[42] Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes. [43] For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, [44]…; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.
Luke 19 : 42-44
Nadine Yousif – BBC News, Toronto
Sun, May 25, 2025 at 5:43 PM GMT+3
5 min read1.7k
A decade ago, a portrait of the British monarch caused a row in Canadian politics. Now, the King is being invited to deliver the Speech from the Throne. What’s changed?
National uproar due to emphasising Canada’s ties to the British monarchy
In 2011, shortly after forming a majority Conservative government, Prime Minister Stephen Harper caused a national uproar when he sought to emphasise Canada’s ties to the British monarchy. In one example, he replaced two artworks by a Quebec painter with a portrait of the Queen.
When the State shall enforce the decrees and sustain the institutions of the church, then will Protestant America have formed an image of [the] Papacy. Then the true church will be assailed by persecution as were God’s people in ancient times. Almost every century furnishes instances of what human hearts, controlled by rage and malice, can do under a plea of serving God by protecting the rights of the church and State. The Protestant churches that have followed in the steps of Rome by forming alliance with worldly powers have manifested a similar desire to restrict liberty of conscience. How many non-conformist ministers have suffered under the power of the Church of England! Persecution always follows favoritism in doctrine or religion on the part of secular governments.
It is urged by many that the intellectual and moral darkness prevailing during the Middle Ages favored the spread of the dogma, superstition, and oppression of popery, and that the general diffusion of knowledge and the well-nigh universal acceptance of the principles of religious liberty, forbid a revival of superstition and tyranny. It is true that great light, intellectual, moral, and religious, is shining upon this generation. Since 1844 light from the heaven of heavens has beamed from the open door of the temple of God. But it is to be remembered that the greater the light bestowed, the greater the delusion and darkness of those who reject the Word of God and accept fables, teaching for doctrine the commandments of men. 14LtMs, Ms 51, 1899, par. 22 – 14LtMs, Ms 51, 1899, par. 23
Some rebuked the gesture as being out of touch with modern times. Canada has, throughout its 157-year-old history, sought increasing independence from the British monarchy, while still remaining a part of the Commonwealth.
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When Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau succeeded Harper four years later, the Queen’s portrait went down, the Quebec paintings, back up.
Shew me a penny. Whose image and superscription hath it? They answered and said, Caesar’s . Luke 20 : 24
Fast forward to 2025, and a paradoxical shift has occurred in Canada’s relationship with the Crown. In a transparent show of Canada’s sovereignty and independence against threats from US President Donald Trump, Prime Minister Mark Carney – a Liberal – has invited King Charles the III to open the 45th Canadian parliament.
The days are fast approaching when there will be great perplexity and confusion. Satan, clothed in angel robes, will deceive, if possible, the very elect. There will be gods many and lords many. Every wind of doctrine will be blowing. RH January 11, 1887, par. 4
Now there was found in it a poor wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city; yet no man remembered that same poor man.Ecclesiastes 9 : 15
- King Charles uses symbols to show support for Canada
- The strategy behind Carney’s invite to the King
Is Trump Fueling the End Times Rebellion of the Church?
The move is “a huge affirmation and statement about the uniqueness of Canada and its traditions,” Justin Vovk, a Canadian royal historian, told the BBC – “a theatrical display that is meant to show what makes Canadians separate from Americans” and not, as Trump has often repeated, a “51st state“.
But Romanism as a system is no more in harmony with the gospel of Christ now than at any former period in her history. The Protestant churches are in great darkness, or they would discern the signs of the times. The Roman Church is far-reaching in her plans and modes of operation. She is employing every device to extend her influence and increase her power in preparation for a fierce and determined conflict to regain control of the world, to re-establish persecution, and to undo all that Protestantism has done. Catholicism is gaining ground upon every side. See the increasing number of her churches and chapels in Protestant countries. Look at the popularity of her colleges and seminaries in America, so widely patronized by Protestants. Look at the growth of ritualism in England and the frequent defections to the ranks of the Catholics. These things should awaken the anxiety of all who prize the pure principles of the gospel. GC 565.4
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Both countries are former British colonies, but America’s founding fathers took a different path and severed all formal connections to the Crown nearly 250 years ago.
Canada’s parliamentary system is Best Implementer after Britain’s Westminster system.
Canada’s separation from the monarchy has been more gradual, and its ties have never been completely broken. Canada’s parliamentary system is modelled after Britain’s Westminster system. The British monarch is still formally the head of state, but their duties are often carried out by their Canadian representative, called the governor general.
Romanism is now regarded by Protestants with far greater favor than in former years. In those countries where Catholicism is not in the ascendancy, and the papists are taking a conciliatory course in order to gain influence, there is an increasing indifference concerning the doctrines that separate the reformed churches from the papal hierarchy; the opinion is gaining ground that, after all, we do not differ so widely upon vital points as has been supposed, and that a little concession on our part will bring us into a better understanding with Rome. The time was when Protestants placed a high value upon the liberty of conscience which had been so dearly purchased. They taught their children to abhor popery and held that to seek harmony with Rome would be disloyalty to God. But how widely different are the sentiments now expressed! GC 563.1
Loyalty to the Crown was seen as important to Canada’s politicians in the 19th Century who wanted to maintain separation from the US, said Canadian royal historian and commentator Carolyn Harris.
Protestants have tampered with and patronized popery; they have made compromises and concessions which papists themselves are surprised to see and fail to understand. Men are closing their eyes to the real character of Romanism and the dangers to be apprehended from her supremacy. The people need to be aroused to resist the advances of this most dangerous foe to civil and religious liberty. GC 566.1
That later changed in the 1960s, as Quebec – Canada’s majority French-speaking province – began to assert its own distinct identity and threatened separation. This led to an era of politicians like Lester B Pearson and Pierre Elliott Trudeau who worked to untangle Canada from its British colonial past.
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In 1982, Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau repatriated Canada’s constitution, giving full legislative power to the federal government and the provinces, and removing it from British parliament.
Ms Harris noted that Canada remained a constitutional monarchy throughout these periods. What fluctuated, however, was how much the prime minister of the day chooses to embrace that connection.
Carney’s invitation to King Charles III signals that his government will be one that is much more supportive of the Crown, Mr Vovk said, marking “a very different tone” from previous Liberals.
“The Constitution of the United States guarantees liberty of conscience. Nothing is dearer or more fundamental. Pope Pius IX, in his Encyclical Letter of August 15, 1854, said: `The absurd and erroneous doctrines or ravings in defense of liberty of conscience are a most pestilential error—a pest, of all others, most to be dreaded in a state.’ The same pope, in his Encyclical Letter of December 8, 1864, anathematized `those who assert the liberty of conscience and of religious worship,’ also ‘all such as maintain that the church may not employ force.’
“The pacific tone of Rome in the United States does not imply a change of heart. She is tolerant where she is helpless. Says Bishop O’Connor: ‘Religious liberty is merely endured until the opposite can be carried into effect without peril to the Catholic world.’… The archbishop of St. Louis once said: ‘Heresy and unbelief are crimes; and in Christian countries, as in Italy and Spain, for instance, where all the people are Catholics, and where the Catholic religion is an essential part of the law of the land, they are punished as other crimes.’… GC 564.5 – GC 565.1
A British monarch has not delivered Canada’s throne speech since 1977, and has not opened a brand new session of parliament since 1957, making the King’s upcoming visit a truly rare occasion.
It comes at a consequential time for Canada.
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Carney heavily campaigned on standing up to Trump, after the US president spent months undermining Canada’s sovereignty by saying it would be better off as a US state.
Trump also imposed a series of tariffs that have threatened Canada’s economic stability, given that the US is its largest trade partner by far.
When announcing the visit last month, Carney called it “a historic honour that matches the weight of our times”.
And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.Luke 19 : 44
He added that the King’s visit “clearly underscores the sovereignty of our country”.
Both historians, Mr Vovk and Ms Harris, noted that the bulk of Canada’s modern population is indifferent to the British monarchy. Some are even critical of it.
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These records of the past clearly reveal the enmity of Rome toward the true Sabbath and its defenders, and the means which she employs to honor the institution of her creating. The word of God teaches that these scenes are to be repeated as Roman Catholics and Protestants shall unite for the exaltation of the Sunday. GC 578.2
The coronation of King Charles III in 2023 made way for fresh scrutiny of the Crown’s historic mistreatment of indigenous people in Canada, and questions on whether the new monarch will move towards reconciliation.
As the tidings spread through the countries of Europe, of a land where every man might enjoy the fruit of his own labor and obey the convictions of his own conscience, thousands flocked to the shores of the New World. Colonies rapidly multiplied. “Massachusetts, by special law, offered free welcome and aid, at the public cost, to Christians of any nationality who might fly beyond the Atlantic ‘to escape from wars or famine, or the oppression of their persecutors.’ Thus the fugitive and the downtrodden were, by statute, made the guests of the commonwealth.”—Martyn, vol. 5, p. 417. In twenty years from the first landing at Plymouth, as many thousand Pilgrims were settled in New England. GC 296.1
Quebec politicians are also still calling for Canada to cut ties with the monarchy
Quebec politicians are also still calling for Canada to cut ties with the monarchy. On Friday, the separatist Bloc Québécois party said it will again seek to scrap the need for elected officials to swear allegiance to the King.
. A profession of religion being the condition of suffrage and officeholding, many, actuated solely by motives of worldly policy, united with the church without a change of heart. Thus the churches came to consist, to a considerable extent, of unconverted persons; and even in the ministry were those who not only held errors of doctrine, but who were ignorant of the renewing power of the Holy Spirit. Thus again was demonstrated the evil results, so often witnessed in the history of the church from the days of Constantine to the present, of attempting to build up the church by the aid of the state, of appealing to the secular power in support of the gospel of Him who declared: “My kingdom is not of this world.” John 18:36. The union of the church with the state, be the degree never so slight, while it may appear to bring the world nearer to the church, does in reality but bring the church nearer to the world. GC 297.1
Some Canadians will be intrigued by the pomp and pageantry of the King’s visit, Mr Vovk said, but its chief purpose is to send a political message from Canada to the world.
It is also a way for Prime Minister Carney to improve the relationship with Trump, who is famously a fan of the British monarchy and its history.
It was demonstrated that the principles of the Bible are the surest safeguards of national greatness. The feeble and isolated colonies grew to a confederation of powerful states, and the world marked with wonder the peace and prosperity of “a church without a pope, and a state without a king.”
But continually increasing numbers were attracted to the shores of America, actuated by motives widely different from those of the first Pilgrims. Though the primitive faith and purity exerted a widespread and molding power, yet its influence became less and less as the numbers increased of those who sought only worldly advantage. GC 296.3 – GC 296.4
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“Strengthening the relationship with the monarchy puts a stamp on legitimacy that transcends individual parties and the current political climate,” Mr Vovk said. “Politicians come and go, but the monarchy has always remained.”
It also works to tie Canada closer to Europe – a key objective of Prime Minister Carney, a former governor of the Bank of England, who has spoken about the need for Canada to find new allies as it navigates its changing relationship with the US.
The great principle so nobly advocated by Robinson and Roger Williams, that truth is progressive, that Christians should stand ready to accept all the light which may shine from God’s holy word, was lost sight of by their descendants. The Protestant churches of America,—and those of Europe as well,—so highly favored in receiving the blessings of the Reformation, failed to press forward in the path of reform. Though a few faithful men arose, from time to time, to proclaim new truth and expose long-cherished error, the majority, like the Jews in Christ’s day or the papists in the time of Luther, were content to believe as their fathers had believed and to live as they had lived. Therefore religion again degenerated into formalism; and errors and superstitions which would have been cast aside had the church continued to walk in the light of God’s word, were retained and cherished. Thus the spirit inspired by the Reformation gradually died out, until there was almost as great need of reform in the Protestant churches as in the Roman Church in the time of Luther. There was the same worldliness and spiritual stupor, a similar reverence for the opinions of men, and substitution of human theories for the teachings of God’s word. GC 297.2
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The visit is notable for the Crown, too.
And as I was considering, behold, an he goat came from the west on the face of the whole earth, and touched not the ground: and the goat had a notable horn between his eyes.Daniel 8 : 5
It will be the King’s first to Canada as reigning monarch. He and the Queen had intended to visit last year, but cancelled their plans due to his cancer diagnosis.
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The palace has promised a throne speech that will “mark a significant moment between the Head of State and the Canadian people”.
The fundamental principle of Roger Williams’s colony was “that every man should have liberty to worship God according to the light of his own conscience.”—Ibid., vol. 5, p. 354. His little state, Rhode Island, became the asylum of the oppressed, and it increased and prospered until its foundation principles—civil and religious liberty—became the cornerstones of the American Republic.
In that grand old document which our forefathers set forth as their bill of rights—the Declaration of Independence—they declared: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” And the Constitution guarantees, in the most explicit terms, the inviolability of conscience: “No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States.” “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”
“The framers of the Constitution recognized the eternal principle that man’s relation with his God is above human legislation, and his rights of conscience inalienable. Reasoning was not necessary to establish this truth; we are conscious of it in our own bosoms. It is this consciousness which, in defiance of human laws, has sustained so many martyrs in tortures and flames. They felt that their duty to God was superior to human enactments, and that man could exercise no authority over their consciences. It is an inborn principle which nothing can eradicate.”—Congressional documents (U.S.A.), serial No. 200, document No. 271. GC 295.1 – GC 295.3
And while it will be a short trip – the King and Queen will arrive Monday morning and depart Tuesday evening – the palace said they hope the trip will be “an impactful one”.
- King meets Carney in symbolic support for Canada
- Mark Carney says Canadians are not ‘impressed’ by UK’s invite to Trump
- Provocative Trump statements about Canada loom large as Trudeau meets King
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