The Artisan Post

Just a few weeks ago, the Human Rights Commission declared Christmas as discriminatory. Read here.

It’s actually quite perceptive of the HRC to connect Christmas to its Christian roots despite attempts over the last 30-40 years to misconstrue the Christmas message… mixing it with Santa Claus and his incredible time-altering, global gift-dropping journey. Christmas is awash with stories including old St. Nik, Christmas trees, the winter solstice, Rudolph and other reindeer, and the Polar Express, all mixed in with a little bit of Jesus and erroneous nativity scenes.

And your average merchant is up for whatever Christmas message sells stuff. Because for most, t’was the night before Christmas that their bank accounts finally tipped enough into the black as they added up their Christmas sales.

This year, Christmas 2023, seemed to be no different. I popped into a couple of malls and random stores, and Christmas music, Christmas decorations, Christmas gifts, and even “Merry Christmas” was heard and seen everywhere — albeit with the same mixed messaging of the last 40 years. Rudolph and Jesus songs following one after the other.

How can anyone really know what the true message of Christmas is?

And then in comes the HRC, wading through all the hype, and saying, “Hey wait a minute! Christmas means Jesus. And we can’t have Jesus. That’s discriminatory. That’s oppressive”. (So much for any depth of perception.)

What I gather is that the HRC garnishes their Christmas claims around equal rights. If someone can have a day off for Christmas then others deserve a day off for their religious holidays. Or if people don’t celebrate Christmas, then they can’t be forced to take the day off.

So do they think to add all kinds of new religious holidays into the calendar, all the while attempting to diminish ONE… Christmas Day, as discriminatory?
And how does this help resolve their bringing indigenous spirituality into the conversation?

And quite frankly I think most bosses would be open to discussion around sorting out which religious days are important for you to take off. And if you wanted to work Christmas, I am sure that would be fine. I assume the HRC now works Christmas seeing as they deem it unimportant.

A Case of Missing the Point

But then HRC ups its game beyond equal rights and swings for the jugular. They say “all Canadians must first acknowledge Canada’s history of religious intolerance”.
And that…
“Discrimination against religious minorities in Canada is grounded in Canada’s history of colonialism,”

This is just nonsense. And a serious case of missing the point. 

In their little neo-Marxist mindset they once again aim to coerce some into a corner as being oppressed, and tag others as oppressors. And did you catch the “colonialism” mantra again? They infer that colonialism is the cause all our problems. And Christmas is lumped in with that.

But check out our history…

“This is despite the fact that the free exercise of religion has been Canadian law since before Confederation — a state of affairs that would have been conspicuously rare in the world of the 19th century.
In 1851, the colonial Province of Canada even enacted the Freedom of Worship Act, which protected “free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession and worship, without discrimination or preference.”
This early tolerance of religious pluralism is partially reflected in the fact that almost all of Canada’s predominant non-Christian religions have roots in the country stretching back nearly 100 years.”

Let’s dig a little deeper

The HRC ignores key points in history. And it is at odds with Christianity. They hate it. They will disfigure the past to make it uglier. Rip old wounds open rather than pour on salve. Seems to be trending these days.
Go figure. Our “human rights commission” is supposed to be on the look out for the rights of all the people of this nation. And here they are, once again isolating a group they choose to discriminate against with their crafty language… Christians. And it’s not the first time.

In doing so, they inadvertently knock out the very moorings of human rights… rights which are anchored in the God of the Christian faith who sets the bar for equal rights. ALL are created equally in God’s image (no matter the colour), and ALL have the same access to the redemptive work of Jesus Christ, His Son (the basis of the Christmas story – more on that in a moment).

The HRC equates colonialism with Christianity and Christianity with Christmas (and a whole assortment of other things like capitalism, land ownership, private business, farming, private property, etc). And the whole lot must be done away with. And then all our problems are supposed to just disappear.

Let me flip something around here. The HRC is connected to the Liberal government. And hey, they too hate God, Jesus, the Christian faith, and Christmas. And the Liberal government is connected to global movements that are in lock-step with all of this.

Something stinks. And I don’t think they are out for ANY of our rights (and freedoms), but rather constantly claw away at them attempting to gain more control.

Must Re-Direct

The HRC (and government ideally) must change course.

Rather than pick a group to exclude and discriminate against, as the HRC is doing to Christians, what if they began to build bridges in relationships? What if they sought to make amends for the hurts they keep unearthing? What if they owned their part?

We all know Canada’s history has some ugly stains in it. And many people did things in the name of Jesus that were not good and did not truly represent Jesus at all. No one is denying that. But don’t throw Jesus out because of the faulty actions of people in the past.

With any bit of research, you will find ugly stains in the history of the many tribes and peoples who lived here before us, as well as on all of the nations of the earth. No former nor current nation was or is perfect, nor will be. Enter in the need for Christmas… that is why Jesus came. That as all the kingdoms and nations of this earth flounder and fail, Jesus Christ came to initiate the arrival of an eternal and perfect kingdom wherein all evil, disputes, rivalry, fighting, killing, and warfare will be over.

So, rather than isolating one group to be a scapegoat for this nation’s 300 – 400 year history of formation, why not work towards actions that build up rather than tear down? The HRC is out for all human rights, correct? Why not engage with others on where they are at in life and what their experiences have been like? Why not ask what can be done to help and move things forward? Why not ask what forgiveness, reconciliation, and rebuilding might look like?

And bear in mind, so many of us arrived here in the last 75 years, or were born here. How could we have known the scarred history? Erasing history won’t make it better. Talking and working through it in the now, will.

Bringing It Back to the Point

Why does HRC hate Christmas and Christianity?
Let’s be clear. The HRC is not concerned with Santa Claus, reindeer, gifts, and not even the potential of traumatized kids when they find out that Mom and Dad were Santa.

No. The HRC does not want to risk even the SLIGHTEST chance that someone might actually hear the REAL story of Christmas… that being of Jesus Christ and who He really is. Immanuel (meaning God with us), born into the human race through the power of the Holy Spirit that came over the virgin Mary. This Jesus, who existed even before this world was made, entered in as Saviour, the Word became flesh, to dwell among people in order to save all those who would believe in Him from sin and eternal damnation.

He lived on earth, died on a cross for the sins of the whole human race, rose again in 3 days, appeared to more than 500, ascended into heaven as Ruler, was given authority over all, poured out His Holy Spirit on all claimed as His, and will come again as conquering King when the good news of Him has reached all the peoples of this earth. This, this message of Christmas (also called the gospel), is what the HRC hates. It is a message of power and hope, forgiveness and reconciliation.

“For the whole human race” and wanting to “reach all peoples of the earth” is hardly discriminatory. Nor is it limited to just Canada and colonialism.

And unless our current government acknowledges this God and this Jesus Christ, it will continue to fumble around in darkness. It will lead poorly and continue to cast blame on others, and our country will suffer the consequences of angrier and angrier people groups, greater hostility, and more unrest.

You see, when God through Jesus Christ is recognized as Sovereign Lord over ALL, with all authority, then the government recognizes it falls under that authority. Take God out of the picture and the government very much wants to BE God, acting like IT is the supreme authority… but with no restraints. It becomes reckless and power-hungry.

So it is good for government to remain “second”; it must keep its rightful place UNDER the authority of Jesus. Because then its authority is dictated by a Higher Authority – that by God Himself. And that is a safe place for all of us, because under the authority of Jesus, we are all free indeed — free to worship God, and free not to (remember Canada’s last 100 or more years of freedom of religion). But we are not free to disobey His laws and ways for our life, which are set up for everyone’s good.

And that’s what this government hates, as does the HRC..… subjecting itself and its laws to the authority of Jesus Christ.

And so we find ourselves right back at the intent of the HRC to eradicate Christmas, and Jesus Christ, and all of the interconnected obedience to His authority that goes with it.

As the saying goes, “Jesus is the reason for the season.”
So it is with the HRC. It’s not Christmas. It’s, “Jesus is the reason for the discrimination.”

Most Needed

At a time when Christmas (and its message of truth, hope, forgiveness, and reconciliation brought about only through Jesus Christ) is most needed, this is when the HRC puts out its nonsense to try to “cancel” it under the guise of discrimination.

I really hope for Canada, Christmas, and Christians, that the HRC (and its Liberal supporters) do some self-examination and keep in mind the rights and freedoms of ALL the people of Canada, not just selected groups.

I also hope that many in Canada will see through the nonsense messaging from entities like this.

The HRC perceives the connection with Christians and Christmas and its implication for society. I hope they will come to understand the beauty of the message instead of trying to cancel it.

And above all, I hope that the HRC (and the government at all levels) will recognize their rightful place UNDER the authority of Jesus. That would be safest, best, and smartest for us all in Canada and for all who come here. And it would have eternal significance for their lives.

So in keeping with the real reason for the season, have a Merry Christmas. To you also HRC.

Photo by Sixteen Miles Out on Unsplash