I was horrified to see the news of the beheading of the statue of the Virgin Mary at Our Lady of Lebanon Church in Toronto this past weekend. Acts of vandalism like this seek to intimidate and cancel public religious practice, and are emboldened by a broader sense of impunity for those who attack statues or monuments of any kind. Politicians, the media, and all of us must speak out when acts of vandalism li ...

The Liberal government has brought forward another bill on euthanasia, making it even easier for people to be killed by their doctor or nurse practitioner if they request it. When this government brought in euthanasia in the first place, they said that some of the so-called “safeguards” that were in place would protect people from being pressured into choosing death prematurely. Unfortunately, the new bill ...

Last week, four of my caucus colleagues and I were pleased to nominate Maggie Gobran, or “Mama Maggie” as she is better known, for the Nobel Peace Prize. I also spoke about that nomination in Parliament. Mama Maggie’s story has inspired me and so many others, and further recognition will help her continue to expand her work. Mama Maggie has been referred to as “the Mother Teresa of Egypt”. Thirty years ago, ...

René Girard was a Christian anthropologist, whose insights about the ways communities operate shed light on the persecution of minorities. Why do majority communities in certain parts of the world choose to spend time and resources harassing minority communities that do not threaten them? There are a variety of different explanations, but I think Girard has one of the best. Some would argue that minority pe ...

I was, and still am, a big fan of the Aladdin story. In various tellings and different versions it delivers a sense of exotic intrigue, along with a very imminent sense of the unlimited potential that we all have. Aladdin is poor and disadvantaged – and yet he rapidly approaches the highest levels of power and possibility. In the films, as Aladdin has his opportunity to make it big, he struggles with self-d ...

As a Christian in politics, people often ask me how my religion and my politics fit together. Some people say that faith should not mix with politics. But I believe that all people in politics are influenced by their basic beliefs, whether or not they are religious. There’s some advantage to speaking about that reality openly. My foundational ‎assumptions about right and wrong are shaped by what might be ca ...

I was very saddened to learn of yet another attack on the Egyptian Christian community. Seven Egyptian Christian pilgrims were recently killed while travelling to the Monastery of Saint Samuel the Confessor. Meanwhile, the case of Asia Bibi is in the news again. She has been acquitted by Pakistan’s Supreme Court, but faces continuing potential difficulties as a result of violent protests calling for her dea ...