THE EFC UPDATE - 2016.05.03
Uniting Evangelicals to bless Canada in the name of Jesus
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LAST CHANCE TO REVISE ASSISTED-SUICIDE LAW?
EFC staff are appearing tomorrow before a House of Commons committee on Bill C-14, the government’s proposal to legalize assisted suicide. The presentation to the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights by EFC President Bruce Clemenger and Director of Policy Julia Beazley is scheduled for 6:20 p.m. Eastern and will be broadcast live online. The EFC outlined yesterday the specific amendments it is proposing in a written submission.
ADD YOUR VOICE
The EFC encourages you to contact your MP to ask for strong, specific conscience protection in its assisted-suicide law, Bill C-14. Our Urgent Action page has all the information you need to prepare for this timely and important communication. It can take less than half an hour for you to make sure your MP knows your views about assisted suicide.
EFC WEBINAR: THE PROBLEM OF PORNOGRAPHY
Registration is now open for the next EFC webinar, scheduled for Tuesday, May 24, 2016 and featuring Julia Beazley, EFC director of public policy. The webinar will present an overview of the problem of pornography and its connection to human trafficking. It will also explore practical ways church leaders can equip their congregations to resist and fight it. Join us to add your own contributions to the discussion and learn more on this challenging issue.
GREETINGS TO ASSEMBLIES
EFC President Bruce J. Clemenger will be in Montreal tomorrow to bring greetings on behalf of the EFC to the general conference of The Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. On Saturday he will be in Waterloo, Ont., to bring greetings to the Canadian national gathering of the Christian Reformed Church. Both denominations are affiliates of the EFC. EFC staff also recently attended this year’s Parliamentary Forum on Religious Freedom, hosted by MP David Anderson in Ottawa. Guest speakers included Os Guinness, Janet Epp-Buckingham, Mario Silva and Abdu Murray.
COMING EVENTS AT THEEFC.CA/CALENDAR
→ Festival of Hope Involvement Seminars, Vancouver area, May 3-10
→ Equipping for Vocations in the Workplace, Vancouver, May 4-6
→ Ascension Day, May 5
→ Leadercast 2016: Architects of Tomorrow, simulcast, May 6
→ Celebration of Hope youth training, Happy Valley-Goose Bay, May 6-7
→ Refresh 2016, Toronto, May 6-7
→ Write West Coast, Abbotsford, May 7
→ Theological Student’s Association Conf., Montreal, May 12-15
FACING PUBLIC POLICY ISSUES
The EFC’s Julia Beazley will discuss Bill C-14 on 100 Huntley Street on Thursday's broadcast (May 5). Recently she also discussed sexual exploitation and how we can fight it at a May 1 seminar in Newmarket, Ont. Consider inviting an EFC speaker for your group or church at theEFC.ca/speakers.
MEET YOU IN YOUR NEIGHBOURHOOD
Don McNiven, the EFC’s director of affiliate and donor relations, is visiting across Ontario during May and then New Brunswick and Nova Scotia the week of June 6. He would be delighted to visit with supporters there to discuss the programs of the EFC and a current research extension of the Canadian Bible Engagement Study. Contact him at McNivenD@theEFC.ca or call 416-902-9110.
ARE AMERICAN AND CANADIAN EVANGELICALS REALLY THAT DIFFERENT?
Canadians have been looking south of the border in bewilderment. How could a thrice-married, immodest billionaire like Donald Trump, who is very noncommittal about his moral and religious views, be popular among Evangelicals? There’s no simple answer, but there are interesting things we can learn, according to the new May/Jun issue of Faith Today. Read the digital edition at FaithToday.ca/digital, and order a print subscription using the contact information below.
“SPRING” FAITH TODAY ON SOMEONE YOU LOVE
Want to order a subscription for someone to Faith Today, Canada’s Christian magazine? It makes a great gift that lasts all year. Faith Today helps readers to be better informed, equipped and connected! As an added bonus, subscriptions now also include our free new youth magazine, Love Is Moving. Details at FaithToday.ca/subscriptions or toll-free 1-866-302-3362.
LATEST POST AT FAITHTODAY.CA/BLOG
→ Writing the difficult story of Gospel for Asia, by Karen Stiller
COULD YOUR CONGREGATION AFFILIATE?
Congregations that affiliate with the EFC take a public stand for religious freedom, collaboration for ministry effectiveness, and the importance of bringing biblical principles to Canadian law and public policy. Join hundreds of other congregations from more than 40 denominations at work in “uniting Evangelicals to bless Canada in the name of Jesus” at theEFC.ca/affiliate.