On Feb. 6, MP Stephen Woodworth filed a motion with the Clerk of the House of Commons to ask Parliament to form a special committee to study what he called Canada’s “archaic” definition of human being, a move broadly supported by the Canadian pro-life movement. Woodworth, a Conservative MP from Kitchener-Centre, notes that Section 223(1) of the Criminal Code which defines human [...]
After a Calgary policeman arrested a pro-life activist Feb. 4 over his use of graphic abortion signs, the police service have dropped the charges and issued an apology, returned his signs, and pledged to prevent similar incidents in the future. Francisco Gomez, a staff member with the Canadian Centre for Bioethical Reform, was leading the group’s regular “Choice” Chain at a busy [...]
Two recent events south of the border illustrate the importance and centrality of life issues in the political sphere: the Obama administration mandated that all employers cover contraception in insurance plans and the Komen Foundation for a Cure, which raises money to fight breast cancer, was bullied into reversing its decision to stop giving grants to Planned Parenthood. Both stories demonstrate the [...]
Editor’s Note: Isaac Longworth is the first-place winner of the 2011/12 Fr. Ted Essay Contest, co-sponsored by Niagara Right to Life and The Interim-. He attends St. Mary’s High School in Woodstock, Ont. The Interim will publish the second and third place winners in the April edition of the paper. Abortion-on-demand has been permitted in this country of ours for twenty [...]
Linda Gibbons was committed to a trial to be held on Thursday, April 26, on a charge of disobeying a court order, during a brief appearance in a Toronto courtroom Feb. 14. The trial, expected to last four hours, will be held beginning at 10 a.m. in room 504 of the College Park courthouse at Yonge and College Streets in downtown Toronto. [...]
Dalton McGuinty’s Liberal government has pushed an equity and inclusivity initiative on all Ontario publicly funded schools, which has Christian groups and concerned parents worried about the ability of Catholic schools to remain faithful to the teachings of the church. Those concerns were proven correct, says Campaign Life Catholics, when the government introduced Bill 13, an anti-bullying bill entitled The Accepting [...]
In our forthcoming April issue we have a feature on religious freedom in Canada and Europe and an editorial on why the secular elite cannot tolerate Christianity. We'll have those stories online in a few weeks. Persecution comes in different forms and restrictions on the ability to live faith publicly very different than martyrdom, so we in the West should be thankful [...]
Jack Fonseca of Campaign Life Catholics draws on J.R.R. Tolkien to look at the anti-Catholic efforts of U.S. President Barack Obama and Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty. This is the key: "this subversion of Catholic rights threatens all people of faith." As Glenn Beck recently said, "we are all Catholics now." The state is greedy and cannot countenance an entity that challenges its authority as [...]
Great story from our March issue of the paper about Isabella Santorum. Rick Santorum's daughter has Trisomy 18 and is called a hero for surviving for so long after birth, but the real story is that her parents fought to keep her alive. Often hospitals and doctors will refuse to provide treatment for these babies when they are born. The Santorums made sure Bella was given [...]
Last Fall I spoke at a couple of Campaign Life Coalition regional conferences about the sources of media bias as it affects the abortion issue. Last month, The Interim reprinted that speech. The most important insight is that not all bias is ideological; sometimes reporters are just bad at doing their job and I identify the main reason for this problem is the fact [...]
Heather Mallick, a Toronto Star columnist and admitted atheist, dealt with a pro-life issue recently and pleaded with readers: “Quick now, when does life begin?” I hope I can help you, Heather. I’m looking at a black and white picture of a 7-month-old baby boy who was aborted in Houston, Texas, on Dec. 8, 1990. He was 16 inches long with a [...]
When polled, Canadians ranked judges among the most trusted professionals and lawyers among the least. “Don’t Canadians know that judges are lawyers?” Dingwall asked, when I showed him the rankings. “Maybe Canadians think that getting appointed to the judiciary makes lawyers more trustworthy,” I suggested. “But politicians appoint them,” Dingwall said, “and the poll shows that Canadians trust politicians even less [...]
In the 2009 film Up In The Air, George Clooney and co-star Vera Farmiga were enlisted to basically make air miles seem sexy. In Higher Ground, the directorial debut in which Farmiga also stars, she’s set herself an even more difficult task – making an intelligent, general interest film about religious faith. In a featurette included with the film’s DVD release, [...]
This month marks The Interim’s 30th year of publication. Such anniversaries are always occasions for celebration and gratitude – but they are also bittersweet: as proud as we are to be Canada’s pro-life, pro-family newspaper, we regret the fact that pervasive media bias makes our existence necessary, that mainstream opinions about life and culture in our country are not represented in our [...]
There has been a great deal of discussion in Ontario recently about a radical and intrusive sex education curriculum being proposed by the province’s Liberal government. The entire campaign to indoctrinate young people into a gratuitous and obscene version of sexuality has been enormously damaging not only for children, but for parents as well. But what is sometimes forgotten in all [...]