Here is the link to the following news flash: http://www.religionjournal.com/showarticle.asp?id=2891&ardate=7/20/2005
OTTAWA, July 19, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Just as Senate
approaches the final vote on the gay 'marriage' bill, C-38, Canada's
national public radio CBC Radio has aired a commentary by a retired
professor from the Royal Military College calling for state control
over religion, specifically Catholicism. While parliamentarians
dismissed warnings by numerous religious leaders and experts that
such laws would lead to religious persecution, former professor Bob
Ferguson has called for "legislation to regulate the practice of
religion."
"Given the inertia of the Catholic Church, perhaps we could
encourage reform by changing the environment in which all religions
operate," Ferguson began his commentary in measured tones
yesterday. "Couldn't we insist that human rights, employment and
consumer legislation apply to them as it does other organizations?
Then it would be illegal to require a particular marital status as a
condition of employment or to exclude women from the priesthood. "
Ferguson continued, "Of course the Vatican wouldn't like the
changes, but they would come to accept them in time as a fact of
life in Canada. Indeed I suspect many clergy would welcome the
external pressure."
The former professor pitched his idea as a boon to religious
freedom. "We could also help the general cause of religious freedom
by introducing a code of moral practice for religions," he
said. "They will never achieve unity so why not try for
compatibility? Can't religious leaders agree to adjust doctrine so
all religions can operate within the code?"
Ferguson, would see religion regulated by provinces in the same way
professions are regulated. "I am an engineer so the model I am
thinking about is rather like the provincial acts regulating the
practice of engineering," he said. "For example, engineers must
have an engineering degree from a recognized university or pass
qualification exams. They must have a number of years of practical
experience and pass an ethics exam. The different branches:
mechanical, electrical, civil and the like have a code of practice
that applies to everyone. Why can't religious groups do the same?"
Continuing his comparison Ferguson stated, "I envisage a congress
meeting to hammer out a code that would form the basis of
legislation to regulate the practice of religion. Like the
professional engineers' P.Eng designation, there would then be RRPs
(or registered religious practitioners). To carry the analogy to its
conclusion, no one could be a religious practitioner without this
qualification."
Ferguson also suggests 'obvious' prohibitions on religion including
preaching of 'hate'. "I won't try to propose what might be in the
new code except for a few obvious things: A key item would have to
be a ban on claims of exclusivity. It should be unethical for any
RRP to claim that theirs was the one true religion and believers in
anything else or nothing were doomed to fire and brimstone. One
might also expect prohibition of ritual circumcisions, bans on
preaching hate or violence, the regulation of faith healers,
protocols for missionary work, etc.," says Ferguson.
The retired professor concluded his comments aired on CBC yesterday
morning saying, "Now what is the point of proposing this? I do it
because I am worried that the separation between church and state is
under threat. Religion is important in our lives, but it can become
a danger to society when people claim that the unalterable will of
God is the basis for their opinions and actions. Yes religion can be
a comfort and a guide, but we cannot take rules from our holy books
and apply them to the modern world without democratic debate and due
regard for the law."
Listen to an audio recording of the commentary:
http://cbc.ca/commentary/media/20050718JUL18.ram