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Voting: What the Church Actually Teaches—Explaining the Faith (youtube.com)

By Fr. Chris Alar, MIC.

In this presentation, Fr. Chris Alar explains how church teaching informs Catholics when voting.

I believe that the principles presented in this video are also of great value for people of other denominations or faith background. But especially for Catholics, it is important to know that the Catholic Church has something to say about informing our conscience and in voting.

Fr. Chris Alar gave this presentation leading up to the 2020 American federal election. As we are in Quebec, Canada, our system of government is different than that of our neighbors to the south, and certain things in the presentation must be adapted for our Canadian reality. For example, in the USA, electors will vote directly for their president, whereas in Canada, we vote for the member of parliament who will represent us in federal parliament. We will not be voting for Trudeau or Poilievre or Singh—their names will not be seen on the ballot unless you live in their riding. Also, this presentation presents the material as if there were two main options. Here in the Canadian political realm, there are several major and minor political parties to consider when voting. Apart from differences as such, I find this talk very pertinent to our Canadian reality. 

Fr. Alar opens his talk by explaining that although the Church does not endorse political parties or candidates, “It is a part of the Church's mission "to pass moral judgments even in matters related to politics, whenever the fundamental rights of man or the salvation of souls requires it. The means, the only means, she may use are those which are in accord with the Gospel and the welfare of all men according to the diversity of times and circumstances.” — CCC2246. Priests have an obligation to promote the common good in society and also have a duty to the faithful in equipping them with tools to properly form their conscience in all aspects of life.

Forming one’s conscience is one of the important points of this presentation. Not only is it of importance for our own salvation, but it should also lay a path as a guide in public decision making. Catholics are to change the thinking of political leaders with the tools of our faith. It is the job of priests to give us those tools. A properly formed conscience should also guide our choice of affiliation and implication in a political party, as well as voting choice.

One important fact that is emphasized throughout the video is that Catholics are not to be single-issue voters. We do need to consider every policy of a candidate, since many things make up the common good, not only abortion. For example, the economy, healthcare and immigration all play a role in creating a stable society and promote the common good. Fr. Alar quotes Pope Francis in Evangelium Gaudium, that “personal moral character is not unimportant, but it is the stated commitment to public policy in keeping with the common good which is the most significant factor.”

What it is important to note here is that not all issues are equal in importance. Many things are good for some bad for others. These are open to debate. We can call these “negotiables.” A certain tax may be good for some but bad for others. A certain immigration policy may be good for some, but bad for others. Other things are always bad. Things that are intrinsic evils are always bad. Thus, when intrinsic evils influence public policy, these things are considered non-negotiable. It is important to note that while a candidate may commit mortal sins in his or her private life, it is the three non-negotiables according to the Catholic Church that are related to public policy that make that candidate worthy or unworthy of public office.

According to the Catholic Church, these are the three non-negotiables a Catholic must consider when voting for a candidate. They are:

1. Protection of life at all stages, from conception to natural death (abortion, euthanasia, embryonic stem cell research, human cloning)
2. Sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman
3. Preservation of religious liberty

All other policies would be considered negotiable. And since we are not to be single-issue voters, we do need to consider all as important, but some as more important. Since non-negotiables are never acceptable, how a candidate stands on these three non-negotiables is the test of whether they are worthy to stand in public office. A perfect candidate must align with the three non-negotiables. The important thing to note here is that we cannot mix apples and oranges. We must make a deliberate analysis based on non-negotiables first, and only after consider the negotiables. Fr. Alar recommends that we should take these steps to vote for each office:

1-determine how each candidate stands on the non-negotiables.

2-rank candidates on non-negotiables

3-give preference to candidates that don’t oppose these principles

4-where every candidate endorses positions contrary to non-negotiables, choose the one that is the least harmful

5- if these issues are equal, then evaluate on negotiables.

If there is a viable option, we have an obligation to vote. Fr. Alar explains well in his talk of what we should do to compare candidates that agree with one of the non-negotiables, but not all three. He also expands on the obligation of voting and the rare circumstances where not voting may be an option.

Throughout this presentation, Fr. Alar often clarifies that he is not sharing his personal opinions, but the teaching of the Catholic Church. He draws from numerous resources, including (but not limited to):

Moral duties of voting, What is intrinsic Evil by George Jay, Catechism of the Catholic Church, Voters guide for serious Catholics, Vote pro-life by Tom Hoopes, Catholic and Civil Witness, Election year issues NCR, “Catholics in Political Life” (General Secretary, USCCB), Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship: the US bishops’ reflection on Catholic teaching and political life 2015, 2019.

I encourage every Catholic to intently listen through this presentation found here on YouTube. In this blog entry, I have only skimmed through the major points of the presentation, and as people of faith, it is crucial to understand how our faith intertwines with our political implication. If we are to be faithful Catholics, it is an obligation to be a faithful Catholic in all departments of life. Fr. Alar has provided us with a clear guide based in the teachings of the Catholic Church in terms of voting.

(Pour lire cet article en français, clickez ici)

A federal by-election is about to be called in the riding of Lasalle-Émard-Verdun on the island of Montreal, following the resignation of former Justice Minister David Lametti. We met with a pro-life candidate who has decided to run in this by-election. Alain Paquette will be representing the Christian Heritage Party (CHP), and the date of this election will take place no later than September 16, 2024. This week, we had the opportunity to ask Mr. Paquette several questions. Here are his answers:

(This interview has been translated from French).

QLC: “Why did you decide to go into politics?”

AP “I answered a call to defend pro-life values politically. I was already active with other commitments, like writing to MPs and signing petitions. Up until now, I’ve remained in my individual comfort zone, but when I was asked about getting involved, I said ‘present’. And then I did the rounds and saw how I was to get involved. Since abortion was my main battle horse, I said I had to go to the federal level to change legislation, not the municipal or provincial levels.

Last year, I had the privilege to meet Arnold Viersen and we started talking more in-depth about politics, and his work to defend life in parliament really seemed exceptional. Around that time, I realized that the MP in my riding of Bourassa was promoting abortion rights in his home country of Haiti, where abortion is actually illegal. So my own MP was working against the right to life and against the laws of another country. I did my own research and the CHP represented the values I stood for the most, and I said to myself that is where I must go. That’s where I became a member and eventually raised my hand to become a candidate. I was planning to run as a candidate in Bourassa, but the CHP was looking for a candidate for the Lasalle-Émard-Verdun by-election and I answered the call.

This fulfills my desire to spread the good news and, above all, to allow people who have no other choice [to be able to vote pro-life]. Also, I want to go further in this, not just to be a pro-life on the ballot, but also to gather people to join the movement [of the CHP]. We’re moving in the right direction to defend the most vulnerable against the three scourges [in Canadian society], which are abortion, medical aid in dying and irreversible transgender surgery—scourges that must be reversed. These are my three main battle horses.”

QLC: “For you, what does it mean to be pro-life?”

AP: “Being pro-life means defending life from the moment of conception. Being a woman should be pro-life, because it’s women who generate life. The church defends the dignity of women, even in Mary—after all, [for Catholics] she’s the Queen of Heaven. The church sees Mary as the highest creature—only God is superior, so we magnify the one who replaced Eve, since she gave us our Lord, who was also born as a child—He who satisfied us all, delivered us, healed us and ascended to heaven with his body and soul. So, if we follow Jesus [we must believe that] life was made to be lifted up to heaven and not to be thrown away. For me, being pro-life means following ‘life’ in Christ.”

QLC: “You mentioned Mary. I assume that means you are Catholic. Does the CHP represent a specific Christian denomination or many?”

AP “[In the CHP], all denominations are present. Anyone who believes in Jesus Christ as our savior and has Christian values—Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican. Catholics are also part of the equation, and so I’m one of them. Of course, I’m more Marian than most others in the party, but it’s a party where prayer to God is important for all its members. [But for Catholics], the rosary of the unborn child is something [around which] every Catholic should rally. Our Lady gave us the rosary of the unborn and then as Jesus said in an apparition in 2006, we should use it as a nuclear weapon against legalized abortion.

Also, when you join [the CHP] as a member, you have to make a profession of faith. You then have the opportunity to get involved in the party and also to become a candidate to defend these values. You can always be sure that a CHP candidate is completely pro-life. He can only be someone who gives his all to defend [life] and to be a faithful advocate of the cause.”

QLC: “Why are Christian values necessary for the good governance of the country?”

AP: "Because we put the good news to good use. The word of God [which says] ‘love your neighbour as yourself,’ and ‘do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’ So, if we apply the maxim, we really are a salt to put the moral basis of society back into a perspective of peaceful, sanctifying life for all. So if we go in the direction of God’s word, then we’re really in a perspective where we’re going to favour the virtues rather than the misguidedness of sin. [In society], we’ve lost a bit of the sense of sin and the sense of immortal life. We act as if we weren’t accountable for our actions. As He says, ‘to whom much has been entrusted, more will be demanded.’ So, if we’re going to apply things that are diabolical, to kill the life we’ve been entrusted with, we’re not the faithful stewards we should be.

So, the treasure entrusted to us—at that point, if our personal freedom gives free rein to murder, it’s completely reprehensible. Of course, God’s mercy is great, but we can’t just wash our hands of it either. To help [to abort] is completely diabolical. If we violate [our conscience] for our freedom, we can put to death the vulnerable child who is there, who has been entrusted to us, our own flesh in the end. We have to protect women from what they believe is a way of saving their careers, their reputations, their friends or preventing their social lives from being disrupted. We need to save them all, the mother and the child too. We need their children, their families, because we can also solve the immigration problem by saving all the children. Through adoption, through material aid, by putting state resources at the service of a parental support program, we prevent women from mourning—because it’s not simply a bundle of flesh that’s left behind, it’s a complete being with feelings and a perception of what’s going on. You have to see it as a whole being. So if you cut it off, it brings mourning—you can say you’ve become free, but on the contrary, you’ve really bringing forth a funeral of a heart… Above all, we need to intervene to legislate so that unborn children become full-fledged legal beings—not to penalize women, but on the contrary, to help them—and I’m sure they’ll feel indebted later when they see that the child has changed their lives for the better and is a grace and a support.

We weren’t born in a place we chose, or to parents we chose, or at a time we chose, but why are we here? Because we had a mission to accomplish, and we have to see things from that perspective. What the Christian Heritage Party is really going to do is prevent […] these murders from being paid for by the public purse. We also want to save doctors and nurses from being hired killers—we want to free them and regenerate their denomination to its best foundations. We wonder why there’s a shortage of family doctors when doctors are forced to perform abortions and euthanasia against their moral judgment. We also need to save our children from transgender ideology—we need to put the catechism back in school rather than these ‘casino shows.’ In the whole culture, too—we need to remove violence and legislate that child abuse be replaced by a supportive environment. We want to put forward a regenerated culture that is rooted in the beauty of creation and life."

QLC: “Professionally, what do you do for a living? What have you done in the past?”

AP “I’m retired now. In the past, I did many things—after my studies, I worked in general insurance. For over five years, I worked for several companies, including here in Lasalle […] I worked in other fields. I worked for Bell, I even patrolled for Star Choice in Verdun—selling satellite plans. I was a customer service representative for Bell Canada, and I also did a bit of trucking and delivery. As an experiment, I started a small company for music publishing and recordings. I lived out this passion, and after that I changed jobs. At one point, I also went into the food industry.”

QLC: “What are the CHP’s other priorities?”

AP: “Among the CHP’s pillars and policies are the economy, obviously, because we can’t live on credit all the time, the family, and also justice. Here in Lasalle, we recently had the Minister of Justice, Lametti. Justice is a determining factor in establishing the right to freedom, the right to expression, but also non-interference in all parental rights. There’s also the right to self-defence, and immigration [policies]. We will establish these predispositions in all spheres of public administration. We’re going to prevent non-resident land purchases, but also [other issues of] homeland security. In all spheres, we will apply the right policies based on the Gospel. We can’t go wrong with [biblical values].”

QLC: “How can people help you with your campaign?”

AP: “Obviously through prayer to begin with. [We’ll need help] to canvass the vote, to encourage new membership [to the CHP] as well. [We need people] who can spread the message that, yes, there is a pro-life option in this election, and that it’s important to go out and witness and vote out of conviction. If you vote for such [another candidate], yes, maybe some [of these candidates] will sell good things, but they won’t advance the fight against the three scourges, which are medical aid to die, abortion and transgender mutilation. We need to take a leap of faith, an act to finally break the ice and vote out of conviction. So [we need] to reach out to people of good will, encourage them to vote, encourage them to get involved as volunteers or to become members and perhaps candidates themselves.

Of course, I also need signatories in the riding support my candidacy—[since Election Canada requires] one hundred people to sign up for my candidacy. We also need those who can contribute financially to my campaign for the printing of our campaign materials. We cannot accept donations directly to my campaign yet—not until the writ is dropped and I become registered—but those who want to help can visit my candidate webpage here: chp.ca/Alain-Paquette.”

QLC: “You’ve talked a lot about abortion. What are your thoughts on Euthanasia in Canada?”

AP: “Completely closed. We have to admit we made a mistake. We opened the valve. These were supposed to be compassionate exceptions. But we don’t even have the manpower to sufficiently elaborate palliative care—everywhere [access to palliative care] is deficient—so [euthanasia] should never be the case. It’s a door that needs to be closed completely, hermetically, therefore, we need the full reversal of medical aid in dying. A bit like Christ, he carried his cross, he went all the way, he even refused the gall he was given as crucified. If we open the door to despair, the world is bound to say: “If it’s decriminalized, if it’s authorized by law, it becomes an acceptable practice”. It’s as if our conscience has been subjugated into accepting the door to despair. So, faith, hope and charity are theological values, and despair is a completely diabolical value. We still need to put in place care to ensure that horrors that have happened recently don’t happen again, where, for example, a patient was there for 10 hours without care, and after that ordeal, he was offered euthanasia. But on the other hand, we are also funding suicide hotlines. You can’t say you’re offered sympathy for your problems, but then you’re offered suicide [for those same problems], and that doesn’t make sense. There has to be balanced justice. You have to keep your nose to the grindstone. The trend is to go further and further into medical aid in dying when, on the contrary, we need to reverse that. We are in favour of medical aid in living. We’re diametrically opposed to what’s being decided everywhere.

QLC: “Thank you so much for answering the call to become a candidate, and for your commitment to defending life from conception to natural death. That’s all the time we have for today. If anyone would like to contact you, or learn more about CHP, how might they do so?”

AP: “For more information on the Christian Heritage Party, visit chp.ca. If you’d like to contact me, you can do so by e-mail—[email protected]. During the election campaign, come do some door-to-door with me [in Lasalle-Émard-Verdun].”

Under Justin Trudeau, "hate" is in the sights of the Canadian government more than ever. As proof, the Canadian Anti-Hate Network (CAHN) has received $440,000 from the Trudeau government to fight "hate," especially the "hate" of the "far right". And who are these horrible "hateful" people or entities? According to CAHN, they are, for example, Josh Alexander, Jordan Peterson, or Campaign Life Coalition, of which Campagne Québec-Vie / Quebec Life Coalition is a member. This categorization is rather strange. Unapologetically, we hate abortion because it causes irreparable harm to the unborn child and its mother, whom we love. Is it wrong, then, to hate an unjust act? For abortion advocates, abortion is not a wrong act, but a right, and to deny women this right would be an act of "hatred".  

True love (which is the opposite of hate) means doing the objective good of others. So we fight abortion for the good of the unborn and their mothers, while those who defend abortion objectively harm the unborn and their mothers, even as they claim to "love" them... 

Here's some Quebec Pro-Life News: there is a federal by-election being called in the Montreal-area Verdun riding. A pro-life Christian Heritage Party candidate will be running. Don't miss our interview with this candidate, whom we endorse! Make sure, also, to read on to discover more ways to promote a Culture of Life in Quebec and beyond. God bless.

South of the border, election fever is gripping many Americans, some of whom are even shooting presidential candidates... Thank God Trump is still alive, no doubt enhanced in the eyes of the electorate after this botched assassination attempt. Whom will voters choose: the bloody, fist-pumping hero or poor "Sleepy Joe"?

Unfortunately, the difference between the two candidates on abortion, mariage and other important issues is less than it used to be: while Joe Biden is still the unconditional champion of abortion, Trump now declares that he supports several exceptions to an abortion ban and that he will not place restrictions on the abortion pill - which is, however, an increasingly used means of abortion, especially to circumvent US state laws restricting abortion.

On the other hand, Trump has chosen Senator J.D. Vance as his running mate. The latter, a convert to Catholicism, claims to be "100% pro-life" but also supports exceptions to the abortion ban for "pragmatic" political reasons.

While our political class works to eke out electoral victories and seeks compromise, we have to work with the culture to fully protect faith, family and life, from conception to natural death. Here are some of the things we're doing to accomplish just that:

PRO-LIFE RESOURCE OF THE WEEK – Trudeau’s MAiD Service

In this short volume, David Cooke presents a concise history of euthanasia in Canada. He explains that the 2015 Supreme Court ruling in Carter vs. Canada marked a dangerous departure from centuries of legal and moral principles that protected human life. The subsequent Bill C-14 (in 2016) legalized what was once considered first-degree murder, making some humans “killable.”

Life Chain

The Life Chain is a peaceful, silent demonstration in which participants hold pro-life signs for one hour. Held in hundreds of cities on Sunday, October 6 from 2 to 3 p.m., this initiative is crucial to raising public awareness of the dignity of human life.

Our plan is to triple the number of Life Chains in Quebec. We aim to grow from 11 to 33 chains, increasing our presence and impact across the province. 

Our Annual QLC Corn Roast

Our annual corn roast will be held on Saturday, August 17, 2024, at 3330 Rivier Street, Montreal (Joliette metro) starting at 12 PM. **Speeches delivered during the event will be in French**

• $10 per person, free for children under 12. Rain or shine.
• In addition to the delicious corn, participants will have the opportunity to visit our offices and attend an informal conference. To reserve your spot, contact us at (514) 344-2686 or [email protected].

Roe Canada documentary

We recently translated and dubbed the documentary "Roe Canada: Our Forefathers' Land in a Post-Roe World", which explores the potential impact of the overturning of Roe v. Wade in Canada. We invite you to watch it in English or in French.

I'm hoping you can join us at our events or use our resources to help build a Culture of Life in Quebec and beyond!

Yours for Life,

Brian Jenkins
English Outreach coordinator

 
Trudeau's MAiD Service
by David Cooke.

In this short volume, David Cooke presents a concise history of euthanasia in Canada. He explains that the 2015 Supreme Court ruling in Carter vs. Canada marked a dangerous departure from centuries of legal and moral principles that protected human life. The subsequent Bill C-14 (in 2016) legalized what was once considered first-degree murder, making some humans “killable.”

Cooke follows with analyzing the further expansion of MAiD to include those with disabilities and mental illness, highlighting the risks to vulnerable individuals in our society as well as the government’s priority in economic savings over providing care for Canadians. He provides a sharp comparison with Nazi Germany’s T4 program.  He also addresses the dangers of subjective criteria for ending someone’s life.

Cooke is a graduate from Toronto’s Baptist Seminary and has worked as a pastor and as a missionary. He currently serves with Campaign Life Coalition, bringing important and insightful insight to pro-life issues across the country. His short 36 page volume can be purchased in English on Amazon for $5.99, and is also available in French on Amazon. Both French and English volumes are also available at our QLC offices.

In an effort to create more English content, we are starting a new project. Each week, we will be highlighting a pro-life resource that we think you should know about. This may be a book, a website, a video, a movie. Throughout the months to come, we will build up a repertoire of useful pro-life material, with a short commentary on each.

Most of our time at Quebec Life coalition has been geared to better serve our francophone supporters. This is natural, since most Quebecers are francophones. In addition to that, in the past few years, we have expanded our reach to many francophones outside of the province of Quebec, as no other pro-life organization creates regular content for francophone Canadians.

But it is also important to note that we have many anglophone supporters who live in Quebec. In addition, we have many anglophones from outside our borders who also support our mission and have a vested interest in advancing the pro-life cause in our province.

As you may imagine, this language situation is one of the main challenges we face. It is a lot of work to do things in two languages, but that is the reality we live in. Sending correspondence to our supporters in their preferred language is important to us. The other main challenge we face is the geography. Quebec is a vast province; Canada is a large country.

We want to create a series of pro-life resources that will be of interest and benefit to all pro-life Canadians. Our French resource series will sadly be more limited, since many pro-life resources are not available in French (yet). We will continue to encourage and support the translation of pro-life books and other materials to better cater to French Canadians.

Here is the first entry in our series, a short volume by David Cooke called “Trudeau’s MAiD Service—a Euthanasia Program for Canada.”

For Life, 
Arpad Nagy

Participants in the Quebec City March for Life carrying a banner of the Virgin Mary. - Photo: Augustin Hamilton

By Father Francis Michael de Rosa

On the First of June 2024, Quebec City witnessed an historic moment when it hosted its first ever “Marche pour la Vie” (March for Life).

The organization behind the event was Campagne Québec-Vie, which in my purview is exceptional for its distinctively Catholic perspective on the “life issues” of such grave concern for modern society.

Not only does the Campagne seek an end to abortion, but it explicitly opposes the other evils on the spectrum threats to human life and human love: from contraception to euthanasia and all the malice in between. These evils are sibling symptoms of a false anthropology disoriented by neo-dualism, and they must be recognized as such by the pro-life movement in order definitively to reset the moral order according to human nature and right reason adequately understood. Can we honestly envision an abortion-free yet contracepting society?

Can there really be a freedom loving nation that attacks its own people? The hydra of sins against life and love must be cut off at the neck effectively to re-boot the moral order.

Notably, Campagne Québec-Vie is consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus through the Immaculate Heart of Mary in union with the Most Chaste Heart of Joseph. The union of the “Three Hearts” comprising the Holy Family are the mystical community of love that formed the Holy Family at Nazareth, which in turn is the mystical archetype of the Holy Catholic Church. As such “Nazareth” is the home which is open to receiving all of mankind.

Furthermore, Campagne Québec-Vie calls for the reestablishment of the Social Reign of Christ the King, a seldom heard expression in our current idolatrous saeculum. In other words, it comprehends that a properly ordered society without God (most explicitly, without Christ Who is God Incarnate) is not truly attainable. This is because man without God is nothing but an orphan-victim who easily falls prey to satanic forces that prowl about the world looking for someone to devour.

How would you feel if you were offered euthanasia, not once, but several times? It's a traumatic experience. This is the experience shared by Canadian Roger Foley. Hospitalised for 8 years because of his disability, he has no access to home care, but was insistently offered euthanasia:

“There’s a constant reminder of it, I would say it’s a harassment, and they don’t see it as coercion, they see it as informing, but it’s a real blurry area right now in Canada,” says Foley. “Words can’t describe how pillaged I feel and how scared I feel. The suicide prevention in this country for disabled and vulnerable people has been completely obliterated due to the assisted dying regime.”

Remember that the Trudeau government still wants to allow euthanasia only for people with mental illness. After all, it didn't repeal the law extending euthanasia to these cases, it simply postponed again its entry into force until 2027.

At the other end of the life spectrum, the Poles have their work cut out defending the unborn child from the attacks of the new Polish government, which is making it a point of honour to once again extend legal access to abortion, which had been restricted by Poland's Constitutional Court. Several Marches for Life were held in the country of Saint Maximilian Kolbe, during which pro-life Poles demonstrated their support for the unborn child.

40 Days for Life

On 25 September, the autumn 40 Days for Life will run until November 3rd. This event consists of one vigil of 12 hours (or more) per day over a period of 40 days devoted to silent protest and prayer for the unborn child and mothers, close to the places where babies are aborted.

We hope to be able to hold two vigils this year, one in Sherbrooke and the other in Montreal. For more information, contact Brian Jenkins at (438) 930-8643.

Life Chain

On Sunday, October 6th, 2024, the next Life Chain will take place, a local event that takes place simultaneously across Canada and the world, and consists of an hour of prayer on public ground with signs carrying pro-life messages. Last year we organised 11 chains in Quebec, and we're hoping to triple that number this year! For more information, contact Brian Jenkins at (438) 930-8643.

I would like to thank the generous donors who contributed to our summer fundraising campaign. Many thanks! We've raised $7,300 of the $10,000 we were aiming for: we're still $2,700 short. If you haven't yet had a chance to donate, I'd like to ask if you could help us make up the missing amount. We greatly appreciate any contribution.

Thank you again for your help in our mission to defend the unborn child.

Please also keep us in your prayers.

For Life,
Augustin Hamilton

The new Culture et citizenship course, which will replace the old ERC course at the start of the new school year, will include gender ideology in its (already harmful) sex education component.

In an interview with independent journalist Michel Lizotte, Jean-Léon Laffitte, President of the Association des parents catholiques du Québec (APCQ), explains the foundations of gender ideology, which claims that sex is "assigned" at birth and is a social construct.

Is gender theory scientifically based? Mr Laffitte tells us about the very recent Cass report produced in Great Britain, where thousands of people who have undergone "gender transition" now regret having undergone this irreversible procedure, which states that no conclusive study supports the claims of gender theory, namely that "treatments" such as puberty blockers, transsexual hormones or operations are beneficial to children suffering from gender dysphoria.

The suicide of young people who are not given transition is often used as an argument to force parents to approve the transition of their child with gender dysphoria. In response to this argument, Mr Laffitte mentions another study which shows that the suicide rate among young people is no higher if their mental health is looked after rather than if they are transitioned.

The British government, on the basis of the Cass report, is going back on its experience of gender ideology. But in Quebec, points out Mr Laffitte, we are not benefiting from the British experience and are persevering with the same mistake.

Is the government listening to worried parents? Mr Laffitte tells us no, at least not until last year's 1 Million March 4 Children, which mobilised parents across Canada to protest against the LGBT ideology, including gender ideology, being imposed on their children. Following this major event, the Quebec government set up a committee of wise men to receive testimonies and presentations from individuals and associations interested in the issue of education, including the APCQ and EPPNE. Mr. Laffitte seems confident that the committee will do an honest job, but he points out that the committee will not submit the results of its work to the government until December or January, when the QCC course will begin in August. What is the point of a consultation if you don't wait for the results before implementing the programme?

Life Chain

On Sunday 6 October 2024, the next Life Chain will take place, a local event that takes place simultaneously across Canada and the world, and consists of an hour of prayer in a public place with signs displaying pro-life messages. Last year, we organised 11 chains in Quebec, and we're hoping to triple that number this year!

Fundraising campaign

We're on the last day of our fundraising campaign, and we've still got half of it to go - $5,000 of the $10,000 we're aiming for! The 1st Quebec City March for Life, which was a great success, proved to be costly. It's thanks to your donations that we're able to organise such events, and that we'll be organising the next Quebec City March for Life.

It is also thanks to your financial support that we are able to keep you up to date with essential information such as this important video on the Culture and Citizenship course.

Through the donations you make to support us, our work to defend the family is in truth also your work, because without your help we wouldn't be able to do it. Thank you for giving generously from the bottom of your heart!

For Life,
Augustin Hamilton

The past six months have presented Campagne Québec-Vie with numerous challenges to overcome. We organized our very first March for Life in Quebec City, beginning with reserving the venue and initiating contact with the authorities in December 2023. Following that, we conducted over twenty visits to churches and other gathering places to recruit participants for the March, often requiring significant travel.

We then prepared our website, Facebook pages, as well as print and email advertisements. A March is not just a one-day event; it sets in motion a series of meetings with interested groups, many of whom have committed to participating again. These visits enable us to appoint representatives from each group to better maintain our relationships. In fact, we are building an entire provincial pro-life organization from this "one-day" March.

We have started a process that will grow, God willing, and with your help!

We are now just five days away from the end of our Summer 2024 fundraising campaign. Thanks to our loyal benefactors, we have raised $2,812 so far. However, we still need to collect $7,188. Can you help us now with a donation? Thank you!

Next Challenge: 33+ Life Chains in Quebec

We want to immediately start developing the networks we have established and the contacts we have made. Our next major activity, in addition to the 40 Days for Life vigil this fall (you can learn more about this vigil by clicking here), will be the Life Chain. These thousands of one-hour mini-demonstrations for life and against abortion take place across North America on the first Sunday of October (this year, it will be on October 6, from 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM – locations to be determined). Last year, we organized 11 such demonstrations in Quebec. Thanks to our contacts from the March, we aim to triple this number of Life Chains to 33 (at least!).

This activity is held at hundreds of locations in Ontario and across Canada – we should certainly be able to organize 33, if not many more!

Enceinte et Inquiète: Taking it to the Next Level

We also plan to enhance our service for pregnant women in difficulty – Enceinte et Inquiète (Pregnant and Worried)– by potentially forming a first board of directors for this service. Over the months and years, several people, in addition to our dedicated colleague Brian Jenkins, responsible for Enceinte et Inquiète, have joined this cause. Some believe the time has come to take it to the next level. Stay tuned!

I am sending you this email because nothing we do can be accomplished without the generosity of our loyal benefactors. With only five days left in our Summer 2024 fundraising campaign, we still need to raise $7,188. Can you help us today? Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

God bless you,

Georges Buscemi
President, Quebec Life Coalition