Citizenship Commission bans free Bible distribution
TORONTO, ON-The Canadian Bible Society's half-century-long tradition of offering Bibles as gifts to brand new Canadian citizens came to an end recently, when the Citizenship Commission of Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) called a halt to the practice.
The Citizenship Commission is an administrative tribunal, (composed of citizenship judges), that is separate from Citizenship and Immigration Canada.
In a letter dated May 7, 2004 addressed to the Bible Society's national director, Phyllis Nesbitt, senior citizenship judge Michel C. Simard and citizenship registrar Patricia Birkett, wrote, "we will no longer permit Bibles, or any other holy book, to be displayed in our premises and distributed to citizenship applicants."
The letter also says, "over the last couple of years, we have become concerned that the presence of Canadian Bible Society members may be perceived as sending a message to candidates for citizenship and to the public in general concerning the relationship between the government and a religious institution.
"Canada is a multicultural nation where freedom of religion is guaranteed under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms?we find that allowing holy books to be made available at citizenship ceremonies detracts from this message and could be construed as a tacit endorsement of certain religions."
The Canadian Bible Society has been distributing free Bibles to new Canadian citizens at citizenship ceremonies almost since the first such ceremonies were held in 1947.
"The first Bibles were passed out in Halifax at Pier 21 to new immigrants, after the war," says Nesbitt.
"Originally we were able to say something in the citizenship court, and tell people about the fact that [the Bibles] were there as a free gift from the Bible Society," she adds. "But since 1998, they had asked us not to do that-to only be present in the court and people had to come to us to receive them."
Under terms of the agreement (forged between the Bible Society and the federal government in 1998), the society could offer only a silent presence at citizenship ceremonies across the country, with a table set up and a sign offering the free Scriptures. According to a letter outlining the arrangement and signed by then senior citizenship judge, Agnès Jaouich, books could not be handed to citizenship candidates, "by a member of any religious society."
Nesbitt says that since the Bible Society tried to comply with the restrictions, they are disappointed with this new turn of events. "We don't understand what prompted Judge Simard to renege on this agreement, particularly since there was no prior consultation," she says.
Neither Simard nor Birkett was available for comment, but CIC departmental spokesperson, Jean-Pierre Morin said, "we have had, in the past, complaints from clients who felt that holy books were being forced upon them, and given all the strife in the world today, we want to ensure that our citizenship ceremonies are as inclusive as possible."
Morin could not say when or how many complaints have been received.
The Scriptures offered by the Bible Society were "Maple Leaf Edition" Bibles, which have red suede covers with an embossed maple leaf. Written at a Grade 5 reading level, Nesbitt says they are "very beneficial to those who are learning English as a second language." Thousands of new citizens have accepted the gift.
Bibles popular
Nesbitt cites the examples of two provinces. "In British Columbia?every time there was a citizenship court, they donated hundreds of [Bibles]. In Nova Scotia, on average, there would be anywhere from 50-70 new Canadians in the court, and we usually gave anywhere from 20-30, [each time] since 1998."
CIC's Web site indicates that countrywide, Canada conducts between 2,000 and 3,000 citizenship ceremonies annually.
After receiving the Commission's letter in May, Nesbitt responded May 19 with a letter of her own, stating, "it is our sincere desire that we continue this valuable liaison with the Citizenship Courts to provide for our new citizens a trusted and historical tradition.
"Just as we have complied with your wishes in the past, we will continue to do so but we humbly request that you reconsider eliminating our presence from the courts and reverse this recent decision to withdraw from the previous agreement made with the Canadian Bible Society."
To date, the Bible Society has not received a reply.
Now, Nesbitt says it's a wait-and-see situation. "I think we're going to bide our time and see what happens after the election and then approach the minister of immigration and citizenship again. That's what I would suspect, although nothing has been [set] in stone."
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