The City of Mississauga raised the Christian banner in the city centre for the first time, after the municipality recently declared Christian Heritage Month.
Seats quickly filled, and many had to stand during the ceremony. On Wednesday, around 100 community members, including city councillors, the city’s mayor, Carolyn Parrish, and Christians of various denominations and non-denominations, attended the historic flag-raising event.
The ceremony leading up to the flag-raising was filled with praise music, Christmas carols, speeches and prayer led by Christian pastors and priests.
In November, city councillors unanimously passed a motion brought forward by Councilor Brad Butt to declare December “Christian Heritage Month.”
Attendees, including Parrish, told True North how “diverse” the Christian community is as members of the Coptic Orthodox community, Catholics, evangelicals, and people of many ethnicities attended.
Butt told True North at the event that the showing underscored and affirmed the council’s unanimous decision to proclaim the month to celebrate the heritage of Christianity in Canada.
“It just shows that the community is completely united around this and that this was a very important recognition for our city,” Butt said.
According to Statistics Canada, in 2021, nearly half, 49.5%, of Mississauga’s 717,961 residents identified as Christians.
Brampton declared December Christian Heritage Month four years ago, and Toronto followed suit this week. Unlike Mississauga, the vote passed with four councillors rejecting the proclamation.
Ghada Melek, a former Conservative candidate for Mississauga-Streetsville and Pat Francis, a pastor at the local Chayil Church, and the city organized the ceremony.
“We decided there’s no Christianity without prayers, and there’s no Christmas without carols. So that’s how we put it together,” Melek told True North.
Melek is a Coptic Christian whose family came to Canada seeking religious freedom and to escape religious oppression in Egypt more than three decades ago.
“We’ve lived this for centuries, and we’ve suffered to keep the faith, and all of a sudden, here in Canada, you’re being careful not to be Christian in order not to offend anybody,” she said.
She said the flag raising and proclamation was necessary, noting the over 100 church burnings and vandalism incidences targeting Christian sites in Canada since the apparent discovery of a grave near a residential school in 2021.
“This is unacceptable. We cannot, as Christians, live in fear in Canada that’s promising this inclusivity and acceptance of the other,” Melek said. “(The proclamation) just made a lot of sense. We have to stand up for what we believe in. We have to be equally treated like everybody else.”
Francis told True North that the event celebrates the legacy of Christians in Canada.
A video featuring Francis played during the celebration highlighting the role Christians have played in establishing Canada, its constitution, laws, inventions, and charitable works.
Despite having heritage months for multiple ethnic groups, religions and causes on all other months, Mississauga had not declared December as any group month before the proclamation.
“It took us a while, but now I think it is God that literally kept December for his Christian Heritage Month,” she said. “the Founding Fathers founded Mississauga and Canada on biblical principles, asking God to be the supreme one. And so now, city by city, we’re going to proclaim Christian heritage month, December.”
James Amores, a parishioner at The Merciful Redeemer in the city, was praying a rosary at the event before telling True North that he really appreciated the city proclaiming the celebration and recognizing Christians.
Rev. Pishoy Wasfy, a priest at The Virgin Mary and Saint Athanasius, Coptic Orthodox Church, called the event “a great blessing” in a “special time of year and coming of Christ to the world to spread peace, love and redeem all of us.”
Sadine Dalberry-Whyte, who pastors with Francis at Chayil Church, said she’s worked in the corporate world for many years and has seen many other months dedicated to other groups.
“So why not Christians and why not Christian Heritage Month, especially at a time of year where there’s the joy of Christmas and the hope of Christ?” she said. “It’s historic. It was more than a flag. It was a banner being lifted over our city, which we need.”
