O Canada!
Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all of us command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
From far and wide,
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
Every American knows that the Fourth of July is Independence Day, the National Holiday of the United Sates of America. Of course, this year is a special one being the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. But what most Americans an are unaware of is that the First of July is Canada Day, the National Holiday of our northern neighbor Canada. It began on July 1, 1867, when The British North America Act (now the Constitution Act) took effect, uniting the colonies of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and the Province of Canada into a single self-governing country. Originally known as “Dominion Day,” the holiday was renamed Canada Day on October 27, 1982.
Most Americans are also unaware that we fought a war with Canada. It was called that War of 1812 and was when Canada was still a colonial possession of the United Kingdom of Great Britain. We claim we won, they claim they won. The truth is there was no clear winner (the British did burn Washington DC). We gained absolute control over our ships at sea and the British repelled what they saw as an attempt by the USA to grab land in Ontario and other Canadian colonies. History being what it was, today Canada and the USA share the longest unguarded border in the world and have deeply intertwined cultures and economies.
But our concern in this article is not about the United States’ and Canada’s historical, political, or economic relationships. In this piece we are going to examine and analyze the spiritual condition of our northern neighbor. A recent 2025 survey, conducted by Lifeway Research and sponsored by Ligonier Ministries, sought to gauge the theological and cultural beliefs prominent in Canada. Titled The State of Theology in Canada Study, it surveyed more than 3,000 Canadians on 35 questions. The results demonstrate the moral and spiritual descent to which Canadians have fallen over the past century. It seems they fall in line with European trends and a bit ahead of the USA.
Lets look at the results of the survey and analyze them from a worldview and biblical perspective. ( To see the complete results go here: https://www.baptistpress.com/resource-library/news/canadians-see-split-between-religious-beliefs-and-truth-state-of-theology-finds/ )
- Half (51 percent) agree religious belief is not about objective truth, 23 percent disagree and 25 percent aren’t sure.
- Additionally, only a third (34 percent) believe the Bible has the authority to tell us what we must do. Most (56 percent) disagree, with 38 percent strongly disagreeing, and 10 percent aren’t sure.
These statistics show that most Canadians have a subjective and unbiblical worldview. Most, obviously, do not regard the Bible as an objective standard for faith and practice. The reason for this trend is probably because most Canadians have been influenced by a naturalistic worldview perspective in their schools and in the media. This is tragic in that in the 19th century, Canada was a decidedly strong Christian culture. If you ever watched the 1980s TV series Anne of Green Gables, you saw how church and faith was an intrinsic part of 19th century Canadian life. Unfortunately, in the 20th century that Christian cultural base gradually eroded until now it is virtually non-existent.
- Three in 4 (74 percent) say God loves all people the same way, and 73 percent believe everyone is born innocent in the eyes of God.
- Almost 2 in 3 Canadians (63 percent) believe God accepts the worship of all religions. One in 5 (20 percent) disagrees.
This result demonstrates how, though most Canadians claim belief in God, their understanding of His nature and expectations for humanity are not based on traditional Christian teachings. The majority obviously reject the doctrine of Original Sin. Likewise, most have an extremely liberal perspective on the uniqueness of Christianity. They believe other religions are just as valid for their adherents as Christianity is for Christians. Of course, as readers of our MarketFaith Ministries resources know, many religions are based on completely contradictory worldview beliefs, so they could not possibly all be equally true.
- Most Canadians (56 percent) believe there is one true God in three persons:, but they aren’t clear about the specifics.
- The same percentage (56 percent) say Jesus was a great teacher, but He was not God.
- Similarly, 58 percent agree the Holy Spirit is a force and not a personal being.
Ironically, the survey indicates that a majority of Canadians, despite not believing the authority of the Bible, still affirm the traditional trinitarian formula of One God in three persons: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. However, apparently they have no real idea what that means or how to explain it. Most likely, they are simply parroting what they have heard from reciting the Apostles’ Creed in church or just hearing it said. This is evident in that the majority of Canadians deny the deity of Jesus and the personality and deity of the Holy Spirit.
- Half of Canadians (48 percent) agree the biblical accounts of Jesus’ physical resurrection are completely accurate. The rest are split between those who disbelieve that the resurrection actually occurred (28 percent) and those who aren’t sure (24 percent).
Another somewhat bewildering finding is that almost half of Canadians affirm the Bible’s accounts of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. That’s strange given that most deny His deity. It may be that many Canadians are adherents of Arian theology without even knowing it. Arianism was the ancient heresy that denied the full deity of Christ yet affirmed His resurrection and miracles. In any case, more than half of Canadians either do not believe in His resurrection or are agnostic about it. Again this reflects the naturalistic bent of modern Canadian society that rejects supernatural events.
- Most (54 percent) believe the Bible, like all sacred writings, contains helpful accounts of ancient myths but is not literally true, while 30 percent disagree.
- Two in 5 (42 percent) think modern science disproves the Bible. A third (35 percent) disagree.
- On the other side, a third of Canadians (36 percent) say that the Bible is 100 percent accurate in all it teaches, while half (50 percent) disagree.
This result is most telling regarding Canadians’ view of Scripture in relation to modern life. It indicates that most Canadians consider the Bible as just another book of helpful morality stories and sayings, but is not historically reliable. It is no more divinely inspired than other holy books such as the Qur’an or the Upanishads. Half of all Canadians do not believe the Bible is accurate in all it teaches and many think modern science renders it an invalid source of truth. Again the Canadians’ dominant naturalistic beliefs are showing through.
Now let’s examine a few of the results regarding Canadians’ stands on current issues of morality.
- A third of Canadians (34 percent) agree that sex outside of traditional marriage is a sin. Most (57 percent) disagree, including 40 percent who strongly disagree.
- Similarly, 34 percent say abortion is a sin, while 55 percent disagree, with 39 percent who do so strongly.
The survey indicates that about one-third of Canadians still believe that sex outside of marriage is wrong. That is a bit surprising we must say. We thought it would be much lower. Nonetheless, more than half do not believe extra-marital sex is wrong. Not surprising is that a large percentage of Canadians have no qualms about legalized abortion. Certainly modern cultural influencers, such as television, movies, music, literature, etc., have contributed to this moral decline over the last half century – both in Canada and in the United States.
- Half (50 percent) believe the Bible’s condemnation of homosexual behavior doesn’t apply today, and 3 percent disagree.
- Also, 46 percent say people should be able to choose their gender regardless of their biological sex, while 42 percent disagree, including 29 percent who strongly disagree.
This finding also reflects the decline of Christian ethical influence in Canada. Half of all Canadians disagree with the Bible’s condemnation of homosexual behavior. Only 3 percent apparently still agree with the Bible. That reflects one of the most revolutionary moral changes ever to take place in North American history. Sixty years ago, in Canada and the United States, homosexual behavior was regarded as a sexual deviance, a mental illness, and was illegal. Today, it is not only legal, it is celebrated with festivals and parades in most major cities in North America. Sad to say, even some mainline Protestant churches are joining in this radical denial of biblical moral truth. Also, a growing minority believe people should be able to choose their gender.
When I worked at the North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention (1988 – 2010) one the most respected men I got to know was Henry Blackaby (1935 – 2024) . Blackaby, who led Blackaby Ministries International, was best known for authoring the series of studies called Experiencing God: Knowing and Doing the Will of God. What most people did not know was that he was born and raised in British Columbia, Canada, and studied at the University of British Columbia. I recall hearing him say many times how he mourned so for the spiritual health of his native land of Canada. He asked so often for prayers that God would send a great revival there that would break down the walls of resistance he felt to the Gospel in that land. Unfortunately, Henry did not live to see that revival take place, but we can still pray that God will do a new work among our neighbors to the north.
© 2026 Tal Davis