Representing
Jesus
By Robert
White
From: "Faith & Friends,"
July 1999. Faith & Friends
is published monthly by the Salvation
Army, 2 Overlea Blvd., Toronto,
ON, M4H 1P4. Reprinted by permission.
The term "Christian politician"
is not an oxymoron. It is possible
to be both. In fact, various political
parties on Parliament Hill have
Christians within their ranks.
These men and women have different
opinions about how Canada should
be governed, but as ambassadors
for Christ they also believe that
God should have "dominion
from sea to sea."
David Kilgour grew up in Winnipeg
where he attended an Anglican
Church with his parents. He didn’t
take faith seriously until his
father began a battle with lung
cancer.
"I started going to a prayer
meeting at a friend’s house
where there were some remarkable
people," he recalls. One
was a woman dealing with family
problems. Her attitude challenged
David, and he began to examine
his faith and allow God to play
a more significant role in his
life.
"Before Dad died, I hope
he noticed that something had
changed," says David.
The change in the young lawyer’s
life has sustained him through
20 years as a member of Parliament.
In 1972, David moved to Edmonton
to be a prosecutor in the Crown
Attorney’s office. Seven
years later, he was elected as
the Progressive Conservative member
for the Edmonton Strathcona constituency.
He held the seat until the boundaries
were changed for the 1988 election.
As a member of Prime Minister
Brian Mulroney’s government,
David was a parliamentary secretary.
He was asked to leave the Conservative
Party in 1990 for voting against
the Goods and Services Tax. He
sat briefly as an independent
before joining the Liberals in
1991.
As the Liberal MP for Edmonton
Southeast, David was the deputy
speaker of the House of Commons
from January 1994 until his appointment
as secretary of state for Latin
America and Africa in 1997.
The politician moved his growing
family -- three daughters and
a son -- to Ottawa. Every few
weeks, David packs his bags and
travels to Edmonton where he spends
three or four days with the people
who elected him. There are also
times when he is away from home
carrying out official duties assigned
by the prime minister.
This has curtailed some of his
activities in his home church,
such as 20 years of teaching at
Ottawa’s Westminster Presbyterian.
His family remains involved.
But responsibilities and travel
haven’t curtailed his growth
as a Christian. He found himself
worshipping in a Costa Rican church
on Palm Sunday and seeks out Christian
fellowship when he’s on the
road.
"I’m always [encouraged]
by the vigour, confidence and
optimism of local Christians,"
says David "We should try
to do likewise.
In March he spoke on the subject
"Christians in the emerging
world order," at St. Paul
University, Ottawa.
"Christian politicians everywhere
can help by acting as a brake
upon forces that daily threaten
to overcome civilization,"
he said. "In addition to
speaking out or voting, we believers
… must place a high value
on empathy, kindness and the numerous
other qualities associated with
Christianity. Our lives must remind
others that there is a Redeemer
for our tormented public and private
worlds."
David has been a witness for
Christ in many places. As part
of a Christian delegation visiting
the Great Hall of the People in
Beijing, China, he spoke to Chinese
political leaders and left copies
of a video depicting the life
of Christ. In the early 1990s,
David visited Moscow with a group
of Christians who hosted a brunch
for members of the Duma, Russia’s
parliament.
Integrity firmly rooted in Christian
faith makes David Kilgour an inspiration
among politicians and constituents
alike.
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David
Kilgour is the Member of Parliament for Edmonton
Southeast
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