News

By John-Henry Westen

OTTAWA, December 1, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Given all of his speaking engagements at Catholic events, many Canadians not surprisingly believe Justin Trudeau to be an exemplary Catholic.  However, Justin, like his late father – former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau – is extremely up-front about his dissent from Church teaching on abortion and homosexuality.

Trudeau, who was a featured speaker at a 2001 major lead-up event for the 2002 World Youth Day in Toronto, appeared on a French-language CBC show in June in which he expressed his positions on those two moral issues.  A DVD of the interview was released in late November and has been obtained by LifeSiteNews.com.

During the program, the eldest son of the late Prime Minister and now Member of Parliament discusses his faith, calling himself a “believer.”  However, Trudeau is clear on his distance from the Church on moral matters.  “As a politician I have political positions on gay marriage and on abortion that don't at all resemble those of the Catholic Church,” he said.

Trudeau says, moreover that he does not “find contradictions” in being a believer and holding positions contrary to the faith.

Trudeau, 38, was elected a Member of Parliament for the riding of Papineau in October 2008 and is considered by pundits a contender for Liberal Party Leader and a future Prime Minister. 

Following in his father's footsteps, Trudeau is an ardent supporter of the homosexual movement.  He spoke at the homosexual activist group EGALE's June 5th gala this year.  In September, he participated in the Montreal Gay Pride parade, gaining special media attention for his appearance.

Despite the publicity of these stances, his reputation seems to have eluded organizers of Catholic events. 

Only few months after addressing the gay activist group, Trudeau was a key speaker for the Toronto Catholic District School Board, addressing 4,000 Catholic students. He also addressed Catholic students of the Halton Catholic school board in 2008 at the Notre Dame high school's Leadership Conference.

Covering his 2001 speech for the papal World Youth Day promo, the Toronto Star reported, “Trudeau recounted his struggles with the strict tenets of Catholicism.” To youth who were to receive the late John Paul II, Trudeau said he slowly started to rediscover his own religion and said, “Church isn't about rules. It's about guidance.” He urged the youth present to reject “old men with old ideas.”