Sunday, April 02, 2023
Radio
Sundays 8pm to 11pm on Radio 2
New Episodes at CBC Music
Need more Strombo Show? Head over to our page on CBC Music for new episodes, playlists and video extras.
There are two things you should never talk about: religion and politics. Unless, of course, you're Bill Blaikie. Then you don't just TALK about religion and politics, you LIVE it. The United Church minister spent twenty-eight years in the House of Commons, two as Deputy Speaker. After he left, Bill went on to spend another two in the Manitoba legislature.
But now that he's retired, Bill has some time for a little venting. You see, Bill doesn't see faith as only belief. He's committed to faith in action. He's a believer in the idea of the Social Gospel - the notion that Christian ethics can provide solutions for social problems and that economic justice is a religious value too.
So why the venting? Well, he's put off by the idea that religion in politics is just a conservative thing. Canadians seem to have forgotten that religion and politics was very much a thing of the left. And now that Bill's retired from formal politics he can address that. How? Well, for starters, he recently released a book. It's called 'The Blaikie Report: an Insider's Look at Faith and Politics'. We'll ask him about it and we'll find out what advice he has for the young, faithful, and politically motivated.
@TheStromboShow