What is your prediction as to who will win the Liberal leadership?

I think Iggy will win the first ballot with Rae coming a close second, and Dion and Kennedy going for either third and fourth.. Dryden, Brison, Hall Findlay and Volpe will fall off the ballot. Dion and Kennedy will combine against the two front-runners. Likely Dion will defer to Kennedy. Much of the support of the four ("anyone but Iggy") who won't be on the second ballot will go to Kennedy. Who knows? Perhaps Gerard Kennedy is the guy to watch.

The Libs like to alternate between English and French leaders. That would suggest Dion has a chance. But perhaps Martin's brief and diastrous stint as leader doesn't count. Furthermore, though he is English, he did come from Quebec.

Recently I received a 1929 Scottish Psalter: Metrical Version and Scripture Paraphrases, With Tunes through Abebooks. It was shipped from a bookseller in Scotland. It's the split-leaf version. The Psalter part is split-leaf. On the bottom of the "dutch door" you'll find the words for all 150 Psalms. The top of the "dutch door" has the melodies. Most Scottish Psalms can be sung to many different melodies. The minister will call for the singing of a Psalm to a specific melody. The worshippers will then flip the "dutch doors" to get to the right Psalm and the right melody. Another interesting feature is that the music is not set in notes but in do-re-mi, etc., fashion.

A "cut and paste" from restoremarriagecanada.ca --

In the next few weeks we expect the long awaited vote in Parliament on reopening the marriage definition question will once again be in front of us. To help support the Government in succeeding on this vote, it is incredibly important that we continue to build our Restore Marriage Canada Petition. Copies of this petition will be presented to each MP before the vote. More than 41,000 Canadians have already signed this petition. By getting your friends and neighbours involved we can continue to build this list. With your help we will be able to continue to put the pressure on those MPs voting against reopening the issue.

It important that these MPs understand that they will be accountable to you their voters, so we also encourage you to contact your own MP and let him or her know how you feel about restoring traditional marriage in Canada. We also encourage you to get as many others to contact their MP as well.

These are the things to keep in mind. The first vote was uninformed. Little was done to study the effects on children from legalizing same sex marriage. Such a fundamental switch in our social fabric should not have been leaped at without serious consideration of all consequences. In France, for example, the French National Assembly (similar to our Parliament) sent out a 30 member multi party commission to travel to various countries reviewing all points of view.

With the information they gained their report to the French National Assembly called on their government to protect the rights of children by refusing to legalize same sex marriage or even same sex adoption. By protecting these rights they realized that society, and children in particular, benefit most when children are raised within the basic family unit, mother father and children..

The French Assembly recognized that children, "must not suffer from conditions imposed upon them by adults." They concluded that the best interests of the child should be the first priority and should rank higher than adult freedoms and lifestyle choices because of that vulnerability.

Please help us continue this serious fight. We need to continue to educate people on this important issue and continue to bring pressure on Parliament to step back and thoroughly consider the impacts of legalizing same-sex marriage.

We can only do that with your continued help!

Sincerely,

The Hon. Dr. Grant Hill, P.C.
Coordinator, Restore Marriage Project

Go Hazel!

Today was a very rich day. This morning, in Ancaster, we observed the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP). I preached on IDOP's theme text, Matthew 5:10-12: "Blessed are the persecuted, etc." As always, my congregation sang the Psalms of David with great enthusiasm. At the close of the service we sent the devil scampering and whimpering like a beaten dog with the words of Psalm 2 sung fff.

At 1 PM I worshipped at the Sudanese Christian Fellowship. My brother John preached. It is great to worship with my Sudanese siblings who have fled to Canada for refuge. They are remarkable people of faith. The Arabic hymns are challenging -- likely as challenging as it is for our Sudanese brothers and sisters to sing the Genevans. We did not sing the only one I really know. Oh well. Maybe next time.

This evening I preached at the Streetlight outreach service. Always a great joy. It's moving to see how open these former and present street people, considered the detritus of humanity, are to the gospel.

A full and rich day for this pastor! He is thankful to God for what he could experience and do.