Sign the Grassroots Apology for the Residential Schools Abuses

by Richard Long,

Starting today we are trying to get the word out across the nation that there is a way to stand with our Government as they prepare to make an official apology on June 11, 2008 about the abuses in the Residential Schools to our First Peoples.

With the help of Ken Hall, one of our key advisors, we have created on online apology at Petition Online that gives every Canadian the opportunity to sign a grassroots apology which will be alongside the governmental one.  Check it out here.

Here is the introduction that you will see in our newsletter …

 

“This June 11th. our Prime Minister is bringing a long-awaited for apology for the abuse our First Peoples suffered in Residential Schools.

For many years our hearts have been broken by the terrible stories we have heard concerning the residential schools.  As Christian leaders we commend our government leaders and want to join in asking forgiveness of all First Peoples, especially those who were abused, from those who called themselves Christians.

We are praying that this act of repentance would have a great effect toward full healing of our Canada’s First Peoples.

Rather than only our government reading a well prepared document, we are asking you to agree online with this step of reconciliation. We are praying that many citizens of Canada would participate and help to send a healing message to the First Peoples and our Prime Minister that the citizens of this great nation agree with the heart of this apology.

We believe that this action could be pivotal for the advancement of our nation and for the ongoing spreading of the gospel. Please pray for this apology and for how it is received by our First Peoples. Join us in signing the accompanying apology and send it along to as many as possible.”

Here’s the wording of the official apology …

Dear fellow Canadians,

For many years our hearts have been broken by the terrible stories we have heard concerning the residential schools. The Governments of the day took children from their aboriginal  families and entrusted their teaching and care to Christians of various churches.  The idea was wrong in conception and in practice.  We should not have agreed to it.

In many cases they did not receive the love and care of Jesus but gross abuse and violation.  We are horrified and deeply ashamed thatthose who had a sacred trust defamed the name of Jesus and linked Him with such behaviour by their actions.

The government today is acknowledging the failure of government authority to properly care for aborignal children and their families and is seeking forgiveness.  As Christian leaders we commend our government leaders and join in asking forgiveness of all First Peoples, especially those who were  abused, for the behaviour of those who called themselves Christians.

St. John the Apostle set the standard for Christians when he said,”Whoever claims to live in Him (Jesus) must walk as Jesus did.” (1 John 1:6) This standard has come to judge the Christian community.  We acknowledge our corporate failure and join with other Christians who have acknowledged this terrible wrong asked forgiveness.

May the Lord Jesus, the Head of the Church, show us forgiveness and give us grace to heal greater than the sins which caused the wounding.

Sincerely,

the undersigned.

If you are ready to sign it please go to this link. http://www.petitiononline.com/nhop01/petition.html

National Day of Action

by Wendy Turpin

Today was the National Day of Action for First Nations people and its event in Ottawa went off without a hitch. I attended earlier today at Victoria Island along with a few hundred others, staying for the entertainment and speeches followed with the march to Parliament Hill to hear the speakers. The march itself attracted a great deal of attention as we travelled up Wellington Street onto the Hill stopping traffic and pedestrians along the way. From the perspective of a non-aboriginal person, I found the event educational and enjoyable as I joined the mostly aboriginal marchers in their peaceful demonstration for change. The only thing I found dismaying was the small representation of non-aboriginals in attendance. I applaud National Chief Phil Fontaine’s and the efforts of the organizing committee (which included representatives from the United and Anglican Church of Canada) for setting a peaceful standard to protest the issue of poverty and land claims for the First Nations people of Canada. Thank you for praying and keeping these issues before the Lord; I truly believe it is His heart that the First Nations’ voice would be finally heard and heeded.

Praying for our Supreme Court

 

by Richard Long,

Praying for government means we need to also pray for our Supreme Court.  We find that the 2 statues in front of the building serve as excellent prophetic symbols about how we need to pray for Justice and Truth.  Here’s the official story about them.

At the entrance of the building are two bronze statues, 3 metres in height,

which were erected in 1970. The statue on the right side is named Iusticia

(JUSTICE) and holds a partially hidden sword. The statue on the left side is

named Veritas (TRUTH) and holds a book inscribed “Veritas”. They are ten

feet tall set on granite bases so that they stand at the base line of the

building. They are set in front of the projecting bays but not aligned with

the secondary axes.

 

These statues were created by the prominent sculptor Walter S. Allward of

Toronto. In 1912, he was commissioned to sculpt a memorial of King Edward

VII of Britain. The allegorical figures of Truth and Justice were chosen to

be part of this memorial because Allward hoped that “…through Truth and

Justice war might cease, and Peace descend over the earth.”

 

By 1920, Allward had completed the plaster version of the statues Truth and

Justice. That same year he was commissioned to sculpt the Vimy Ridge

Memorial in France. Before he left, Allward made alloy casts of the two

figures that were to be stored until the rest of the huge memorial could be

completed. The memorial to Edward VII was never completed. Truth and Justice

were forgotten until 1969, when the crated statues were found buried under a

Department of Public Works parking lot. The hilt of Justice’s sword had been

damaged and a new one was sculpted by Eleanor Milne of Wakefield, Québec.

The statues were placed in their new location, on the steps of the SCC

building, in August 1970.

Why we pray for M.P.’s

by Richard Long,

   With the resignation of our Minister of Foreign Affairs in the last 24 hours, we are reminded why these politicians need our prayers.  Placed in positions of great power the pressure and exposure can be too much for some to handle.  Grave errors in judgment occur.  These people need our prayers!

One of the regular things we do with our visiting prayer teams, is go over the top 5 prayer needs of our M.P.s.  These are areas that politicians tell us they need our prayers.

1. Family/Spouse.  Because they are often working 90 hours a week, there isn’t much time left over for quality time with children or spouses.  The divorce rate is terrible.

2. Protection.  Whether or not they are aware of it all M.P.s are in a place of great vulnerability, both mentally, emotionally and spiritually.  Their own integrity is challenged over and over.

3. Wisdom.  This is quite obvious, given the kinds of decisions they have to make each day.

4. Health.  Due to the long hours usually sitting around tables, the stress and pressure, the physical health of politicians is often compromised.

5. Friendships.  It can be lonely when you are always looking over your shoulder wondering who wants to take your position, not knowing who you can trust.  Supportive relationships are essential.

Can we encourage you to pray daily for your own M.P. in these important areas of their lives.

Praying for the next 4 weeks of Parliament

By Richard Long,

The official newspaper for the government is The Hill Times.  One of its reporters suggests that it could be a raucous few weeks ahead.  Same as usual.

Here’s part of the article which gives an overview of where Parliament is at in terms of legislation …

“Of the 55 bills introduced in the second session of the 39th Parliament, 17 are still at second reading, eight are at committee (four of which are in two “dysfunctional” committees­Procedure and House Affairs and the Justice Committee), three are at report stage and three are at third reading. Four are in Senate committees and one at second reading in the Senate. Twenty bills have passed and received royal assent. The bills which have passed include such items as the Tackling Violent Crime Act, the Security Certificates Bill, and many housekeeping ones such as budget implementation and supply bills. There are currently three government bills on the Notice Paper which have yet to be introduced in the House­a long-awaited bill on copyright reforms which has been on the Order Paper since Dec. 7, 2007, a bill to deal with the transport of dangerous goods, and a bill to deal with the election of directors on the Canadian Wheat Board.”

On an encouraging note, we saw a full apology today from the Liberal finance critic to the Finance Minister Jim Flaherty for accusations he had been making over and over again about conflict of interest.  It was good to see that apology immediately received and a crossing of the floor to shake hands.  Let’s pray for more of that!

Transformation Prayer Guide

by Wendy Turpin

I’ve been following the Transformation Prayer Guide daily devotional given out free by Prayer Transformation Ministries and is intended for those Christians who believe the fact that revival will only begin through the manifest presence of Jesus Christ and are desperate for it.  I’m including week one here for you….

Week One – Rend the Heavens Once Again *

Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains would tremble before you! …For when you did awesome things that we did not expect, you came down, and the mountains trembled before you. Since ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him. Isaiah 64:1, 3-4 (NIV)

Prayer Focus

When the Lord descended upon Mount Sinai and made His presence known to the Israelites (Exodus 19), the people trembled in fear and the mountain shook with a violent earthquake. The Lord had instructed Moses to call the people to repentance and purity prior to His visitation, but neither the people’s hearts nor the earthly realm could fully contain His manifest presence. In the same way, Isaiah expressed a longing for God to manifest Himself once again to a people who needed to be reminded of the awesomeness of their God. Isaiah cried out for the Lord to rend the heavens and come down again, bringing a renewed fear of the holiness of God. Even today, we long for the manifest presence of the Lord Jesus Christ that will usher in true holiness, righteousness, and a revival of His Church. As we wait for Him with hearts of brokenness and humility, we can anticipate that when God responds everything will be transformed in a heaven-rendering way. Come again, Lord Jesus!

Day 1: Worship God for His awesomeness and holiness.
Day 2: Confess to the Lord that you have not walked in a true fear of His power and holiness.
Day 3: Repent for the ways you have kept God at a distance through your sin and unrepentant heart.
Day 4: Ask the Lord to fill you with a desire for His manifest presence that proclaims His mighty power and fame.
Day 5: Pray that God will stir in you a heart that cries out for Jesus to bring revival and transformation.
Day 6: Pray that your church will experience an awakening to the holiness of God and a desperate desire for Jesus.
Day 7: Ask Jesus to make His presence known in your community in a way that changes everything about it.

*This has been printed without permission – copies may be obtained at the above-noted website.

An Interesting Sign

by Wendy Turpin

With Victoria Day this past Monday,  I feel it fitting to bring up a reminder of a time when God’s hand moved upon this nation as a sign and wonder in an interesting way.  In our newsletter of May 25th, 2006 we reported that the clock on the Peace Tower stopped at 7:28 AM on Wednesday, May 24th, 2006 (which is Queen Victoria’s birthday) for the first time in decades. Apparently a fuse had broken. An expert had to be flown in from the States!  … READ CBC ARTICLE REPORTING THIS!

We’ve heard several different interpretations of this interesting phenomenon. The suggestion that the numbers 728 correspond exactly to Psalm 72:8 which is the verse written on that same tower seems to make sense. They said it would take 72 hours to fix it!  Is the Lord underlining His word? “He shall have dominion also from sea to sea and from the river unto the ends of the earth.”

I don’t exactly know what a prayer is …

by Richard Long

I have seen this quote twice this week already.  Earlier I read it in the new book by Mark Buchanan titled “The Rest of God”, but then today it arrived as the “Thot of the Day” from Inward/Outward.

Prayer is not a science but an art.  When we think we have got it all figured out, we probably are very far from understanding it accurately.

By the way it is easy to sign up for the daily thoughts that get sent out by Inward/Outward.  Just go to the main site for The Church of the Saviour in Washington, D.C. and sign up to start receiving them.

Mary Oliver
I don’t know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed,
how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn’t everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?

Source: from The Summer Day

National Day of Action – May 29th, 2008

by Wendy Turpin

National Chief Phil Fontaine has called for another day of action to be held May 29th, 2008.  You can read the notice here.  Phil Fontaine is a peaceful man and is calling for a peaceful protest by all Canadians in solidarity with First Nations people to draw attention to First Nation issues surrounding poverty and the future of First Nations Children.   Mr. Fontaine does an excellent job of outlining the poverty issue amongst First Nations people in the following clip which is filled with insights into how to pray into the heart of this issue:

Also in First Nations news is the apology to be issued by the Canadian government for Canada’s attempt to assimilate First Nations children through the residential school program.  We’ve been blogging about that recently and if you’re not up to date, you can read them here.   The government has recently announced that the apology will be given on June 11th, 2008.  Watch Mr. Fontaine’s interview on the CBC about his thoughts on the apology, the day of protest and potential protests at the 2010 Olympics which also gives plenty of insight into how to pray into all these situations:

Our biggest concern for prayer is that the National Day of Action will be a peaceful event for all involved across Canada and that the militants will be held at bay.  If you’d like more information about the day of action, you can go to the AFN Website.  Thanks for praying! 

More on praying for Healing the land in the Arctic

by Richard Long,

Today we link you to the blogging being done by Roger Armbruster over at the Canada Awakening site.  He is explaining the roots of early ministry and early wounding in the Baffin Island area.

“Just after he arrived on Blacklead Island in 1894, Peck explained to Mr. Higgins, the secretary of the Anglican Church Missionary Society the strategic nature of such a mission in the Cumberland Sound. He wrote, “There are facilities here of reaching the Eskimos both in a westerly and northerly direction, and this place occupies almost a central position.”
Over the next number of years, this became true as Blacklead Island became the centre of the Anglican mission, and from there, Inuit all over Baffin Island and in Kivalliq (the central Arctic) received the Gospel, reaching eventually to Pond Inlet in the north of Baffin Island.”

Continue reading …