God & Government Tag

07 May 2019 First-Ever BC God and Government Conference a Success

“It is a rather audacious title for a conference – God & Government,” remarked Rev. Rob Schouten as he opened the inaugural BC God & Government.  Although the title did apparently cause some consternation for the BC Humanist Association, the approximately 55 attendees who took part in this event were edified by quality training that, when translated into action, will be a blessing to our governments and the broader public (including those who think they are better off when God and government do not mix in any way). Not only was...

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08 Apr 2019 You’re Invited! BC God and Government Conference – May 4, 2019

ARPA Fraser Valley East and ARPA Langley chapters are hosting a one-day BC God and Government Conference that will be held on Saturday, May 4th from 8:30-5:30, at Aldergrove Canadian Reformed Church. Reformed Christians from across the province are invited to attend. At the event, we will be hosting several speakers from ARPA, the community, and the BC legislature to talk specifically about provincial issues--such as SOGI and parental rights--and how to become more involved in provincial politics. We have invited MLAs to a social hour at the conclusion of the day, where conference attendees can...

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30 Jan 2019 God and Government Niagara

This past January, ARPA Niagara was able to host their first ever God and Government Conference in Smithville. The event was a great success, with nearly 40 attendees participating in multiple informative and engaging workshops on topics like pro-life politics, current legislation, and cultural engagement. A keynote speech from The Culture War author Jonathon Van Maren provided attendees with great insight into the cultural transformation the West has experienced over the past 80 years. Overall, the conference was well received and is something ARPA Niagara hopes to bring back next...

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21 Apr 2018 God and Government 2018 Day 3

  Click here to watch slideshow by Michael Zwiep The third day of non-partisan Parliament Hill advocacy at ARPA's God & Government conference began with a meditation by Dr. Ted Van Raalte, Professor of Ecclesiology at the Canadian Reformed Theological Seminary in Hamilton. Delegates were directed to 1 Timothy 6:11-21, 2 Timothy 3:10-17 and the commission of the man of God. The messengers of Christ, either in the ordained office of the ministry of the Word and Sacraments in the proclamation of the Gospel, or in the offices of Prophet, Priest and King in the...

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20 Apr 2018 God and Government 2018 Day 2

  Click here to watch slideshow by Michael Zwiep On the second day of non-partisan advocacy and national conference on Parliament Hill, delegates - along with some of the national board and staff of ARPA Canada - returned to the Rideau Room of the Sheraton Ottawa Hotel, Thursday morning, April 19, beginning the day with a meditation by Rev. Raymond Sikkema, Pastor Emeritus of the Rehoboth United Reformed Church of Hamilton. Delegates were directed to Revelation 6:9-11 and called to bear witness of the Word of God in the halls of Parliament. The assembly responded by singing the great hymn...

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19 Apr 2018 God and Government 2018 Day 1

  Click here to watch slideshow by Michael Zwiep Drawing active members of confessional Reformed churches across Canada, over seventy delegates, along with a dozen board and staff of ARPA Canada, assembled on Parliament Hill, Wednesday, April 18, the first day of a non-partisan advocacy exercise on the hill and bi-annual national God & Government conference. Representing Reformed congregations in electoral districts across British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba and Ontario, delegates prepared to defend preborn human rights, palliative care as an alternative to doctor-assisted suicide, religious freedom and support for family values, as well as encouraging recognition of faith-based voters. Delegates assembled...

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09 Jan 2018 God and Government 2018

God & Government is our signature three-day event in Ottawa that provides Reformed Christians with the opportunity to meet with Parliamentarians and to train and strategize with other Christians. This year we will be hosting it from April 18 through 20, unlike previous years where we hosted in May. Delegates are expected to arrive the evening of the 17th and can leave anytime after 3:00 p.m. on the 20th (unless just attending the banquet). Thanks to very generous donors, this event is heavily subsidized. We ask that all those interested in attending...

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19 May 2016 GG16 Spotlight: A call to action

The last session of God & Government 2016 was not simply a wrap up and a goodbye; with so much Executive director Mark Penninga encourages delegates at the closing reception of God & Government 2016 at stake, that simply wouldn’t be enough. On the eve of the March for Life, and as some of the delegates headed home, Executive Director Mark Penninga and Grassroots Director Colin Postma addressed them with a passionate call to action. Penninga reminded the crowd of how much they’d accomplished during the conference alone; over 50 meetings with MPs and Senators, demonstrating with 6890 baby booties on the Parliament Hill lawn, and taking in a number of informative and educational presentations. What was next? Would it be enough to go home, filled with interesting facts and good stories to tell? No, it was now time to take real action! Penninga reminded the crowd of what the grassroots had already done, leading up to God & Government 2016; they had seen a former local ARPA board member, Arnold Viersen, elected as member for Peace-River Westlock; they saw a stunning flag display on Parliament Hill, commemorating 100,000 aborted babies and resulting in smaller local displays over the next year and a half, and they saw interventions in key Supreme Court cases by ARPA’s legal team. Penninga urged the delegates not to return home an act, as John Piper called it, like “practical atheists”; men and women who may support certain beliefs, but do not let those beliefs motivate them take action.
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Dr. Boot speaks in Ottawa on the death of man and the crisis of social order at the Tuesday God & Government banquet

19 May 2016 GG16 Spotlight: Dr. Boot on The death of man and the crisis of social order

Tuesday evening, after a long day of presentations and meetings with members of Parliament, ARPA Dr. Boot speaks in Ottawa on the death of man and the crisis of social order at the Tuesday God & Government banquet delegates were treated to a delectable dinner at the Sheraton hotel. The evening banquet was centred around an address from the Reverend Dr. Joe Boot, senior pastor of the Westminster Chapel in Toronto, founder of the Ezra Institute for Contemporary Christianity, and eminent Christian apologist. Dr. Boot addressed the breakdown of culture stemming from the rejection of God. He began by defining the identity of mankind; they were created and placed in the Garden as image bearers of God, and it is in this lens alone that they find the fullness of their identity. Man can only be understood relative to God, as His creation and His image bearers. Recognizing that he is not God, man ought accept his limitations in this world; however, this is not what we see today. The average man has lost sight of God, and denied any higher ideal than himself. This blindness has become meaninglessness; humanity has become dispensable, depersonalized, and adrift. Dr. Boot quoted lyrics from Sting, where the artist was left only with romance as a way of finding meaning: You could say I lost my faith in science and progress You could say I lost my belief in the holy church You could say I lost my sense of direction You could say all of this and worse but If I ever lose my faith in you There'd be nothing left for me to do  
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Jordan Bateman of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation speaks to God & Government delegates

18 May 2016 GG16 Spotlight: Taking on Goliath with Jordan Bateman

Does the prospect of swimming against the political tide in Canada intimidate you? Have you ever Jordan Bateman of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation speaks to God & Government delegates felt like the metaphorical David, armed with little power and few resources, facing the Goliath of secular culture and its many allies? Many attendees at God & Government 2016 have undoubtedly felt like this during at least some point in their political activism. On Wednesday morning, God & Government attendees were privileged and encouraged to hear Jordan Bateman of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) tell the story of their “David and Goliath” victory over a proposed transit tax in the Vancouver municipality. Translink, Vancouver’s regional transportation authority, receives 1.4B in municipal taxes, and in 2014 they wanted more. Jordan Bateman, in his work with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, had already exposed TransLink as a wasteful organization, documenting their excesses, inefficiencies, and inability manage money; his work had made the TransLink brand toxic. As a result, Premier Christy Clark had declared in her 2013 campaign that a re-elected Liberal government would not allow any new municipal taxes without a referendum.
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