By Lloyd Mackey

AN ANNOUNCEMENT this past Monday, at the Laurentian Leadership Centre (LLC) -- the Ottawa presence of BC's Trinity Western University -- gives us some interesting perspectives on Ottawa history, community politics and economic stimulus.

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The announcement, itself, was small enough as far as the spending of government money was concerned: $25,000 was being contributed by Parks Canada to a $50,000 project providing structural restoration work to the LLC's 100-year-old mansion a few blocks from Parliament Hill. (The rest of the money is coming from the City of Ottawa and funds raised by Trinity Western.)

As far as Parks Canada is concerned, the mansion is not the LLC but, rather, the John R. Booth Residence. As such, it is a National Historic Site, coming under the aegis of Environment and Parks minister Jim Prentice.

The exterior structure of the Booth residence is held together by several layers of brick. As it was explained to those attending the announcement ceremony, by LLC director Janet Epp-Buckingham, the brickwork needs periodic restoration if the structural integrity is to be maintained.

So the grant, to Parks Canada, is all about helping Trinity Western, owners of the property since 2001, to maintain a Heritage mansion. But to the Trinity leaders, it is all about keeping the university's presence in Ottawa, where it brings around 25 senior students each semester for courses of study and public service internships available only in the national capital. It enables the students who, for the most part, are serious Christians, to see how their faith and education adapts to the federal body politic.

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That said, we turn, now, to the politician who made the announcement.

Royal Galipeau is the Conservative MP for Ottawa-Orleans, a suburban riding on the east side of the city.

In his speech announcing the Heritage grant, Galipeau good naturedly recounted John R. Booth's own history as a lumber baron who had been an Ottawa icon and, not-so-coincidentally, a member in good standing of historic St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church (where your humble scribe and his spouse worship most Sundays).

Galipeau said the mansion Booth built in 1909, at age 81, was one of the finest examples of Queen Anne revival-style architecture in Ontario. (One can see some photos of the home by Googling Laurentian Leadership Centre and following the links.)

But, if I may, there are some comments about Galipeau that are worth noting, in the interests of helping understand the context into which Trinity Western fits, in Ottawa.

Galipeau is a deeply devout, pro-life, pro-family, Knights of Columbus-type Catholic. And he has been actively involved in Orleans community life for many years. In fact, he used to be -- gasp -- a Liberal!

As the conservative movement began to rebuild, a few years ago, he quietly moved over into that political sector. And, when he contested the Conservative nomination in Ottawa-Orleans, prior to the 2006 election, his competitor was an evangelical Christian emanating from the Reform end of the spectrum.

There was general recognition that despite, or perhaps because of, his previous Liberal pedigree, Galipeau stood the best chance to actually win the riding.

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That proved to be the case and, it can now be fairly said, Galipeau's community experience and ability to work across French-English, Catholic-Protestant and liberal-conservative barriers is standing him in good stead, in this particular riding.

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In his speech at the LLC, Galipeau made the point that, among other things, this was stimulus money, intended to provide jobs that would otherwise not be there in the current recession recovery.

He noted:

Many skilled construction and conservation professionals will be doing work on a number of national historic sites across Canada in the months to come.

The government of Canada made a targeted investment in national historic sites because it recognizes the role that these special places play in stimulating growth in tourism and in helping to ensure that Canada is a destination of choice for travellers.

And, to roll out a little further, at the economic stimulus packages that are peppering the Canadian landscape these days, we look at some of the relatively "big" money involving Trinity Western.

Just a few days before Galipeau spoke at the LLC, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced several Knowledge Infrastructure Program (KIP) grants to British Columbia universities, one of which was the aforementioned Trinity Western.

OttawaWatch has previously mentioned KIP grants provided to several Christian schools of higher education, including Atlantic Baptist University (New Brunswick), Redeemer University College (Ontario) and Briercrest Schools. Now, with Harper's announcement, it was British Columbia's turn.

The TWU grants totalled $2.6 million, and were part of KIP's $2 billion being meted out, mostly to public universities, across Canada.

The Trinity Western money will be spent mostly at the 20-year-old Norma Marion Alloway Library and another centre of similar vintage, the Anna and J.G. Neufeld Science Centre.

I mention the specific names to point out that, often, at Christian universities and colleges, the original capital funding comes from Christian families or foundations. As many readers who are familiar with evangelical history in Canada will be aware, the Alloway and Neufeld families and their scions have been critical in the strategic development of Christian higher education in Canada, particularly in the past 50 years.

Then, as the years pass, and the original facilities require expansion, upgrading or technological updating, programs like KIP are able to take forward the original vision of the funding families and the schools' founders.

So, in this instance, at least, the "church" and the "state" work together, rather than being at loggerheads.

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Lloyd Mackey is a member of the Canadian Parliamentary Press Gallery in Ottawa and author of Stephen Harper: The Case for Collaborative Governance (ECW Press, 2006), More Faithful Than We Think: Stories and Insights on Canadian Leaders Doing Politics Christianly (BayRidge Books, 2005) and Like Father, Like Son: Ernest Manning and Preston Manning (ECW Press, 1997). Lloyd can be reached at lmackey@canadianchristianity.com.

August 15/2009