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VIEWPOINT
A matter of definition

Lloyd Mackey

It was five years and one day precisely from the day the British Columbia College of Teachers declined to certify Trinity Western University’s teacher education program to the day the Supreme Court of Canada found in favour of the university.

I was a journalist covering the May 16, 1996 meeting at which that initial rejection took place. One point noted clearly five years ago was that many gay/lesbian leaders had a clear definition of “homophobia” that included Trinity Western. The university, like many Christian institutions, promotes the concept of traditional marriage, consisting of one man and one woman. Trinity Western sees that concept as being a part of a Christian worldview. Also part of that worldview is acceptance of, respect for and tolerance toward people who hold different worldviews. That acceptance, respect and tolerance are not enough, according to many gay-lesbian leaders, to exclude Trinity Western’s worldview from the “homophobic” label. Only if Trinity Western teachers, students and graduates were prepared to “nurture” and “celebrate” homosexual activity and behaviour would they be “tolerated” by these gay/lesbian leaders.

John Fisher is executive director of EGALE Canada, an advocacy group for gay and lesbian rights. In a press release following the Supreme Court decision, Fisher said that the Court ruled that “graduates from Trinity Western University are entitled to hold ‘sexist, racist or homophobic’ beliefs”. The actual words of the court decision are that “the BCCT does not require public universities with teacher education programs to screen out applicants who hold sexist, racist or homophobic beliefs”. Fisher did not tell readers of his press release that the court was referring to screening processes of public universities, not just Trinity Western.

While saying that belief was not a matter of legitimate interest to the BCCT, the Court emphasized that acting on beliefs was – and that disciplinary procedures were available to counter discriminatory conduct. Ironically, the minority opinion from Madam Justice L’Heureux-Dube, arguing that the BCCT should be allowed to discriminate against TWC on the basis of its beliefs, stated, “Requiring someone not to act in accordance with their identity is harmful and cruel.”

The Supreme Court upheld earlier decisions by the B.C. Supreme and Appeal Courts, ordering the BCCT to certify Trinity Western’s teacher education program. That means going back to the original requirements for certification. Most of those requirements related to library resources. One, however, required TWU to offer a special course acquainting future Trinity Western graduates with ways to work constructively with their students in a pluralistic community setting. That course – unique to TWU – is already in place. The court-ordered accreditation will actually take effect in the fall of 2002. That gives the BCCT, Trinity Western and Simon Fraser time to work out the transition.

The Supreme Court decision is timely because Trinity Western, approaching 40 years of age, represents the crest of a wave. Decades ago, long-established Christian universities went public and largely lost their religious character. The last was Waterloo Lutheran University. In the 1970s, it changed its name to Wilfred Laurier and became a public university – ironically, during the presidency of the late Frank C. Peters, an ordained Mennonite Brethren minister.

Today, several schools are part of the same new wave as TWC. Canadian Mennonite in Winnipeg and Atlantic Baptist and St. Stephen’s in the Maritimes are establishing their credentials as full universities. Redeemer College near Hamilton, King’s College in Edmonton and Nazarene College in Calgary are all university colleges heading for full university status. Several more are likely to emerge in the next five years. Trinity Western and these other second wave schools will help shape our nation in new ways. The Supreme Court decision on Trinity Western helps set the stage.

This is a “Doing Politics Christianly” column distributed by Christian Info Canada. Earlier columns are archived online at www.christianity.ca. Lloyd Mackey is editor and publisher of Christian News Ottawa.

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Last modified July 17, 2001.

© 2001 Mennonite Brethren Herald.
Published by the Canadian Conference of MB Churches.
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