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The "Toronto Blessing" and Monday's elections in Canada. Are They Related?
Before I tell you about the surprise, let me describe the service itself. When I arrived, the parking lot was full of SUVs and minivans, so my first impression was that this was a fairly middle-class group. Lots and lots of casually but well-dressed people (right out of a Land's End or LL Bean catalogue) were walking toward the Church. The crowd was ethnically diverse with a fairly large number of members who looked as if they might come from India or Pakistan. As with so many megachurches, the outside of the one-floor building was functionally modern and not very attractive, but the inside was huge and very comfortable. And full. The carpeted floor was great for dancing, and the first-rate sound system carried the music of a live band. I was enjoying the dancing when speakers came onto the stage. The first was a man from Poland who cried about how his country has treated Jews. He said that the Bible tells us to love the Jews. Then came a woman who was about to get raptured. She kept talking about the "winds of change," and suddenly her body moved forcefully across the stage as if a big wind had just struck her. The pastor agreed that Christ was going to come any day and take His people out. "Winds of change" became the theme of the morning. He said repeatedly, "You can feel it in the air. He's coming any day now." The Suprise Testimonies went on for a couple of hours and I was waiting eagerly for the "Toronto Blessing" to begin. Finally it was time. I sat up in my chair, eager, perched, ready, when a woman climbed onto the stage, took the microphone, and said, "This is the time we usually worship." Did she say "usually?" Then everything happened like a slow-motion movie. "This is the time we usually worship," she said. "And I know that you all are great worshippers. But something so important has come up, that we're not going to worship in our usual way today, and we're going to write letters to members of parliament instead." At the back of the room was a long row of tables filled with letter-writing materials. Parliament was getting ready to vote on a gay marriage amendment, and they were told that this bill was unbiblical. I watched thousands of people line up obediently to write their letters and wondered if the Conservative Party would form a coalition with the Religious Right. None of the reporting I have read on the Canadian elections have mentioned anything about political organizing through the megachurches. But then I rarely read an account of the Republican coup of 1994 -- when Republicans won majoritites in both houses of the U.S. Congress for the first time in forty years -- I rarely see this event linked to the activities of the Christian Coalition.
To be fair, the new Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, came across as a moderate conservative, studiously avoiding discussion of social issues during the campaign, but then so did Bush in 2000. I hope that our Canadian friends wake up in time to stop their Religious Right from winning a strong majority in Parliament. May the "Toronto Blessing" remain a healing force and not become the dominant political force in Canada.
The "Toronto Blessing" and Monday's elections in Canada. Are They Related? | 9 comments (9 topical, 0 hidden)
The "Toronto Blessing" and Monday's elections in Canada. Are They Related? | 9 comments (9 topical, 0 hidden)
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