Do Americans and Canadians Have Different Ideas on Racism?
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Graeme Decarie
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I don't think so. All the churches are pretty passive. And the dominant ones appear to be fundamentalist - especially the Baptists.
But they have no influence whatever in political life. Their major work is putting up cutesy slogans (Life is short, so pray hard) on their billboard. They also write sermonettes of the tweety bird bedtime variety for the Faith Page in the paper. Otherwise, the
churches are fully occupied in their Christian duty to eat pancake breakfasts and listen to old time gospel music sung through the noses of country and western trios.
The Irvings are Presbyterians. The have the Irving Chapel to which we are all invited in summer to hear the most expensive Presbyterian minister money can buy.
But they have no influence whatever in political life. Their major work is putting up cutesy slogans (Life is short, so pray hard) on their billboard. They also write sermonettes of the tweety bird bedtime variety for the Faith Page in the paper. Otherwise, the
churches are fully occupied in their Christian duty to eat pancake breakfasts and listen to old time gospel music sung through the noses of country and western trios.
The Irvings are Presbyterians. The have the Irving Chapel to which we are all invited in summer to hear the most expensive Presbyterian minister money can buy.
Graeme Decarie
Well-Known Member
I particularly remember the Baptist slogan of several years ago "Pray for OUR soldiers in Afghanistan" The capital letters in OUR are mine.
Graeme Decarie
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We also have a large number of independent churches that I have never heard of before. Most are fundamentalist. But, politically, they're all irrelevant.
Mendalla
Happy headbanging ape!!
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Statistically speaking, that's true for much of Canada, though, given that the UCCan is the largest Protestant denomination. I imagine that in some regions (Ontario possibly being one of them) the Anglicans are fairly big, too. However, I do find that as Christianity shrinks in Canada, it also seems to be fragmenting more and more with lots of churches that are affiliated with smaller denominations and independent churches. Around here, two of the independent evangelical churches are among the largest in the city now (West Park and North Park).
There's some exciting stuff going on in the area of church planting .
Mendalla
Happy headbanging ape!!
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Those are actually older than I realized. Both date back to the 60s but built their current edifices (which I dislike, both are ugly, inefficient looking monsters) in the last decade or so. So plants are exciting but can also take time to come to fruition, I would say.
Time will tell. The ones I'm most aware of tend to be a lot more community-oriented than traditional attractional churches are
Many church
plants never come to fruition. They fail for a number of reasons, but perhaps the key one is lack of support from a greater denomination or network. The model of church planting I like best is thus when an established church gives birth to a new missional outpost.
Seeler
Well-Known Member
I can't speak for all of NB - I just happened to have been born here, and I've lived in Fredericton for the past 40 year.
I just got out the phone book and quickly checked the yellow pagers under church for Fredericton and surrounding area (Stanley, McAdam, Lincoln, etc.). Under the Atlantic Baptist Convention there are at least twenty churches listed, as well as a fair number of others who call themselves Independent Baptist, or Primitive Baptist, or whatever. There are ten RC, eight Anglican, and two Presbyterian (I'll have to check that again - I think there are three). And there are twelve UCC - six of them within the city of Fredericton.
Where did you get your stats, Jae? Are they up to date?
I just got out the phone book and quickly checked the yellow pagers under church for Fredericton and surrounding area (Stanley, McAdam, Lincoln, etc.). Under the Atlantic Baptist Convention there are at least twenty churches listed, as well as a fair number of others who call themselves Independent Baptist, or Primitive Baptist, or whatever. There are ten RC, eight Anglican, and two Presbyterian (I'll have to check that again - I think there are three). And there are twelve UCC - six of them within the city of Fredericton.
Where did you get your stats, Jae? Are they up to date?
GeoFee
I am who I am becoming...
I am skeptical of the suggestion that the Catholic and United Churches are the dominant flavours of religion in Fredericton in particular and New Brunswick in general. Based on my limited experience, in contrast to your (Jae) extensive experience, I would have to say that the Baptists are easily in the forefront, together with the Wesleyans. These are very supportive of the existing feudal economy by encouraging submission to the will of the State as equivalent to following the way of God revealed in Jesus. Religion is a personal and private matter with nothing to say to the exercise of political (economic) power to benefit a minority at the expense of the majority.
Delightful Life
M&M, Cascadian Lovers
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Not going by stats here Seeler. Going by first hand
experience.
Delightful Life
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hmm, sounds like a scientific claim, there
of course, just because something is religious, doesn't mean that they have the same casual effects -- without having actual studies, i wouldn't be able to say if a UCC church had more affect than a Wesleyan church...and that includes # -- if not all BS works in the same way (including ability to influence, what it influences, etc), we can't say that a larger # of such-and-such church is going to have a greater effect...
so, cognitive biases...
how to figure this out, beyond needing to fit reality into our preconceptions?
hmm...
GeoFee
I am who I am becoming...
Which,
maybe,
cuts to the quick in the matter of racism, here or there. We assume the other's difference presents threat to our sameness. We pre-judge consequence based on insufficient or biased evidence. Along this line we may include the categories of poverty by which discrimination is expressed in almost all times and all places; excepting, perhaps, in the general experience of pre-encounter indigenous peoples on all continents.
Mutters off into the evening....