Dominion Day or Canada Day?
Dominion Day or Canada Day?Dominion Day had been a federal holiday that celebrated the enactment of the British North American Act, which united four of Britain's colonies – Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Upper and Lower Canada (which became Ontario and Quebec)- into a single country within the British Empire and named that country the Dominion of Canada. The Anniversary of this date was celebrated as Dominion Day from 1868 to 1982 (114 years), until 1982, when Pierre Trudeau's government introduced the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The very next year, 1983, July 1 officially became Canada Day. How and why was the day changed from Dominion Day to Canada Day? If you were to search the internet, you would find the answer… A Private Member's Bill in the House of Commons went through an uneventful procedure based on a small number of MPs (13 out of a potential 282) in the chamber. The Ottawa Citizen Reported: At 4 o'clock on Friday, July 9, 1982, the House of Commons was almost empty. The 13 parliamentarians taking up space in the 282-seat chamber were, by most accounts, half asleep as they began Private Members' Hour. But then one of the more wakeful Liberals noticed the Tory MPs were slow to arrive in the chamber. Someone — exactly who has never been firmly identified — remembered Bill C-201, a Private Member's Bill from Hal Herbert, the Liberal MP from Vaudreuil, that had been gathering dust ever since it had received first reading in May of 1980. "An Act to Amend the Holidays Act" proposed to change the name of the July 1 national holiday from "Dominion Day" to "Canada Day." […] The whole process took five minutes. The MPs celebrated by declaring an early end to the session at 4:05 pm. "It is only appropriate that, in celebrating our new holiday called Canada Day, we should at least take a holiday of 55 minutes this afternoon," said New Democrat Mark Rose. The Hansard (document of all words spoken in the HOC) reads this way: Holidays Act – Suggested Replacement of Dominion Day by Canada Day Mr Hal Herbert (Vaudrieul): moved that Bill C-201 to amend the Holidays Act be read the second time and referred to the Standing Committee on Labour, Manpower and Immigration. Mr Deputy Speaker: Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt this motion? Some Honourable Members: Agreed Mr Rose: No Mr Deputy Speaker: Those in favour, please say 'Yea' Some Honourable Members: Yea! Mr Deputy Speaker: Those opposed will please say 'Nay' Mr Rose: Just this Bill, or what? Mr Deputy Speaker: In my opinion, the 'Yeas' have it. Mr Baker (Nepean-Carleton): What is going on? Mr Deputy Speaker: I declare the… Mr Smith: I rise on a point of order. Perhaps we could seek the unanimous consent of the House to see if this matter could be dealt with in a Committee of the Whole so that we could deal with all stages of this Bill today, as it seems we are meeting with the approval of the House. Mr Deputy Speaker: I started to declare that this motion was carried. The Honourable Member's point of order is a little premature. The Chair will now entertain the Parliamentary Secretary to the Privy Council (Mr Smith) on his point of order. Mr Smith: Mr Chair, perhaps we could see whether the House would be disposed to give unanimous consent to this Bill being dealt with in Committee of the Whole today. Mr Deputy Speaker: Is there unanimous consent that the Bill be considered in Committee of the Whole? Is the Honourable Member for Mission-Port Moody (Mr Rose) rising? Mr. Rose: I am not rising Mr.. Speaker. Mr Deputy Speaker: Is there unanimous consent? Some Honourable Members: Agreed Motion agreed to, Bill read the second time, and House went into Committee thereon – Mr Francis in the Chair. The Chairman: Order. House in Committee of the Whole on Bill C-201, An Act to Amend the Holidays Act. Clause 1 Agreed to. Preamble agreed to. Title agreed to. Bill was reported, read the third time and passed. Mr Deputy Speaker: Is it now agreed that we now proceed to another order of business? Mr Smith: Mr Speaker, perhaps there might be unanimous consent that the clock now reads five O'Clock. Some Honourable Members: Agreed Do you know WHO these MPs were? Some have left lasting legacies. Google their names to find out: Hal Herbert (Liberal); Walter Baker (Conservative); Mark Rose (NDP); Cyril Lloyd Francis (Liberal), Deputy Speaker 2017 marked the 150th Anniversary of the founding of the Dominion of Canada. The Canadian Charter of Rights With the Charter of Rights, the goalposts kept moving away from the Judeo-Christian values on which this country was built. Biblical 'equality' has been hijacked and no longer bears any semblance to its original intent (Leviticus 24:22). Before the 1980s, the Biblical virtues of justice, truth, fidelity, diligence, perseverance, a strong work ethic, knowledge and respect for the guiding hand of God all contributed to a 'Christian' ethos in the culture. That culture gave rise to a legal system where, among other ideals practised, were equality before the law and justice without coercion. The populace heartily condemned liberty masquerading as license. Rights without Responsibilities With Trudeau's focus on 'rights' rather than 'responsibilities', the preservation of our Biblical freedoms has been eroded. Such freedoms were fought for, first in France by Protestants (Huguenots) who gave their lives, refusing to bow their knees and their hearts to the altar of 'good works'. Many of them left to escape persecution and settle in Canada. And later, in World War 1 and subsequent wars, our freedoms were won by our soldiers who gave their lives through sacrificial service to restrain the evil forces of tyranny and anarchy, so that you may have peace. The Peace Tower Our Peace Tower, built in memory of those who gave their lives to protect our freedom, and before the start of the deconstruction of our Judeo-Christian values, shouts the messages of our Christian foundations. On the outside of the Peace Tower, you can find our motto: He shall have DOMINION also from sea to sea (Psalm 72:8) over the arch of the East Window. That verse is also our motto, chosen by the Fathers of Confederation, many of them Christians. You can read how that verse and the naming of our nation as a 'Dominion ' were chosen. The stained-glass windows inside are full of Scriptural truths and imagery. You can examine these images in the stained-glass windows for yourself here and draw your own conclusions. We have developed many products that showcase the truths found in the windows. There are books on the 25 Scripture verses, t-shirts, colouring pages, and our latest product: a 3-fold flyer that condenses the information from our books. As Christians, we need to understand where we came from as a nation, how we got here, and figure out what we can do to lift up God's standard of justice, righteousness, and truth once more. The story is not yet over. In all the changes from Confederation to the changes in the constitution, God has not changed. He has been constant. He alone sets up and takes down nations (Daniel 2). Ps Here are 4 ways you can support our work and spread the messages in the email: info@christianrootscanada.org 647-514-6798 |