Letter to the Premier-Ed Stelmach
Mr Premier:
We are writing you this letter to help you to understand why you are experiencing the problems you are facing in this province. Sir, when you were elected, the media were calling you king Ed. I don’t know if you remember, but we surely do. Perhaps you are wondering what has changed? In the papers, recently, they indicated that you are the least popular premier in the country. I want you to know that, as Christians, we regularly pray for the leaders of this country, this province and for you directly. We pray for God’s mercy on our leaders, we pray that He would impart His wisdom, we pray that He would give all of Canada’s leaders a heart of repentance, and a desire to rule with righteousness, honesty and integrity.
You may not remember us, but we had an opportunity to speak to you, publicly, at one of your premier dinners in 2008. Let us remind you of what we shared with you, over the microphones, at your dinner. Jim Blake, National Chairman of Concerned Christians Canada, had his son with him and was telling you about the future generations, about the abuse of power and the persecution of Christians that we are facing in Alberta (arrests just for simple prayer on the streets of Calgary and Edmonton, unmerciful ticketing of the ministries that are taking care of the needs of the poor, just because of their expression of their religious beliefs, the kicking out of duly elected MLA candidate Craig Chandler, due to his strong controversial, for some, Christian stand on homosexual issues and his personal faith, etc). He further spoke about his concern that the future of the province of Alberta was in jeopardy and, as he pointed to his son, he spoke about how he was a father of four and that this was his youngest son. He further stated that as the premier of the province, you had a duty to stand up for the democratic rights and freedoms of the citizens of this province.
Just a question, on the side, Mr. Premier, think of this as food for thought. When you were elected, were you grilled on the fact that your parents built a church in Krakow, or your strong connection to the Catholic faith? Did anyone ever tell you that your private Catholic views made you ineligible for the office you had democratically received? I don’t think so.
I, myself, Artur Pawlowski, pleaded with you for the lives of the countless hurting and dying poor on the streets of our cities, spoke about tent cities that the destitute were forced to erect, about desperate broken people having to sleep under the bridges because there was not enough space in the shelters, and about abuse of power of officers against the homeless strictly because of their present condition. I implored you, in front of your supporters and the media, hoping somehow that your heart would be stirred into making a difference. Furthermore, I told you about our own court cases, tickets, and the harassment we were receiving in your city, Calgary. I reminded you that we sent you DVDs and a letter with many proofs of abuse of power, fully aware that, as our premier, you could help us. We also sent you a letter, to which we received a reply, on June 19, 2007 (AR 10703), from the Solicitor General and Minister of Public Security, Fred Lindsay, brushing us off, stating that the province does not have a mandate to look into “citizens concerns”. For you, sir, it would have been a phone call, for thousands it is a life and death situation. Do you remember, the desperate cry of my heart? “We need our premier to stand up for what is right.”
Do you remember your reply? You brushed of Jim Blake with comments that Ukrainian Canadians suffered persecution in Canada and that in Alberta there is no persecution of its citizens, and there won’t be on your watch. Well sir, I tell you quite frankly, that under your reign the persecution is not only present, but in fact has increased. When I finished my plea, do you remember your reply? Well let me refresh your memory, you stuttered and you were rescued by some of your handlers, but said nothing in reply.
Do you remember a man by the name of Stephen Boissoin? Well, again, instead of helping this man, who as a pastor stood for his rights (freedom of belief, conscience, expression and religion), you aligned with the homosexuals, you sent your Attorney General to prosecute him and penalize him for merely exercising his rights. Later, in 2009, the judge vindicated Stephen Boissoin’s rights and ruled that the Alberta Human Rights Commission was wrong.
Don’t get us wrong, everyone has rights, rights for life, liberty, and freedom. Not one group over another, not homosexuals more than Christians, or vice versa, in a democratic society.
Let’s move on. Do you remember a man by the name of Craig Chandler who was, by a majority, democratically elected to be the PC party candidate for the riding of Egmont? What you did we, the Polish immigrants, experienced under the communist regime. They would say, “because we do not like you or your personal opinions, we will not allow you to represent the people.” Even though “the people have spoken”, and told you, the premier, that they wanted Craig Chandler as their representative, you undemocratically stripped him and them of their rights. Does this man not have a right to have his personal opinions under your leadership? Apparently not.
Well there are hundreds of things that we can bring to your recollection. You have been acting as a dictator and have been unmercifully making your own way, that hurts this country and our province. Royalty fees, health care, etc… wrong decisions, one after another. By the way, as we are mentioning health care, do recall a man who was kicked out of caucus for standing for the rights of his constituents, a man by the name of Guy Boutilier? He boldly stood for the rights of the elderly when the province announced that the building of a long-term care facility in the oilsands boomtown of Fort McMurray, that was approved 18 months prior, was to be put off for four years. At the time of your decision, the media stated that you were “making an example out of Guy Boutilier to muzzle other Tory MLAs who [were] getting an earful from constituents about the chaos being caused by health care cuts.” Sir, let me humbly suggest, that as we both come from similar backgrounds (my grandfather escaped from the Ukraine and the horrors of dictatorship), sadly, your tactics or approaches, if you prefer, are too close to the ones that our forefathers escaped from.
I believe that you are familiar with the case involving Street Church in Calgary. But just in case you forgot, here is a short background. The ministry feeds thousands of people on the streets, saves physical lives, provides necessities of life and, at the same time, tells everyone that there is hope for a better tomorrow, because God has a plan through His Son Jesus. The message is very simple, if you are a thief, stop stealing, if you are a murder, stop murdering, turn from your wicked ways and receive salvation through Christ, the Son of the Living God, that came and died for your sins and rose again. Sir, when they hear that message, over and over again, many make the decision to leave their destitution behind and pick themselves out of the miry clay, but this time with the help of God. That’s the key to our success.
The stories of changed lives are virtually endless. We will spare you the details, but some examples would be prostitutes leaving their sex trade, ex-drug dealers working as volunteers, in the ministry, gangsters instead of killing are bringing life and hope, etc. When we pleaded with you, asking for your help, instead of help, we received the Attorney General, on behalf of your office and the provincial government, fighting against our rights, instead of defending them. In 2009, a judge ruled that, in fact, the way we were treated was an abuse of power and found the laws, we were charged under, were unconstitutional.
Mr. Premier, we have done everything we can to address these issues with you. As the man of greatest authority in this province, we expected a different response from you. A response of mercy, of justice, of grace. You could have said, “I will look into these issues because I am the man who was elected to govern righteously over all the people, not just a select few.” We could say much more, but they would just be the words of men. The words of God are the ones with greatest authority and power.
God has strong words relating to the treatment of those whom you have been given authority over. The word of God mandates – Isaiah 32:1 [ A Reign of Righteousness ] Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, And princes will rule with justice. Were your decisions and actions just? Were they righteous?
As we said in the beginning of this letter, we are writing to you to help you. As we already stated, we pray for you and the other leaders in our country. Understand, we desire for you to walk in the righteousness and blessings of God. Please understand that the province of Alberta was blessed by God due to the legacy of great rulers who loved the Lord and spoke freely about him and acted in righteousness, as best as they knew how. Premier William Aberhart (Bible Bill) and Premier Ernest Manning publicly and without shame preached about God while they were premier. In fact, William Aberhart preached every Sunday on the radio while he was holding his political office. Did you ever wonder why Ernest Manning was premier for 25 years and why he was, for a period of time, the longest continually serving democratically elected official in the world? God’s favour was upon them for standing for Him. God’s mercy continued to be upon this province even up until the time of Ralph Klein, due to the fact that, although he did not preach about God, he did not openly oppose Him. Wow, what a difference since you came to power, we are facing open opposition to the expression of our Christian beliefs, and when a man opposes God’s people, He opposes, God himself, and He is asking for the judgement of God. But we will let God, the real King, speak for Himself.
Regarding oppression God says:
Leviticus 25:17
Therefore you shall not oppress one another, but you shall fear your God; for I am the LORD your God.
Deuteronomy 24:14
“You shall not oppress a hired servant who is poor and needy, whether one of your brethren or one of the aliens who is in your land within your gates.
Deuteronomy 26:7
Then we cried out to the LORD God of our fathers, and the LORD heard our voice and looked on our affliction and our labor and our oppression.
Regarding partiality in judgement God says:
Deuteronomy 16:19
You shall not pervert justice; you shall not show partiality, nor take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous.
Job 13:10
He will surely rebuke you if you secretly show partiality.
Psalm 82:2
How long will you judge unjustly, And show partiality to the wicked?
James 2:9
but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors.
Regarding unjust judgements and dishonest gain God says:
Proverbs 11:1
Dishonest scales are an abomination to the LORD, But a just weight is His delight.
We all have to understand that our lives are in the hands of God and that in the end, every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord of all and over all. We pray that He would be Lord over your life now, so that you may walk in blessings instead of curses.
Psalm 72:11
Yes, all kings shall fall down before Him; All nations shall serve Him.
The scriptures talk about how we will be witnesses to the whole world. So we come as witnesses of the power, majesty, and righteous judgement of the Lord of hosts, not with a bitter heart but with passionate hearts, for your well being as well.
Mark 13:9
“But watch out for yourselves, for they will deliver you up to councils, and you will be beaten in the synagogues. You will be brought before rulers and kings for My sake, for a testimony to them.
There are consequences to how a man rules, and the question God has for every man who has been granted authority is “what will you do on your watch?” Due to God’s mercy, He raises the cries of the people against unrighteous authority.
When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan.
If their voices are raised and that leadership does not repent, He will hear their cry and will levy judgements and His justice, which no man can hide from.
22 “You shall not afflict any widow or fatherless child. 23 If you afflict them in any way, and they cry at all to Me, I will surely hear their cry;”
It says in the world of God that you will know them by their fruit.
19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.
21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
Exodus 9:30
But I know that you and your officials still do not fear the LORD God.
3 Therefore whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops.
4 “And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. 5 But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!”
So, there you have it, you can do with this letter what you please, but know this, there is no real king but King Jesus. We are writing to you as His messengers and His servants and we ask that you remember, all of our lives are in His hands, including yours. We pray that from now on, you will make righteous and just decisions.
We are reminded by scripture that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and that if any of us will confess our sins (with the sincerity of a repentant heart) He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us of all unrighteousness. If you would do this, perhaps God will turn the tide that is against you and this province, around, and that is what we desire and pray for.
We hope that this letter touches your heart and we look forward to your response. May God bless you with His wisdom, grace and understanding.
With Sincere hearts,
Artur Pawlowski
Street Church Ministries
and
Jim Blake
Concerned Christians Canada
