TORONTO, Ontario, July 9, 2012 (Catholicinsight.com) – “We pray for our Bishops and the Church in Ontario and across Canada as they confront political pressure to override the teaching of the Catholic faith in our schools.” “We pray that all Catholics in Ontario will stand behind their Bishop and speak out against Bill 13 which is designed to undermine the teaching authority of the Catholic Church.”
These prayers of invocation (no. 4 and 5) were made available by the Toronto Archdiocesan Chancery Office to be read at parish Masses on Sunday, June 3, 2012, two days before the Liberals’ anti-bullying Bill 13 was passed in the Ontario legislature. Some pastors used them; many did not.
As I understand it, the passage of Bill 13 into law two days later, marks the end of Catholic education in Ontario. There is no further need to formally “defund” the Catholic school system; practically speaking, it is gone already.
Some may say that this is far too pessimistic a view. Perhaps, but the daily battle will come with the new school year in September. Those who side with the Premier, and they are many, including a host of Catholic teachers and trustees who have ignored or abandoned Catholic teaching on sexual morality, will see to that. The Law is now on their side.
Ontario’s Human Rights Commission has prepared its agents for three or more years to intervene and wear down opposing views and individuals. One student in a class, one teacher in a school suffices to make all others hesitate or omit stating the truth for fear of being deleted for ”discriminatory” conduct.
On June 5 Ontario’s Legislature passed Bill 13 with a vote of 65 to 36, Liberals and NDP against Conservatives, shortly before 12 o’ clock. MPP’s hugged one another, slapping one another on the shoulder in an atmosphere of jubilation. Only Premier Dalton McGuinty remained in his chair, looking gloomy.
Ostensibly about fighting bullying in schools, Bill 13 is much more than that. It is a product of the homosexual agenda which since the early nineteen seventies has tenaciously fought to have its lifestyle accepted, first by the general public, then recognized as a civil “right” by the judiciary under the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms, and finally given “equality “in 2005 under Prime Minister Paul Martin, who even removed the definition of normal marriage between one man and one woman. Today it has triumphed in the schools.
From here on activists will seek to deform the consciences of toddlers and students. School materials have been in preparation for years. Barbara Hall, Commissar of the Ontario Human Rights Commission, holds that today her Commission overrides all other rights, including the Charter’s religious section.
On June 3, the Cardinal asked all Ontario Catholics to back their bishops. But the hierarchy of the Ontario English-Catholic Teachers’ union had deserted the Catholic position long since and is in full support of the government’s “gay agenda. It has publicly and privately repudiated the Church’s moral teaching. At this point, few teachers in the Catholic system may be willing to speak out on behalf of the Church’s teaching for fear of losing their job.
As for other Catholics coming on board with Cardinal Collins, it remains to be seen whether the average Catholic in the pew will show meaningful support. Over the last two years, the Ontario bishops themselves avoided helping parents’ associations while they themselves negotiated in secret. And for five decades Canadian bishops have refused to take action against Catholic politicians who publicly dissent on grave moral issues, even though Canon law demands they do.
On June 5 the Cardinal, on behalf of Ontario‘s bishops, issued a two paragraph statement about bullying, saying nothing about the real thrust of Bill 13. The first paragraph referred to the vote. The second read as follows:
“Recognizing that the Accepting Schools Act is now the law, Catholic partners will seek, as we have always done, in a way that is in accord with our faith, to foster safe and welcoming school communities. Bullying in any form, is unacceptable. At the core of our Catholic Christian beliefs is the command to welcome every person with love and respect.”
This is not exactly a trumpet blast calling the faithful to arms and stop the sexual orientation steamroller.
June 5 was also the feast day of Saint Boniface, the English monk and martyr, who became the “apostle of Germany” and gave his life for Christ, murdered by pagans in 754 A.D. As he reflected on his future, he wrote in fear and trembling, about how the ancient Church fathers carried out their duty. How could he do otherwise? “They all lived under emperors who were pagans: Clement, Cornelius and many others in the city of Rome, Cyprian at Carthage, Athanasius at Alexandria. They steered Christ’s ship…by teaching and defending her, by their labourers and sufferings, even to the shedding of blood.” He then added: “Let us be neither dogs that do not bark nor silent onlookers nor paid servants who run away before the wolf.”
Do we have barking dogs in Ontario?
This article is republished with permission from the July / August 2012 edition of Catholic Insight magazine.