free video clip ontrafficking
The EFC has released a three-minute video clip to
inform and alert individuals, congregations and youth
groups to the issue of human trafficking around the
world. Feel free to use the clip in your church or ministry
gatherings: theEFC.ca/humantrafficking. The page also
allows visitors to order copies of the new EFC booklet
Not So Ancient: Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery,
which includes questions for group discussion.
pray for future missionaries
Urbana 2009 was set to highlight the current global
issues most pressing to the theology and practice of Christian missions. More than 20,000 attendees were expected
in St. Louis (Dec. 27-31, 2009) for the 22nd such student
missions conference since 1946.
canadian leads World
evangelicals
Geoff Tunnicliffe, international director and CEO of
the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA), has accepted
present and future of our religious freedom.
Readers can join the discussion by posting comments
on the blog for other readers to see. (Instead of visiting the
blog regularly, you can also sign up to get blog postings
instantly by email – just enter your email address in the
blank on the right-hand side.)
Twitter is something different again. It allows us to send
you a message of 140 characters or less (called a “tweet”).
As we scan the media, we often tweet several times each
day, including links to news stories that you’ll want to read
and perhaps respond to, either through letters to the editor
or submitting an e-comment onto a news site.
At the landmark Christian Horizons court case in
December, we were able to bring this new Twitter
technology to an “old tech” setting: surrounded by pens
and paper, I was “live tweeting” the proceedings in the
courtroom from my Blackberry during the hearing.
Here’s a brief reminder of the basics of the case: Chris-
tian Horizons serves developmentally disabled residents
in Ontario. After a former employee filed a discrimination
complaint, a Human Rights Tribunal ruled that Christian
Horizons cannot restrict its hiring to Christians, even
though it is a Christian organization. The tribunal even said
the ministry’s Christian Lifestyle and Morality Statement
created “a poisoned work environment.”
If this ruling is allowed to stand, Christian churches,
homeless shelters, aid agencies and other ministries that
serve the broader Canadian population may not be able
the invitation to serve in his role for another five years
following the conclusion of his first term of service in
2010.
Tunnicliffe, of Delta, B.C., is also the EFC’s director
of global initiatives.
The WEA ties together more than 420 million evangelical Christians. Its mission is to foster Christian unity
and provide a worldwide identity, voice and platform to
evangelical Christians.
Under Tunnicliffe, the WEA has welcomed new groups
into its constituency including the Council of Evangelical
Churches in the Holy Land, Christian Council of Korea,
the Kosovo Protestant Evangelical Church and the Evangelical Alliance of Azerbaijan.
The WEA has also launched an initiative on peace-building and reconciliation, a task force on human trafficking and a leadership development institute for its 126
national alliances.
EFC president Bruce J. Clemenger also serves with
the WEA as secretary of its 13-member International
Council. ft
to keep their faith-based requirements for employment, at
least those based in Ontario. As an intervenor in the case,
the EFC presented crucial supporting arguments aimed at
protecting all Christian charities.
Here are the kinds of info-bits I tweeted from my Black-Berry®: First, from announcing the panel of judges:
•;Heintz;v;Christian;Horizons;hearing;begins;@;10;today.
Will start tweets with HvCH to make it clear they’re re this
case. 7: 31 AM Dec 15
•;HvCH;-;Scheduled;panel;of;Divisional;Court;judges:
Justice John Jennings, Justice Sid Lederman & Justice
Katherine Swinton 7: 35 AM Dec 15
Second, noting arguments of legal counsel:
•;HvCH;-A;Miedema;for;CH-;beliefs;&;adherence;to;lifestyle
policy essential to form & quality of service delivered by
•;HvCH;-P;Jervis;for;EFC-;SCC;has;said;there’s;a;constitution-
al right to form religious communities -set beliefs, practices
& member standards 10: 14 AM Dec 16
•;HvCH;-I;Benson;for;ACBO-;Canada;is;not;separation;of
church & state like USA, but cooperation of the two with
mutual respect for jurisdictions 2: 14 PM Dec 16
I also reported on questions the judges asked.
Fortunately, my thumbs were not worn out from
playing video games but well trained from prior email
experience :-)
The EFC will continue to look for ways to keep you current and provide you with the opportunity to work with us
presenting biblical principles on matters of law and public
policy. ft
