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APrilIssue one

2016

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welcoming the strAnger Student RetReatS phySician aSSiSted Suicide

Editor-in-ChiEfLarry Worthen, Dartmouth, NS

Editorial assistantStephanie Potter, Dartmouth, NS

foCUs MaGaZinE is PUBlishEd BYChristian Medical and Dental Society of Canada9A-1000 Windmill RoadDartmouth, NS B3B 1L7Tel: 902.406.2955Toll-free: 1.888.256.8653 Fax: 902.407.5313Email: [email protected]

ProdUCtion and dEsiGnMegan Kamei, Winnipeg, MB

FOCUS is published three times per year. It is a national forum for students and graduates of medicine and dentistry to discuss topics related to the integration of Christian faith and practice across Canada. Contributions are welcome and should be directed to the Editor in chief (address above). We encourage readers to submit articles of personal or professional interest as well as those related to CMDS Canada activities at home and around the world. Subscriptions are available for $20/year. (Membership in CMDS Canada includes a subscription to FOCUS magazine)

Publications Mail AgreementNo. 40012641

ISSN 0925-8321 FOCUS (Steinbach, Print)

Return undeliverable mail to:Christian Medical and Dental Society of Canada9A-1000 Windmill RoadDartmouth, NS B3B 1L7Email: [email protected]

FOCUS articles reflect the beliefs and opinions of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official positions of CMDS Canada

focus MaGaZIne

WWW.CANADIANSFORCONSCIENCE.CAAs part of our conscience rights advocacy we have launched a new website that allows the public to directly contact decision makers across the country. This website was made with the other members of the Coalition for HealthCARE and Conscience.

We strongly encourage you to direct your colleagues, families, friends and church community to use this website to contact decision makers.

CMDS ON SOCIAL MEDIAOur social media has been very busy in the last few months. In February we live-tweeted Larry Worthen and Cardinal Collins’ presentation to the Joint Senate-Commons Committee on Physician Assisted Dying. We’ve also been keeping our followers up to date with all the latest news articles relating to conscience protection and sharing messages of hope and faith.

www.facebook.com/CMDSCanada

WWW.CMDSCANADA.ORGWe launched our brand new website this year. It is sleek, user friendly, and allows members to log in to update their information with us. If you don’t have your password or user ID, simply contact us at [email protected]

MONTHLy NEWSLETTERWe also launched a new monthly email newsletter to keep our members up to date on current events, student opportunities, and upcoming CMDS events like our student retreats, national conference, and local speaking engagements.

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONSWe are currently accepting submissions for our blog. Let us know what issues are affecting you as a medical professional or medical student. Contact Stephanie Potter at [email protected] for more information.

Issue 1 | April 2016 FOCUS 1

editorialThis issue of FOCUS takes up the important idea of Welcoming the Stranger. It will be the theme of our 2016 National Conference in Saskatoon. This theme speaks to our community strongly as we have become strangers in our own country. Where once a Christian culture prevailed, the final trappings of Christian values are being eroded in favour of cultural values which are alien to us and dismiss our most strongly held beliefs. We see this most recently in the proposed legalization of euthanasia and physician assisted dying. The recent report of the Joint Parliamentary Senate Committee has recommended that physicians be required to refer patients for assisted suicide and that all health care facilities must provide it on the premises. If implemented this will mean that

many physicians will be unable to practice and many facilities will have to close. For this reason we ask members to encourage church members, friends, colleagues and family to write to decision makers using this website: www.CanadiansForConscience.ca

Our country has become one which, while better at welcoming the geographical stranger, no longer welcomes those who hold different beliefs. One of the greatest things about modern day Canada was that we did not always require conformity of views among our citizens, preferring a well-woven tapestry to the melting pot. Rather than being discouraged, we continue to advocate for our fellow-Canadians and our government to continue to enshrine our freedom of conscience and religious beliefs.

This makes our work to encourage our student leaders all the more critical. This issue of FOCUS features witnesses from our Eastern and Western Student Retreat, our Student Leadership Conference and a report from a student we sponsored via our Student Elective Scholarship. In a time when students are under a tremendous amount of pressure, both academically and morally, we continue to do our best to remind them that they have a community that welcomes them and stands by them in their struggles. I hope that you enjoy reading their joyful and inspiring stories as much as I did. We continue our work not just for ourselves but for them as they take up the torch of faith in a country which is increasingly less accepting of our Christian faith and values. f

FOCUS Welcoming the Stranger 2

Lindy Buzikievich

contrIbutors

Lindy Buzikievich is a 4th year medical student, and former CMDS student leader at the University of Ottawa. She has a long-standing interest in global health, discipleship and capacity building and hopes to develop and apply these interests through her residency training and beyond. She has completed international electives and volunteered (in her former life as a physician assistant) at Chimwemwe Community Clinic (Kitwe, Zambia), Baylor Pediatric AIDs Initiative (Lilongwe, Malawi), Kamuzu Central Hospital (Lilongwe, Malawi), Namuraputh Health Centre (Turkana, Kenya) and AIC Kijabe Hospital (Kijabe, Kenya).

Jon Dykeman is the Associate Staff person for CMDS at the University of Toronto. He is also a youth and young adult minister at Christ Church St. James in Toronto. Jon completed his BA in Religious Studies in 2009 and his Masters of Divinity at Wycliffe College, University of Toronto in May 2015. He is son to retired GP, Bruce Dykeman. Jon is an avid hockey fan and “enjoys all things active” in his spare time. He has a heart for young people and hopes to be an Associate Staff person for a long time.

John Patrick retired from the University of Ottawa in 2002. He now lectures throughout the world on moral issues in medicine and culture, and the integration of faith and science. John is the president of Augustine College in Ottawa. He is married to Sally, and resides part time in Ottawa, and part time on the farm.

Dan Reilly practices and teaches ob/gyn in small town Ontario and teaches ethics at McMaster University. Dan is a Past President of the CMDS Canada National Board, and provides leadership on many levels, including the annual Student Leadership Conference and the Eastern Student Retreat.

Sandra Wegner completed her residency in family medicine in Beverly, MA. Since then she has been working as a part-time family physician in Saskatoon, SK. In 2014, she became certified as a menopause consultant with the North American Menopause Society. This enabled her to join the Women’s Mid-Life Health Centre as a menopause consultant at the Saskatoon City Hospital. In this capacity, she enjoys teaching medical students and residents in her role as a clinical assistant professor with the Department of Academic Family Medicine. God has honoured her obedience in following His calling to become the founding physician for LIFEBRIDGE Health Centre by equipping her with strength through trials and wisdom in leadership. Sandra’s responsibilities as a wife and the mother of six children has remained her primary focus throughout her medical career. She treasures any free time she finds to be engaged in photography, sewing, crafts, baking, camping and travelling. She works hard to stay active by running, gardening, hiking, and horseback riding.

dan Reilly

John patrick

Sandra WegnerJon dykeman

I was a stranger and you invited me in. I was sick and you looked after me. Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and

sisters of mine, you did for me. Matthew 25: 35-36, 40

IN EVERY ISSUE

Editorial 1

Milestones 5

Point/Counterpoint 14

The Last Word 24

FEATURES

Here I Am, Send Me: Welcoming Strangers in Kenya 4

Welcoming the Stranger 10

Welcoming Strangers and Building Opportunities 16

CMDS CANADA COMMUNITY

Update on Conscience Protection 6

CMDS Toronto Student Ministry Update 9

year End Report 12

Student Leadership Conference 18

Western Student Retreat 20

Eastern Student Retreat 22

inside Focus

f

9

17

10

4

23


here I am, send MeWelcoming Strangers in KenyaLindy Buzikievich

From November to December of 2015, I had the privilege of completing a five-week clinical elective at AIC Kijabe Hospital through Samaritan’s Purse World Medical Mission. The 101-year-old mission hospital located in Kijabe, approximately an hour and a half northwest of Kenya’s capital city, Nairobi, is committed to glorifying God through the provision of compassionate, quality health care and excellent medical training in eastern Africa. It was an amazing opportunity to get a glimpse into how the Father is at work in Kijabe, and to be a small part of that work. Thank you to CMDS Canada for helping make this elective possible through the

Student Overseas Elective Scholarship. During my time at Kijabe, I worked

clinically in the emergency department with a team of nurses, nursing students, interns, clinical officers (similar to physician assistants or nurse practitioners) and staff physicians. The hospital is well equipped and is one of the few not-for-profit hospitals in Kenya with reliable access to a CT scanner, ventilators, point of care ultrasound and subspecialty support. The staff still faces very real challenges related to issues of patient volume, delays in patient presentation, finances, and astronomically high rates of motor vehicle accident-related traumas. Along with providing clinical care, I participated in several quality improvement projects in the ED, including an initiative led by the hospital’s pediatricians to equip the ED with pediatric resuscitation equipment sorted into easily accessible boxes by Broselow Tape category. It was amazing to see God’s hand even in the timing of this quality improvement

project, as not two hours after that project was completed, a pediatric trauma requiring emergent intervention rolled in the doors. That child ultimately did well, in part because of the newly organized and readily available pediatric resuscitation equipment.

At Kijabe I had the opportunity to work with a variety of short-term and long-term expatriate physicians (including one short-term physician and CMDS Canada member from Alberta!). Building relationships with these physicians, observing the manner in which they intentionally invest in community and simultaneously engage in both discipleship and capacity building was invaluable. Even more so was the opportunity to build relationship with some of the Kenyan, Congolese and South Sudanese trainees that I worked alongside. Kijabe Hospital is currently operating a nursing training program, an internship program for both medical officers (newly graduated

Donations to the “Needy Children’s Fund” at AIC Kijabe Hospital can be made at kijabehospital.org/make-a-difference

FEATURE


Milestones

This winter CMDS Canada welcomed a new Associate Staff member to work at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Adam Greeley is a church planter in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia with the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches. He is passionate about forming disciplemakers who join God in His work of renewal in the areas they live, work, and play. For this reason, Adam is thrilled to join the CMDS Canada staff to help grow a discipling culture with the Dalhousie chapter in Halifax – a culture that helps students to grow in their gospel identity and to live out of this identity in and through their God-given vocation. Adam is married to the woman of his dreams, Suzanne, and they have four children together: Jacob (6), Charis (4), Katie (2), and Jonah (10months). f

MDs/R1s) and clinical officers, and a nurse anesthetist program, along with general surgery and orthopedics residency programs (through Pan-African College of Christian Surgeons). The chance to build relationship and dream with my African brothers and sisters who are on this same journey as I to learn medicine, care for those in need, and glorify God in the process, was simply awe inspiring. My time there so encouraged me and has already shown me doors of opportunity for the future that I did not know existed.

The theme of this edition of FOCUS is ‘welcoming the stranger.’ The Kenyan staff and trainees at Kijabe taught me something new about what it means to welcome the stranger. you see, approximately one quarter of patients at Kijabe Hospital are from a neighbouring country that has been at civil war for many years. One of the factions fighting for control of this neighbouring country has attacked Kenyan civilians on multiple occasions, tragically and violently killing hundreds of Kenyan civilians in attacks on public gathering places in Kenya. Unsurprisingly, much of Kenyan society is quite fearful of them. Despite this fear, and despite the fact that the people from this neighbouring country

are very distinct both culturally and religiously, the staff at Kijabe choose daily to care for these patients with such care and compassion that thousands of people from this country now refer to Kijabe as “their” hospital and choose to travel more than 600km to seek care at this Christian mission hospital.

No matter where you serve, I encourage you to look for opportunities to welcome the stranger and to build relationships and invest in those you train. Hold your life with open hands and say to God, “here I am, send me” and follow wherever He leads. If you feel called to serve internationally, there is great need for physicians to serve in both long and short-term capacities for the purposes of teaching and to spell off long-term physicians during needed breaks and fundraising trips. There are many ways in which to partner with what the Father is doing throughout the world. If you desire to contribute to the kingdom work being done through Kijabe, there is always need, particularly in the area of the Needy Children’s Fund, which allows the hospital to subsidize the cost of care for vulnerable children. Thank you to the CMDS Canada community for investing in me and helping equip me to follow the Father’s call in my life. f


update on conscience protection

Since our last update, we have joined a coalition of like-minded organizations to amplify the reach of our advocacy. The Coalition for HealthCARE and Conscience is a group of diverse organizations who are opposed to the legalization of euthanasia and assisted suicide. Together our Coalition represents over 5,000 physicians and more than 110 health care facilities with almost 18,000 care beds and 60,000 staff members. Each of the groups involved in the coalition opposes the legalization of assisted suicide and euthanasia. We are advocating for respect for the sanctity of human life, the protection of the vulnerable and the ability of individuals and institutions to provide health care without having to compromise their conscience.

Our Coalition has hired a group of consultants and with their help we have engaged decision makers and the public through in person meetings, a website, social media and traditional news media. We have had meetings with MPs from all three major parties, as well as Hon. Jane Philpott, the Minister of Health and William Pentney, the Deputy Minister of Justice and Deputy Attorney General of Canada. On the provincial level, we have been lobbying particularly in Ontario as the CPSO policy is particularly unfavourable. Our meetings in Ontario have included the provincial Minister Responsible for Seniors, the Associate Minister of Health – Long Term Care, the Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Health (Palliative Care), the Minister of Health and Long Term Care, and Patrick Brown, MPP Leader of the Ontario PC Party.

On February 3rd, 2016, our Executive Director Larry Worthen appeared before the Special Joint Committee on Physician-Assisted Dying with Cardinal Thomas Collins on behalf of the Coalition. To read the full text to their presentation see page 24.

Despite recommendations from the Coalition, the CMA and various other concerned groups, the Special Joint Committee still presented some very

problematic recommendations. These recommendations included effective referral by objecting physicians, that publicly funded institutions should provide assisted suicide and euthanasia on their premises even if they have conscientious objections, and that access to assisted suicide and euthanasia can be given to minors, people with mental illness and those with physical disabilities. While these recommendations are troubling, they are not the law. We are called more than ever to speak up not just for our own sake, but for the sake of the vulnerable.

NExT STEpSWe will continue to advocate for conscience rights and for the vulnerable at both the provincial and federal level. Leading up to the June deadline for legislation, our Executive Director Larry Worthen will meet with officials from all provinces and territories, Members of Parliament from the House of Commons Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights, and Senators from the Senate Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs. We also are continuing with our media campaign to increase public awareness of the issue while mobilizing our supporters. The more people we can encourage to use our website CanadiansforConscience.ca the more the voice of the Coalition is magnified.

HOw CAN YOU HElp?Advise your families, friends, church community and colleagues that if legislation is passed the lives of the vulnerable, the careers of health professionals and the future of objecting health care institutions are all in jeopardy. Encourage your contacts to visit our website CanadiansforConscience.ca and send messages to federal and provincial politicians and officials. We also ask you to pray with us and for us. We all need to turn to the Lord to ask His mercy on patients, health care workers, and health care facilities. In fact, all of our society needs the Lord’s help to be able to see His face in those who are suffering. (Mt 25:34-36) f

CONSCIENCE pROTECTION STRATEGY• Direct contact with elected

representatives, Ministers and Officials federally and provincially

• Find allies in other religious groups and non religious people

• Identification of supporters and calls to action to contact their elected representatives

• Activation campaign on website, social media and traditional media

UpDATE• Seven provincial colleges do not

require referral • No foreign jurisdiction that permits

assisted suicide and euthanasia requires referral or forces facilities to provide it

• CMA policy does not require referral • Ontario college requires “effective

referral”• Quebec legislation requires physician

to send form to health administrator (like a referral)

wHAT DID THE SUpREME COURT DECIDE IN CARTER?Section 241(b) and s.14 of the Criminal Code have no force and effect to the extent that they prohibit PAD for: • a competent adult person• who clearly consents• who has a grievous and irremediable

medical condition (including illness, disease or disability)

• which causes enduring suffering that is intolerable to the individual


*May 2015 survey of 1,201 Canadians conducted by Abingdon Research

HOw SHOUlD A pHYSICIAN wHOSE RElIGIOUS bElIEFS wOUlD FORbID THEM FROM REFERRING FOR EUTHANASIA bE REqUIRED TO ACT wHEN A pATIENT REqUESTS THE pROCEDURE?*

14%

28% 58%

Neither perform nor refer for euthanasia

Must perform

Must refer

Catholic hospitals should be required by law to perform these procedures and lose funding if they don’t comply

Catholic hospitals should be required by law to allow procedures in their facilities

Catholic hospitals should be able to say no on moral grounds and patients who want a doctor assisted death should be moved

34%

24%

26%

68%

31%

41%

31%

24%

26%

53%

33%

38%

47%

67%

62%

32%

69%

59%

Religious nursing homes should be required by law to perform these procedures and lose funding if they don’t comply

Religious nursing homes should be required by law to allow procedures in their facilities

Religious nursing homes should be able to say no on moral grounds and patients who want a doctor assisted death should be moved

TotalQuebec Rest of Canada


www.CANADIANSFORCONSCIENCE.CAThe coalition for conscience and healthcARe has launched a new website to promote conscience rights for physicians. This website can be used to contact decision makers both provincially and federally. Please share this website with your friends, family, colleagues and church community.

CANADIANS SHOUlDN’T HAVE TO COMpROMISE THEIR CONSCIENCE.in canada, everyone has the right to their faith and their conscience. The coming legalization of physician-assisted suicide will put healthcare practitioners and facilities in a compromised position.

Those who cannot support assisted suicide or euthanasia because of their conscience, faith and commitment to the hippocratic Oath could be forced to compromise their convictions. They shouldn’t have to.

Our coalition stands opposed to assisted suicide.

We need your help to ensure canadian’s faith and conscience rights are protected.

OUR CONSCIENCE RIGHTS MATTER.

Members of the public can sign up to show support .

Take ActionThe best way to support our proposal to protect patients and the conscience rights of healthcare practitioners and facilities is to sign up to show your support. We need your help now.

you can write to the Federal Government and also select your province to contact provincial and territorial decision makers. The Federal Government page as well as the provincial and territorial pages have a letter writing form. each page has an addressed pre-loaded letter that you can fully edit and send.


cMDs toronto student Ministry updateFuture Doctors and Dentists learning together how to serve Jesus and one anotherJOn dykeMAn

Most people don’t know this, but the University of Toronto Faculties of Medicine and Dentistry are spread out over three different locations. I meet with med students downtown for Bible study at noon hour on Mondays. We just finished working through the Sermon on the Mount. Tuesdays or Wednesdays, 33 km West of the downtown campus, I meet with students in Mississauga at the Health Sciences Complex for a similar study. Most recently, I have started to meet with a group of first year dental students on Fridays in the Dentistry Building downtown – a 15 minute walk away from the main university campus. These different locations have kept me on my toes, but that’s okay; I like

variety. Not only that, but the students make it so worthwhile.

Sure, we have some challenges here and there - students come from all over the country and beyond and bring certain expectations to the group, however our times of joyous fellowship heavily outweigh some of the challenging times – we are, after all living and participating in, the Kingdom of God. This month, our downtown leadership team and I will be launching evening gatherings. This will provide more time for community building and provide the time needed to get deeper into the Scriptures. We also have some fun events planned, including a board games night, serving food to the needy at a local

church and skating. We also want to invite other med students out for a viewing of the Christian Documentary, “Drop Box.”

Would you consider praying for our groups? We need all the support we can get for this ministry to grow into all that God has in mind for us. If you are a doctor or dentist in the area and you want to get involved, please email me: [email protected]. If you would like to contribute financially, to see me paid two full days per week, please consider making a monthly or one-time donation to the student ministry through CMDS’s National Office. f

interested in supporting the good work of cmds canada as a servant leader?

THERE wIll bE AN ElECTION FOR A NEw VICE pRESIDENT AT THE ANNUAl

MEETING IN MAY OF 2016 IN SASkATOON. THE VICE pRESIDENT SERVES FOR A

TERM OF TwO YEARS AND THEN NORMAllY bECOMES pRESIDENT FOR A TERM

OF TwO YEARS. IF YOU ARE INTERESTED, OR kNOw SOMEONE wHO wOUlD bE A

GOOD CANDIDATE, plEASE CONTACT DR. DAN REIllY, NOMINATING COMMITTEE

CHAIR, [email protected]


David Shenk will be the keynote speaker for our National Conference in Saskatoon in May.

Abandonment is a theme that runs deeply through the soul of all Muslim communities. The mission of compassionate Muslims is, therefore, to reverse the injustices of abandonment. That is the essence of the current conflicts that in various ways are affecting the wellbeing of the Muslim ummah (community). The urgent quest for inclusion is revealed within the soul of the Fatiha, the prayer that all Muslims are required to recite with face to the floor in a sign of utter submission to the will of God.

At five different times each day the Muslim ummah (Muslim Community) in unison petitions God, “Show us the Straight Way, The Way of those on whom you have bestowed your grace, those whose portion is not wrath, and who do not go astray.” The ummah brings that petition for inclusion before God fourteen times every day. It takes an hour of each day to perform the ritual requirements of that prayer, a prayer petitioning inclusion within the Straight Way. Although the times for prayer are five, the repetition of the Fatiha happens fourteen times within the five daily prayer times.

The petition for inclusion is rooted within the Muslim narrative about an orphan boy named Muhammad in seventh century Mecca whose father died before he was born and whose mother died when he was six. Within two years his grandfather had also died; consequently he was raised by his uncle. His uncle was responsible to maintain the polytheistic harem of 360 deities who resided within the temple in

Mecca known as the Ka’abah. The orphan, Muhammad, detested these gods. His opposition to these false deities further alienated him from family and Meccan society.

Nevertheless Muhammad never graduated from the awe that in his extremity, God cared for him. The Qur’an proclaims, “Did he (God) not find you (O Muhammed) an orphan and gave you refuge? And he found you wandering, and he gave you guidance. And he found you in need and he gave you guidance.” (93:6-8)

It is remarkable that both the Muslim movement and the Christian community respectively remember the accounts of an orphan or refugee child being cared for by those who are compassionate. Every year at the annual pilgrimage to Mecca, Muslims enact the account of Hagar seeking water for her dying son, Ishmael. Although Ishmael was sent away from home, God did not forget Ishmael and sent an angel to protect Ishmael and provide life-sustaining water from a spring in the desert. Jesus likewise escaped death when as an infant he fled with Joseph and Mary to Egypt when his life was under threat. In both the Ishmael account and the Jesus narrative God sent an angelic messenger to save the life of a vulnerable child, Ishmael as well as the young child, Jesus.

Even the Buddhist immigrants from societies such as that of Sri Lanka or Myanmar are formed by a primary narrative of abandonment. All Buddhists remember the Great Renunciation when Siddhartha Gautama abandoned his wife and infant son to seek

FEATURE

the Stranger! dAvid W. Shenk

Welcoming


personal enlightenment. The quest for enlightenment within a variety of Eastern spiritualties takes the devotee into lonely paths.

Many Canadian immigrants identify with these narratives of abandonment. This is especially so of the large immigrations of recent years. The new immigrants are transforming Canada into a nation comprised mostly of peoples who have been abandoned and who have found refuge and a home in Canada. Like Jesus, Muhammad, Ishmael or Buddha, multitudes of newly arrived Canadians have a legacy of flight from adversity or abandonment, either in their personal journey or that of their family or community.

Most newly arriving immigrants are refugees fleeing atrocities. They have joined with a torrent of 50,000,000 migrants who are criss-crossing the earth in these tumultuous times. In this horrendous era Canada is a nation that continues the legacy of providing a haven for the oppressed from nations and peoples around the world. With that marvelous legacy it is not surprising that the whole world wishes to migrate to Canada!

In a most remarkable way Canada not only welcomes the stranger, but seeks to enable the stranger to find a home and to become loyal to the Canadian ethos of hospitality. Several years ago several colleagues and I attended a Shi’ite celebration in Toronto. A Mountie arrived dressed in regalia. He was invited to a seat of honor, and in due course gave a fine five-minute speech on Canadian commitment to multiculturalism. He told me that this is his full time job, going to the festivals of the newly arriving immigrant communities to help them feel at home in Canada!

We also recognize that the challenges of inclusion within Canadian multiculturalism have been especially daunting as the immigrant streams of Canadian societies meet and intermingle with First Nation societies. The same challenges are present within the US experience. My ancestors were immigrants; we live on lands where First Nation peoples lived long before my ancestors arrived.

On another visit, this time in Vancouver, my taxi driver was a Muslim from Pakistan. He had recently immigrated to Canada. He invested much of the 45 minutes of that ride in lauding Canada. Then I asked him if he knows the source of these grand values that he has been describing. I told him there is a book called the Bible that over the years has contributed significantly to the values he has been describing, as for example, each person is created in God’s image and therefore is to be respected and loved. Our ride concluded with a discussion of the role of Jesus in forming the values that the taxi driver from Pakistan appreciated.

I suppose every language under heaven is represented in Canada today. How blest Canada is to have nations around the world seeking to come. These are remarkable times with remarkable opportunities to receive and contribute a welcome for the many guests and visitors who are knocking on Canada’s door! In it all, let us never forget the call of God to bless the children! Our calling is to be emissaries of Jesus whose touch is healing for the memories of abandonment. Remember! Jesus was a refugee. f

FEATURE

NATIONAL2016CMDS

CONFERENCE

May 26-29, 2016Sheraton Cavalier Hotel

Saskatoon, SK

Keynote speaker Dr. David Shenk, an authority

on Christian relations with Islam and other religions

strangersWelcoming


Year end reportLARRy WORThen

As we reached our year-end it was impossible not to marvel at God’s endless providence and care for us. We have hired new staff in the wake of Marilyn Wieler’s retirement, moved our National Office to Nova Scotia so that I could be more fully involved in the day-to-day operations, joined our friends from CFCPS for our first ever Joint National Conference, and pushed on with the important advocacy work surrounding conscience rights and

our continuing opposition to euthanasia and physician assisted suicide. We have also been tremendously blessed by the continuing work of our local chapters, associate staff and our student retreats. In preparation for the 2016 student retreats we saw chapters and individuals across the country work diligently to raise funds to ensure that as many students as possible could attend our Western and Eastern Student Retreats. We were inspired by your generosity and kindness towards

these students. Just as we at the National Office are working constantly to ensure that we maintain our firm financial footing, you remind us of the necessity to build a strong spiritual footing in our lives and in the lives of medical and dental students.

We began 2016 with our eyes set on our mission, which was to continue to serve one another in love. We have been blessed by each of you and strive each day to be a blessing to you as well. f

The difference between income and expenditures is attributable to your generosity to the conscience fund. A surplus of $97,566 will be carried over to cover 2016 expenditures in the conscience fund. This leaves us with a slight deficit of $6,653 for 2015.


The CMDS Canada Annual General Meeting will be held Friday, May 27th, 2016 at the Sheraton Cavalier Hotel in Saskatoon during our annual National Conference. please ensure that your dues are paid to ensure you have voting privileges during our AGM. For more information, contact [email protected]

Revenue 2015 Revenue 2014

General Donations $79,080 $96,692

Student Ministry $60,855 $77,525

Chapter $64,852 $54,063

Special $30,005 $21,246

Campus Ministry $18,180 $11,694

Conscience $210,966 $82,600

ICMDA $4,975 $5,610

Dues $230,635 $213,724

Conference $129,841 $69,339

Admin & sundry $5,207 $6,021

Interest $4,786 $3,219

Sale of FOCUS $60 $335Total $839,442 $642,068

REVENUE

Expenses 2015 Expense 2014

Office & General $103,009 $81,890

Staff Salaries $178,717 $166,999

Chapters $74,174 $63,372

Conscience $113,400 $59,589

ICMDA $11,800 $11,259

Overseas Student Electives $3,150 $8575

Special $27,367 $20,892

FOCUS $18,807 $18,706

Campus Ministry $61,667 $69,568

Conference $124,425 $67,548

Student Leadership $32,013 $48,532Total $748,529 $625,649

ExpENSES


pOINT/COUNTERpOINT

PWhat does it mean to welcome the stranger in 2016?Be CautiousJOhn PATRick

“I was a stranger and you took me in.” There appears to be little room

to manoevre with such a text, but in the world at the time of Christ there were no mass migrations. Indeed, the estimated world population was only 300 million. Mass movement of populations is a recent phenomenon, which we can all see is problematic. From early in its history the church offered shelter to strangers, but most people rarely went more than 50 miles from their birth place so the strangers were not culturally so strange. Today the migrants come with very different cultural stories, often antipathetic with our Judeo-Christian heritage. It is all very well for the liberal elite in their leafy suburbs or down town apartments to opine that we can easily manage a million or two. For the blue collar population where unemployment is a major issue, especially for the poorly educated, the tensions are very real. It is said that Birmingham, UK, where I was born, is now the largest “Muslim” city in the western world and in the Sparkbrook area the pub is not the community focus it once was. For ordinary Brits the loss of the pubs is not a small change. Politicians and policy wonks have been asleep at the wheel.

Civilizations collapse and they do so because of their lack of resilience and their moral code decay. What are the essential features of a healthy civilization? The great Ming dynasty of China collapsed into civil war and chaos in about 50 years (read Niall Ferguson’s Civilization if you want to know more). Toynbee

studied the question for all his life and his summary is salutary. He does not list war as the main culprit. His list of six indicators of impending disaster are all about the soul and we are blasé about them. First and foremost is the loss of moral consensus. Societies depend upon agreement about morals and usually that happens without much debate if there is a great book as the foundation of that society. Many of us can remember a time when the phrase ‘The Bible says” ended many discussions, particularly in blue collar environments. The so-called progressives pour scorn on such a concept, not realizing what their pseudo-sophistication entails; C.S. Lewis captured the problem with a vivid metaphor. you castrate and bid the gelding be fruitful. Passing laws and teaching progressive ideas in school which undercut all previous human wisdom upsets ordinary folk, but they do not know how to deal with condescending put downs by the elite. Nevertheless they are unhappy. Polanyi put it like this: where citizens agree about morals, most issues can be left to individuals to settle, but where this consensus is lost the only solution will be submission to a single center of unlimited political power. Do you recognize us? Taking in particular strangers in small numbers who will almost inevitably integrate in two or three generations is quite different to taking in large numbers of strangers who have been taught, since childhood, that their morals are going to rule the world, and will likely live in cultural ghettos

is quite another thing. Tolerance and multiculturalism will not suffice. It is what we do not tolerate that gives society stability. The next item on Toynbee’s list follows from the first. When moral minorities manage to make legislation they undermine their own ultimate security, because the making of a law does not persuade people to think differently, but rather it leads to disrespect for law in general. The law is best when it follows not when it attempts to lead. Escapism follows because no-one likes to wake up each day to evidence that our society is falling apart (we used not to need to lock our doors and drugs were not in our schools) but not knowing how to reverse the process we escape into maudlin sentimentality or worse drugs and alcohol. Then, apathy appears and we drift into the sunset as in “The Cherry Orchard”, hardly managing to get to the polls. Now when we are serious we don’t like what we see in the mirror and we loathe ourselves, then we use distractions to avoid thinking about it from Facebook to Sports to cosmetics and surgery. With self control gone we let go into sexual and intellectual promiscuity. (The modern student has no respect for logic and no ability to recognize errors such as “everybody’s views of truth are equally valid”.)

The progressive view that everyone is intrinsically good as defined by us will not serve. The economic migrants have already conceded in their minds that their own society has failed and some are ready to integrate, but those who have bought the conspiracy theory

of failure and take no responsibility for the chaos in their own country are easy prey for radicalizers. When strangers become terrorists even their own families say they had no idea what was happening. So what hope do we have of finding them in time? None by the usual security approaches. The only effective way is to have sophisticated people interview them many times as the Israelis do at their airports successfully keeping bombers at bay for fifty years. But can we do that?

All I have done so far is to point out the difference between strangers when travel was slow and difficult and the media non-existent and the modern age.

Genuine friendship must look for shared passions, but where can they be found in a politically correct polity? I was talking to a Muslim shopkeeper this week and he was incomprehensibly shocked by the Christian concept of grace. Here we have an area where real conversation and possible friendship can grow. If our churches do not become places where the big questions of human existence are discussed where will it happen? Certainly not in our universities. There is hope. The so-called millennials are searching - conferences on apologetics are drawing large audiences whether with Apologetics Canada, The Ravi Zacharias organization or Did and Delve Ottawa. Visit on the web and pray about your community getting involved then we might have something upon which friendship to strangers can grow. I should stop lest I be accused of laying on a guilt trip. f


pOINT/COUNTERpOINT

CBe GenerousdAn ReiLLy

Then the King will say to those on his right, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me, I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.”

Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, “Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me, I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.” (Matt 25:34-36, 41-43)

Christ’s message in this text is crystal clear. If we love Christ and wish to serve Him, we will

feed the hungry, provide drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger into our home, clothe the naked, care for the sick, and visit those in prison. How are you doing with that? I am not doing as well as I know I could and I strive to do better. It would be great if I could accept Dr. Patrick’s argument that I don’t need to welcome the stranger since Christ’s command doesn’t apply in an era of mass migration. I hear Dr. Patrick saying “surely Christ wouldn’t expect us to follow a command if doing so leads to the end of our civilization”. My immediate response is “why not?”

Christ lovingly chose to follow God the Father instead of pursuing self-preservation and expects the same of his followers. I can find no scripture that allows the Christ follower to disobey Christ to save his life. Instead Christ bluntly states that “if you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it” (Matthew 10:39). It appears clear that even certain death is not a justification for disobeying Christ’s commands.

But perhaps Dr. Patrick is not speaking to us as followers of Christ but to us as members of a civilization in peril. Scripture does give powers and tasks to the state that it does not permit individuals to pursue. The taking of human life is one example of this; which is well explored in God’s Justice and Ours by the late Justice Antonin Scalia in First Things, May 2002. Romans 13:3-5 makes it clear that police and judges acting on behalf of society may imprison or kill while scriptures such as Romans 12:19 do not permit the individual to do either.

Maybe Dr. Patrick is suggesting that while Mr. Smith the Christ follower must open the door of his home to the stranger, Mr. Smith the politician should close the door of his nation to the same stranger. Put another way, perhaps Dr. Patrick is recommending that to save our society Prime Minister Smith can ignore Christ’s commands despite the fact that Mr. Smith the individual cannot ignore those commands even to save his

own life. That is a fascinating idea but I am not sure how anyone would actually live that out.

But I am not a politician and I have minimal influence on the national debate about refugees and immigration policy. So, as I interact with strangers I am only a Christ follower and my task is to welcome the stranger with the love of Christ. I am to display God’s hospitality that crosses every boundary and sacrifices all to offer relationship. Perhaps friendship will develop and the stranger will cease to be strange. Perhaps not and the stranger will remain uncomfortably or even threateningly distant. That has always been the way with strangers, whether in the age of slow travel or in the modern era.

Whatever the realities of the era we live in and the nature of the strangers in our lives, Matthew 25 makes it clear that at the end of nations, at the final judgment, our choice to welcome the stranger or not will matter. A sobering thought! f


Welcoming strangers and building opportunitiesSAndRA WeGneR

The day that yufeng Wang and his wife, ying Chen, received the email invitation to come to Saskatoon, SK to do their studies was an exciting day never to be forgotten. To this day, they treasure this opportunity afforded to them by two professors in the department of civil engineering at the University of Saskatchewan. One of those professors was the godly husband of the young doctor who held onto her dream for the creation of a centre where God’s healing power could freely impact lives.

yufeng was accepted to do his PhD studies in civil engineering and ying was accepted to do her masters studies in civil engineering. This day marked the dawn of new horizons for this young married couple living in China. They longed to venture out and start a new life in Canada far away from the limited opportunities, the societal constraints and the environmental pollution of their homeland.

They were willing to take on the tremendous challenges that lie ahead just for the hope of following their dream of a better life. They did not want their future children to grow up with the extreme academic competitiveness they experienced in their high school years. The life’s journey they were about to embark on was far removed from the life that they had known in China.

yufeng grew up in the small farming village of yujian in the province of Shanxi. It took an entire day to travel the 200 km through the mountains to the closest city of Taiyuan. They lived in a one-room cave hewn into the hillside. The cave had less than 200 square feet of space. There was a kitchen area and a large family bed made of dried mud where the three children and their parents slept. The chimney pipe from the cook stove ran through the mud bed allowing for more warmth.

From the age of five, children were free to explore all over the village and into the mountains and hillsides without need for any adult supervision. They were constantly outside playing all sorts of creative games when they were not in school or eating a meal with their family. The village literally raised the children.

ying grew up in the small town of yiyang with her parents and her brother. Her childhood memories are similar to yufeng’s experiences. Days were filled with freedom to play and explore throughout the town without worry of harm. After completing middle school, ying moved to the city of Pugang to do her high school studies. This city of over one million is considered to be a small city, but it actually has the same population as all of Saskatchewan.

For his middle school education, yufeng had to leave his village and travel 15 km away to Linxian, a town of 100,000 people. Only 20% of children passed the middle school exams which would allow them to be eligible for high school. During his high school education, yufeng lived in a simple dormitory room with seven other boys. The day began at 6 am with 30 minutes of exercise. Studies dominated his life with no time for leisure. The only free time during the day was one hour after supper and then the studies continued on until 9:30 pm. ying had the same experience during her high school training. The pressure to get into university was so great that they still have nightmares to this day about the sheer terror they faced of having to take these university entrance exams and not being prepared. Only the top 10 of the 65 students in his high school class made it into university.

yufeng met ying in university and they were married three years later after their graduation. Of the 100 students in their engineering class, they were the only two students who succeeded in leaving China to study abroad. As new immigrants and strangers in Saskatoon, this couple faced the challenges of not knowing anyone, struggling by with poor English, and needing to find a place to live. On their first day in Saskatoon, they went out to find food and had trouble even knowing how to ask for what they wanted. They had entered a new culture with a foreign language and very different societal norms than they were accustomed to. Despite the obstacles, they were full of excitement and expectation. Cars actually

FEATURE

Our VISION is to see LIFEBRIDGE Health Centre become a powerful place of healing and restoration for the thousands of people who will enter our doors. We want to be a tangible extension of the love and compassion of Jesus.

Our MISSION is to SERVE the people of Saskatchewan with a compassionate multispecialty and multidisciplinary healthcare team working in harmony to care for people holistically by addressing their mental, emotional, relational, spiritual and physical needs. Our GOAL in short is to care for the whole person, and in doing so, empower people to live life to the fullest.


stopped for them to cross the street. People welcomed them with kind greetings. They improved their English by attending classes with Global Gatherings. They enjoyed their post-graduate studies. They felt so blessed to be able to afford to rent an apartment all for themselves. In China they could only afford to each live separately in different apartments each with a number of other university students.

ying completed her master’s degree in 2007. In 2009 their first son, Luke, was born into their family and three years later, Andy joined the family. yufeng completed his PhD studies in 2012. By that time he had already begun his company, Baydo Development Corporation.

God has now blessed him with success and a talented staff of forty-five workers. He formed a second company called Rite Choice in 2013. This company specializes in excavation and laying water and sewer pipes for new construction sites. Rite Choice employs fifteen people during their peak summer season.

In 2013, ying’s sister-in-law was diagnosed with lung cancer. After one year of fighting this with treatments from Saskatoon to Toronto, she passed away in 2014. This was an extremely difficult time for yufeng and ying. From this loss and pain, a genuine longing was birthed to do something to create hope and healing for others suffering under the same burden of crushing and all-consuming illnesses such as cancer. The idea of creating a medical clinic became a seed that began to germinate in yufeng’s heart. By the time he acted on this longing, his company, Baydo Development Corporation, had only been operating for three years.

This lead to the idea of starting LIFEBRIDGE Health centre. It will operate as an integrated multispecialty and multidisciplinary clinic striving for efficient, excellent care using a patient-centred, holistic approach to health care.

yufeng and Dr. Sandra Wegner, a part-time family doctor, have formed a close partnership to see this vision to completion. This union actually came as a result of the desire yufeng and ying had to learn more about Christianity. They remembered that their supervising professor from the University of Saskatchewan had lived out a faithful Christian witness over their years of training. His consistent witness led them to conclude that if he believed in God, then this God must be real. They have intentionally embarked on a spiritual journey to come to know more about God. Their eagerness to study scripture is refreshing and they ask many questions during weekly Bible studies. Pray for them to come to faith in Christ soon.

Are you interested in joining the LIFEBRIDGE Health Centre team? We are currently recruiting eight full time equivalent family doctors or nurse practitioners, two pediatricians, two nurses, and three to ten specialists from almost any area. f

Contact Information:Sandra Wegner cell #: 1 (306) 713-1990Email: [email protected]

FEATURE

yufeng’s childhood cave home in the hillsides of yujian

Dr. Sandra Wegner and yufeng

LIFEBRIDGE Health centre

yufeng and ying


student Leadership conference

The 2016 CMDS Student Leadership Conference has been a great blessing for all of us who attended. It was a great joy to meet and share fellowship with other Christian medical and dental students from across the country and to learn more about how to be better Christian leaders in the context of our respective medical/dental schools.

We learned the importance of Christ-centeredness and humility in leadership since, as demonstrated through Gideon’s story, we saw how putting our focus on either our strengths or weaknesses can lead to destructive results. But in Christ, God can use both our strengths and weaknesses for His purpose and glory.

We learned about how we were made to desire things like status, glory, and achievement and how easily we can wrongly be addicted to these things. Rather than give in to these desires or deny these desires altogether, they are made perfect and holy when we find these things in Christ.

The conference gave us an opportunity to share the successes and challenges of our respective CMDS Canada branches with each other. This allowed us to not only learn from

each other but encourage each other as well, providing us with various ideas for the next year. It was also a wonderful time to learn from the wisdom of physicians and dentists that are currently practicing in the field.

Finally, the last day of the weekend gave us the opportunity to learn more about advocacy in light of the new euthanasia/physician assisted death laws. Indeed, we praise God for the way He is currently working with both politicians and physicians throughout the provinces, although our hearts also break for what this legislation means for the profession of medicine, for all patients, and for all Canadians. We have also been reminded of the powerful position we have been blessed with as medical and dental students to be able to speak and be heard regarding this issue in order to defend the conscience rights of physicians, advocate for the well-being of patients, and stand up for what is right in God’s eyes. We pray that we will be able to do our part at our local CMDS Canada branch to be salt and light to those around us.

One highlight was sharing ideas with students from other schools about how to best

engage students, and what we should be doing on our campuses. The weekend ended with a moving time of worship and prayer before we were sent back home and dispersed all over the country once again. We left with a newfound sense of solidarity as we strive to show God’s love to others at school and in future practice, and as we seek to glorify the One who deserves all the glory.

The weekend at the Student Leadership Conference has certainly renewed, enlightened, convicted and encouraged us. We sang a verse from Babcock’s well known hymn which says:

This is my Father’s world.O let me ne’er forgetThat though the wrong seems oft so strong,God is the ruler yet.

This resonates with us and certainly summarizes everything we learned the weekend. There is indeed much wrong that can be found both within us and around us that seems to overwhelm us and yet we have Christ, the Great Physician, whom we can rely on and look to as earthly physicians and dentists. f


We left with a newfound sense of solidarity as we strive to show

God’s love to others at school and in future practice, and as

we seek to glorify the One who deserves all the glory.


Western student retreat

JON CHAN, 2ND YEAR DENTAl STUDENT, UbC As a second year dental student at UBC, I can attest to the ways in which our secular institutions attempt to strip away our very spiritual foundations and drain the power of our faith, an insidious process that have consigned too many to a sense of spiritual defeat. This is why this weekend of renewal was so incredibly necessary. There was something special as over a hundred medical and dental students gathered to worship and glorify our Father. As the beautiful cacophony of our voices and prayers reverberated across the room, the fears and struggles of our hearts were temporarily abandoned, overcome by an intimate sense of rest found in the presence of the Father.

One of my favorite moments was the chance to reconnect and spend time in fellowship with medical students from other schools across the country. Stress and studying gave way to deep conversations, hours of frivolous board games and outdoor activities. However after the festivities died down, board games were abandoned for profound, meaningful heart-to-heart interactions. After hearing the

trials and victories of various CMDS Canada student chapters across the nation, we entered into times of prayer and encouragement. I have no doubt that God was present and speaking in our conversations. As we navigate the murky waters of medical school that teem with ethical issues such as euthanasia and abortion, it is of the utmost importance that we stand firm and stand together in solidarity. In this journey, it is encouraging to know that CMDS Canada is firmly invested in uniting students, establishing a network of support that spans the country.

The other highlight of my weekend was the time spent in worship and learning, where we were joined by Dr. Jo-Ann Badley from Ambrose University. As someone who had the chance to lead worship, the most authentic part of the experience came not from the music played but from witnessing the passion of the congregation as they sang their hearts out to our perfect Lord and Saviour. Through it all, I was once again reminded of the extravagance and depth of our good, good Father’s love that transcends and surpasses all human fear and understanding. There was something refreshing in learning from Dr. Badley’s

wisdom and knowledge of the Scriptures. It was a much needed change from the hours spent haphazardly pouring over scholarly articles and textbooks. I realized that in order for my faith to flourish, I had to invest in moments like this, where my spiritual learning mirrored the depth of my medical education. This was truly a time for the rejuvenating and equipping of my soul.

My reflections could mention the time I spent frolicking in the snow, swallowed up by the beauty of God’s creation, or the sharing by a panel of doctors with a vast wealth of practical experience in integrating the love of Christ into patient care. However for brevity’s sake, I will abstain. In the end, the Western Student Retreat was an amazing time of fellowship, learning, worship and relaxing. As I shoulder the weight of my professional education, this was the perfect time to lighten the load, to walk with others on the same journey and to share in their triumphs and victories. In a vocational field that so often seeks to separate and subjugate, it is so relieving to experience the love of this community and to know that we do not tread this twisted yet beautiful narrow path alone.


ElISE VAN bRUMMElEN, 2ND YEAR MEDICAl STUDENT, UbCMy first two years of medical school have been a challenging a journey, but the beautiful thing about journeys is that the multitude of perspectives and events you encounter along the way each leave their mark on you. For me, the CMDS Canada Western Student Retreat was one of those events that will shape the way I approach medicine and life in the future, and I realized there just how much effort CMDS Canada is putting into coming alongside and supporting students as God forges us on our paths. That support is a multi-faceted gift, and everything I experienced at the WSR was part of it.

For instance, attending the WSR gave me the chance to hear from doctors, dentists, speakers, and students who offered me new viewpoints, encouragement, and reminders of what is important in both faith and practice. During the panel discussion, I gleaned pearls from a number of professionals whose stories gave concrete examples of how they bring Jesus’ love into their work. In addition, I needed Dr. Badley’s timely reminders of the importance of

prayer, scripture, baptism and communion, and how they relate to my daily life. Larry Worthen’s update on physician-assisted suicide in Canada reminded me how diligently CMDS Canada is working to create a future where physicians of all moral convictions can practice freely. Ultimately, I was left with the sense that I am not alone in my journey as a medical student of faith - I stand in solidarity with other students and on the shoulders of spiritual giants who are preparing the way for us.

Unity was another theme that struck me at the retreat. Catholics, Orthodox Christians, Protestants – Christ-followers of many denominations – were able to stand together worshipping our God. One of the most powerful things I experienced was looking out on the crowd of future physicians and dentists during worship, seeing young people who will hold prominent positions and powerful influence in society, and seeing at the same time a community of hearts desperate for God and for his love to be applied practically in the world. We stood united despite our differences; in fact, our unity was made all the more beautiful because of our unique

perspectives, complex systems of belief, different stages of learning, and individual destinies as practitioners and as people. Seeing so many different hearts alive in the love of God and realizing that I stand together with them brought me to a place of deep gratitude.

Over my weekend in Calgary, I experienced the WSR as CMDS Canada expressing Christ’s disciple-making love, drawing me closer to him and showing me that I am not alone in my quest to share his love with others through medicine. Whether I was hearing from a speaker, laughing with other students, or strumming my guitar on the worship team, the way our desire to know and praise God brought us together impacted me. We forged connections with one another that will enable us, through our differences and the things we share, to support one another and raise each other up. It was a huge gift, and its effects will continue to influence me as I grow spiritually and clinically.

To CMDS Canada, Andrea and David Loewen, Larry Worthen, and everyone else who played a part in making the WSR happen – I can’t thank you enough! f


eastern student retreat

xINYUAN HONG (CAMIllA), 1ST YEAR MEDICAl STUDENT, MCGIll UNIVERSITYAfter a car ride of popcorn chicken, cookies, and memorizing verses from James 5 and the side effects of spironolactone, our McGill delegation finally found itself at the end of our 3-hour drive to Camp IAWAH. God has been abundant in His blessings to our CMDS Canada student chapter. Even within the first couple of months, He has built and guided a weekly prayer group, a supportive community for our walk with Christ. Coming to the retreat, I was most excited to get to know the larger CMDS Canada family. With a couple of hours left

of the day, it was already clear that God was present and working in our interactions and conversations. From getting to know the girls while brushing our teeth, to midnight conversations with doctors and dentists, these relationships will surely last throughout our studies and into our practice.

Even though the retreat did not specifically address topics of calling or doing God’s work, when I was coming back from the retreat, I felt a great deal of renewed inspiration. The past month in school had been a bit of a lull because I was not particularly excited over nephrology. Curiously, after the retreat I felt much more motivated in the block and

paid attention to giving glory to God in my work. This must have come from being in the midst of God-fearing, God-loving students and physicians, and I thank God for working through community to lead us to be Christ-centered in our studies.

While the retreat was a break from renal physiology, we had an equally edifying morning session discussing the intersection of secular philosophy and Christian thought. On a spectrum of values including peace, justice, reciprocity, service, and love, it appears that the conclusions that a multitude of great thinkers over centuries such as Plato and Pyrrho had come to are strikingly similar


to Christian teachings. When I first came to faith three years prior, I experienced a lot of spiritual growth through my church and fellowships. In contrast, the communities I had within my campus and my family remained exceedingly secular. At times, it seems that the two worlds did not go together. While I had assumed science to be largely secular, I later learned that the majority of the founders of modern science, including Boyle and Newton, functioned on a Christian base – they operated on a belief that God is creator and lawgiver who implanted laws in creation than man can discover. Similarly, it was enlightening to learn over the weekend that

even “secular” philosophy points towards God. It was a reminder that our rational minds too are God’s creation and a reminder that faith transcends every area of life.

The weekend was not short of rest and enjoying each other’s company. We went on nature walks, we put together a worship session in just hours, we had deep conversations, we fell on the ice together playing Broomball, we taught each other new card games, and we relished in tubing under the stars. While I wished the retreat would last forever, our prayer time for our local CMDS Canada student chapters on the final day reminded us that God has placed us where we

are for His Kingdom, and that we are called to be a light to our campuses. This gave me more courage to intentionally reach out to classmates. Thankfully, God has provided brothers and sisters in Christ to encourage each other in this. The value of our CMDS Canada community was once again apparent, when one of the residents shared how CMDS Canada members across the country look out for each other during residency match interviews. This is a community that I want to see and help grow. In giving clarity and direction in my work and having rest in Christ and, the retreat was definitely needed. Already, I can’t wait for the next one. f


the Last WordLARRy WORThen executive director, cMdS canada [email protected]

As we leave behind our Easter celebrations, we are challenged to face life with a different perspective. Even though we face many challenges, including our current battle to protect conscience rights, we are still called to joy. So we keep our eyes on the real truth of eternity, that the Devil has lost and Christ has won, and we forge on with joy in our hearts. It is hard some days when we receive discouraging news, trying to trick us into believing evil has won, but we know a greater Truth: Christ is with us, and while evil may make temporary gains, Christ has won. Do we live as though our Lord is risen? I once heard it said that if we truly believed that Christ has won and is risen, then the Church should be a like a Bride, not a Widow.

The joy and love of a bride on her wedding day is incredibly powerful. I saw it on the face of my new daughter-in-law this past January. Her joy was a beautiful foretaste of the joy we will experience when we see Christ, the Bridegroom, face to face.

So, as we continue on in our daily struggles, we do so in light of the saving grace of Christ that has infused our very being, making us new. As we continue on in advocacy, service of our patients, ministry in our Church community, and our attempts to be more like Christ in all we do, we do it all with the knowledge that Christ has risen from the dead, breaking the chains of sin and death.

Alleluia, He is risen! f

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And

surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matt 28:18-20)

If you know someone you think might be interested in becoming a member, send us their name and we will mail them a complimentary copy of FOCUS and invite them to join our fellowship!

[email protected]

Reach out to your colleagues

The issues have never been so serious, the need for a Christian voice in healthcare has never been more apparent.

Invite them to join the CMDS Canada fellowship

“I would like to express my thanks to all the members of your society who are involved in this [CPSO] case. If Christians do not stand up to discrimination and the violation of our rights, we will only have more and more of them taken away.“ – member of the public

NATIONAL2016CMDS

CONFERENCE

May 26-29, 2016Sheraton Cavalier Hotel

Saskatoon, SK

Keynote speaker Dr. David Shenk, an authority

on Christian relations with Islam and other religions

strangersWelcoming

Christian Medical and Dental Society of Canada1-197D Main StreetSteinbach, MB R5G 1Y5

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