Chaplain's Corner

Patriotism is defined as love and devotion to one’s country.   Being an American who has lived in Canada for 32 years, it seems that the fires of patriotism burn a little hotter in the hearts of our neighbors to the south than they do in ours; or maybe our national character is just a bit more reserved and we are not quite as “in your face” about our patriotic feelings.  I’ll leave that for you to decide.

Of course, in both countries this is the week that we celebrate our countries: July 1st here in Canada and July 4th in the United States.  So what does patriotism have to do with spirituality?  Well, in fact it has quite a lot to do with spirituality.  Remember, spirituality is the broader term that describes our capacity and compulsion to be connected with ourselves, others, creation and God.  Patriotism is about our connection to the collective we call our country.  In Canada, it is about identifying ourselves as one of the 35 million others who bear that distinction.
 
If you watched the Olympic Games this last February, you may have been surprised as others were with the way our Canadian patriotic fervor was fanned into flames by that experience.  It was actually quite remarkable to see that happening in a country generally far more reserved about its love of country.  But this love for a place and its people and its way of life is a spiritual reality.  Now please, don’t get me wrong, it is not a religious reality, but it is a spiritual reality.

So what is in that stirs our hearts with feelings of love for our country?  Well, despite all the problems we have, we live in a country that has and continues to value freedom.  Have you stopped lately to think about all the freedoms we enjoy?

First, the wonderful freedom of expression: a freedom that enables us to believe and stand for things that may be diametrically opposed to the things another Canadian believes and stands for yet we can live together, work together and respect one another’s

freedom to believe things so very different.  In many countries, such a freedom is only dreamed of and those who dare to express beliefs and feelings that are in opposition to the governments risk arrest and punishment.

Second, consider our freedom on movement.  We live in a country where we can travel the length and width of this vast nation without having to worry about being detained at provincial borders of having to produce papers in order to proceed.  Unlike many place in the

world, we can move between our country and our neighbors with very little difficulty.  There are places in our world that movement is very restricted, that to travel freely is very risky and where one must always be prepared and ready to pay a bribe to in order to cross a boarder.
 
Third, consider our freedom of association.  We are free to associate with whom ever we wish.  We are free to join organizations that gather people with similar interests and we are free to join political groups and work together for changes in our government.  We can join together for recreation, for learning, to discuss politics, or art, or philosophy with no fear at all that some one will be monitoring our discussions and interfering if they do not approve of our agenda.  We can gather in small groups or large groups and unless we plan to disrupt traffic on the streets, we need make no arrangements whatsoever with our civil authorities.

Fourth, have you thought lately about the freedom we enjoy even in the simplest things like determining the size of our families?  In China continue to be restrictions on the size of one’s family limiting a married couple to having just one child.  No so here in

Canada.  As we know so well, especially in our region, couples are free to have as many children as they want and although many couples chose to have a small family, other chose to have a large family and such a choice is a freedom we enjoy in Canada.

Fifth, we enjoy an economic freedom in our country that is not enjoyed in many third world nations.  This isn’t to say we don’t have poverty in our nation, but there are many opportunities for an industrious person to work hard and improve the economics of one’s life.  We know little of subsistence living?  We know nothing of working all day long and maybe earning a dollar or two? Even our poorest have more resources than many in our world even though we would all like to see improvements made in ending homelessness and generational social assistance subsistence.

Sixth, we do enjoy freedom of religion.  In Canada you can be a Catholic, a Mennonite, A Baptist, a Hindu or Buddhist and engage in your worship traditions with no fear of interference.  In fact, in Canada you can follow the teachings of Wicca or you can follow the teachings of any number of cults without any interference from but on the contrary with the protection of the government to worship freely.  Some people are resistant to this freedom, some Christian groups are resistant to this freedom, but without it, we would all be in danger of either having to worship in the state approved church or worshipping in secret under the threat of persecution.  In many countries around the world today, this freedom does not exist.

So, as you have the family bar-b-q or drive out in the evening to watch the fireworks, or just spend the day doing some work around the yard, please stop at least for a moment and consider just how blessed we are to live in a nation like Canada.

O Canada!
Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
From far and wide,
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.