Reformed Reflections

In 1911 more than 95 percent of the population in Canada had a church connection; and in Newfoundland in 1901 it was nearly 100 percent. The Christianity of British North America was not so varied or so nearly a cross section of world Christianity as was that of the United States. There was an absence of large new indigenous denominations. New religious groups, such as the Mormons and Christian Science, were U.S. imports. The pioneer stage was passed quickly and did not leave the same kind of impact on Christianity as in the U.S. Canada did not have a series of frontier revivals and camp meetings as in the U.S.; though they did have their repercussions in this nation. Protestant Christianity in British North America displayed a marked vigour, but it was more sober in expression and conservative. The majority of 19th century immigrants came from England and Scotland. The main motive of the British migration to Canada was economic and, accordingly, Canadian Protestantism was more conservative and less idealistic than that of the U.S. The Protestants seemed to have been more successful in holding their traditional constituency after immigration than in the U.S. In the course of migration from the Old World, very few had dropped their hereditary faith and some had it deepened.

Extensive aid to missions was given by societies and individuals connected with the Church of England. The Baptists and Methodists also received support from their homeland.

Schools for Indians were conducted by missionaries. The government made financial grants, which were often supplemented by white congregations. In 1914 the vast majority of whites, at least 3/4 of the Indians and some from among the small groups of Orientals thought themselves as Christians.

The Christian faith had a tremendous influence on education. Schools - from elementary to university - owed their existence directly to the church. As late as 1890 in most of the provinces of the Dominion the majority of the schools were under the control of the various denominations and had religious instruction as part of their curriculum. Latourette notes, "Even in Ontario, where the schools were undenominational, prayer and reading of the Bible were part of the procedure and the clergy were empowered to make arrangements for the teaching of religion. In 1890 the structure of denominational schools was abolished in Manitoba, partly through Protestant opposition to the influence of the Roman Catholic clergy." (Latourette, Kenneth Scott. A History of the Expansion of Christianity. The Great Century, vol.5. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1971. p. 41.)

Few provisions deal explicitly with French-English relations. The major direct references serve to protect the rights of the English minority in Quebec. Section 93 of the Act provides constitutional protection for "any Right or Privilege with respect to Denominational Schools which any Class of Persons have by Law in the Province at the Union." It guarantees the Protestant minority in Quebec the same rights to separate schools as the Roman Catholic minority received in Ontario. David Bell and Lorne Tepperman state that because this provision is termed in terms of religion rather than language, and because control of education was vested in the provincial government, Francophones outside Quebec had to fight for the right to education in the French language from the outset. The authors also mention that two other provisions of Section 93 allow for appeals to the federal cabinet in the event that educational rights are infringed. They permit the federal Parliament to legislate remedies "for the due Execution of the Provisions of this Section and of any Decision of the Governor General in Council [ie:, the Cabinet] under this Section." (Bell, D., & Tepperman, L. (1979). The roots of disunity. A look at Canadian political culture. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, pp. 121f.)

Denominational schools are thus specifically guaranteed in Quebec and Ontario, i.e., in Quebec public schools are Roman Catholic and the separate schools are all non-Roman Catholic, while in Ontario the public schools are all non-Roman Catholic and the separate schools are Roman Catholic. Furthermore, by the terms of the acts which made them provinces, says M. James Penton, denominational schools must exist in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Newfoundland. And he notes that there is nothing to stop the provinces from funding denominational education if they desire to do so. Penton also points out that although all religions in Canadian society are theoretically equal, in fact they are not. Instead of there being "a wall of separation between church and state," in Canada there is what may be described a quasi-establishment. (Penton, M. James. Religious Freedom and Canadian Law. An Historical Evaluation. The Canadian Society of Church History Papers. 1980.)