the government and the various parties and representatives not only helped start it but kept it going. They had an obligation to oversee the school and the entire project was under their purview. If there is one role that even conservatives and libertarians recognise as the duty of government, it is to protect the lives and rights of its citizens. If the church wanted to wrest children from their parents to indoctrinate them in their beliefs, their wishes would not have been met if the government did not give it their stamp of approval. The state should have known the names of the children and the families and should have consulted with and checked in on the efficacy of the program and the welfare of those they claimed to be helping. Seeing numbers of students inexplicably dwindle should have been a sign of something nefarious. If there is one clear lesson from COVID, it is that Caesar believes itself to have godlike dominion over the citizenry. They can tell people where they may or may not go, that they must sport a piece of cloth over their faces, and whether or not Suzie can have a birthday party with her friends and extended family or even if she can attend school. Citizens can be prevented or punished for going out in public to gather or protest their draconian measures while granting freedom to others to vandalize statues and churches or attend selected gatherings and protests in support of leftist objectives. Mass funerals for a criminal is allowed, but not for families to grieve the loss of a loved one. They grant absolution for liquor, cannabis and liquor stores to open, but will arrest those with gyms, restaurants, hair salons, etc. As for the church, pastors and elders can be subjected to crippling fines or even time in jail for meeting to worship or even “enticing people to attend church.” They can dictate if people can sing and that a building that can accommodate 700 people can now allow only 10.
2. The Media: The fifth estate has existed from the beginning and their duty is to expose abuses and major events that impact the life and safety of the community. The Halifax Gazette (the first Canadian newspaper) started over 100 years before confederation and the state-run CBC opened in 1932. Where were these organizations on this issue? Did no whistleblowers within the schools, government or community ever come forward? Is it credible that aboriginal parents simply shrugged and conceded to this tyranny even as children never made it alive out of these schools? Is any of this credible? How could mass graves be dug and filled in several locations without exciting anyone’s interest? Is it reasonable that everyone was oblivious to this up to 1 month ago? How did a virtual genocide take place without journalistic scrutiny and exposure? They have one job.
3. The Canadian citizens. How is it that the public could so easily turn on the church and not ask themselves all the questions I’ve raised about multi-institutional failures? How could the reporting of a mass grave simply based on ground penetrating radar be enough evidence to adopt a frenzied contempt for Canada and Christianity – up to participating in or yawning over the demolition of several churches? The mob mentality was easily triggered instead of demanding proof and evidence, all that was needed was a narrative. Where were the friends and families of teachers and those in the neighbourhood that somehow never asked questions about why school administrators were coming home exhausted, filthy and bearing shovels in the middle of the night?

I have so many questions about this that I cannot easily reconcile and frankly don’t make sense.

We can’t change the past, but we can and should learn from our errors. Leaving restitution aside, since I don’t know how to begin to put a price on compensating for what was done, we need to smash the infrastructure that permitted this to happen. Government has made efforts to facilitate the rights of native communities and individuals to receive services that support their culture and traditions. Social services are provided that accommodate religious and ceremonial practices and efforts made to at least attempt to show respect to indigenous peoples. This, however, should not simply be a concession for what was done, but a model to be applied for the melting pot that makes up Canada. They have not laid down their weapons for the sake of comity, but they have merely recalibrated the weapons to find a new target.

While this should not be relevant, I am a Christ-follower, but do not and have not been a member of any of the denominations which ran the residential schools. It shouldn’t matter because the problem here is unchecked power, not these churches specifically or Christianity as a whole. I’ve already made the case that these actions are diametrically opposed to biblical teaching and churches can and often have violated their mandates. We also know that child abuse, known to be a sin, was covered up – notably by the Catholic church – because the authority structure permitted it to. This is a characteristic of man’s sin nature which Christianity directly demands that we overcome.

To demonstrate this tendency is an equal opportunity malignancy, we need only look at the storied history of the decidedly secular Chinese Communist Party. First their “Great Leap Forward” resulted in the starvation, torture and death of an estimated 18 to 45 million Chinese citizens over 5 years. Beyond this, they continue to persecute the Christian church, engage in the organ harvesting of Uyghur Muslims and crush the population under population controls including forced abortions and sterilizations, social credit scores that blocks access to information and punishes any with views not approved by the government.

I bring up China because the founding of the CCP and Canada share the same date as the Chi-coms just celebrated 100 years of tyranny and oppression. Justin Trudeau, who has admonished Canadians for celebrating Canada Day based on our participation of residential schools has not so admonished China. In fact, he has called out those drawing attention to the malign actions of the CCP as racists; apparently failing to distinguish between those the victims of their brutal regime and those responsible for beating the people into submission. This should be a major red flag not only to aboriginals, but to Canada as a whole. Also, lest we forget, Justin Trudeau has opined about the high esteem in which he holds China. He marveled at how their basic dictatorship is allowing them to turn their economy around on a dime.

If China is insufficient as proof that the problem rests in unchecked power, how about the secular examples of the Soviet Union – the Gulags, anyone? Venezuela? Cuba? Rwanda? South Africa? North Korea? I seem to also recall some nasty business in Germany’s past. But what about other religions, you may ask. Try Japan, a nation that follows Shintoism and Buddhism and I dare you to read the atrocities committed during the rape of Nanking. Iran? Iraq? Afghanistan? You also may not be aware, but Hindu nationalists in India have been engaged in sweeping persecution of Christians. We could do this all day. Why do these nations not receive the same smackdown? Does Trudeau admire their basic abuses? Does he believe Canada is more moral than the rest of the world and therefore deserves to be held to a higher standard? What level of hubris must exist in any Canadian who reserves their condemnation to Canada and, specifically, its Christians?

Here is the reality currently in Canada for Christians:

• The state continues to control the schools with the objective of civilizing the nation under secular progressive values that mutate as they shift the Overton window. They dictate the social, sexual, and ideological mores that all must adopt and don’t permit dissent. Christians are trapped in these mandatory public institutions because they demand we pay for and send our children there unless we can muster enough money to pay also full tuition for a Christian school. No other segment of society (including Catholics) has this imposed on them.
• While the schools are not residential, their strict academic enforcement overtly undermines any Christian principles their parents might hold. They turn children against their parents and our faith positions by imposing radical GLBT and feminist teaching as well as critical theory and critical race theory. They are groomed into sexual experimentation and to embrace socialism and the notion people as perfectible. Students are encouraged to adopt the anti-biblical concept of social justice and even to become activists for these leftist causes. Marks are given or withheld based on ideological conformity and shaming.
• Doors have been closed to any student who does not have a diploma, certificate or degree from a college or university. The stakes for ideological conformity and mandatory enrolment in perverse course options help to rob them of critical thinking. With young people now mostly living in residence or at least away from home, they can press their foot all the way down on their leftist agenda. By the time they leave the sausage factory, most of those reared in Christian homes have been browbeaten into atheism.
• Once they graduate, any student still holding to the Christian values of their parents are likely to not get a job or be fired for not adopting the mandated groupthink demanded of the institutions. Certificates for counsellors will not be handed out to anyone who will not affirm homosexuality. Even Christian universities are not permitted to have students who volunteer to attend their school to sign a sexual code of conduct in order to practice law. The restrictions are growing and have spilled over into people being denied jobs or promotions if they don’t denounce their Christian values. Increasing numbers are losing their jobs for wrong-think.
• The federal government is seeking to censor speech specifically for those with a Christian conservative worldview. They have painted us collectively as purveyors of hate and intolerance because we don’t hold to progressive leftist ideology. Their efforts to compel compliance and manufacture consent is founded on the time-tested political principle of, “Shut up, they explained.” We are merely the latest iteration of the narrative from government of savages that need to be forced to adopt prescribed “Canadian values” which they claim full authority to determine.

When it comes down to it, Trudeau (Jr. and Sr.) have culpability on several levels for the residential school debacle. They collectively spent 21 years as Prime Ministers of Canada; tasked with oversight to the welfare of all Canadians. Neither made any effort to unearth the events that are now in the spotlight. In fact, the residential schools were transferred strictly to federal control with church involvement severed during 10 years of Pierre Trudeau’s term of office. Furthermore, both father and son are professing Catholics.

My point is not to play politics, especially as none of the mainstream political parties advance Christian values, even the party that claims to be the Conservative Party of Canada. I am similarly not attempting to compare the plight of Christians in Canada with that of the aboriginals. My point is that those with unrestricted powers and the opportunity to wield them to impose their agenda will always find people to oppress. The fact that rights are in jeopardy for large swaths of Canadians and the population is largely oblivious to this or simply disinterested means that we are doomed to repeat the pattern of abuse. The only remedy is found in the Christian values currently being snuffed out.