The Canadian Association of University Teachers’ (CAUT) addition last week of Redeemer University College to their “faith test list” has sparked debate in the academic community over the nature of academic freedom in religiously founded educational institutions.
Redeemer, located in Ancaster, Ont. is the fourth school to be added to the list of schools CAUT says “require a faith or ideological test as a condition of employment.”
The other schools are Trinity Western University in British Columbia, Canadian Mennonite University in Alberta and Crandall University in New Brunswick.
CAUT’s policies and procedures say any school requiring such a test is subject to an investigation by the organization. If the investigation finds the school does indeed impose such a test and is not willing to remove it, the school is added to CAUT’s published “faith test list.”
In their reading of Redeemer’s Statement of Moral Standards and faculty handbook, a CAUT investigation committee determined that the signing of a Statement of Faith by all faculty constitutes a ‘faith test.’
According to CAUT executive director James Turk, “an institution that includes or excludes teachers on the basis of a faith test is antithetical to what a university is supposed to be.”
“Everyone approaches their study from one perspective or another,”said Hubert Krygsman, president of Redeemer University College. “Redeemer is open about their approach; it’s a part of academic honesty.”
He said he and others at Redeemer are dismayed at allegations that “call the legitimacy of our institution into question.”
Krygsman said Redeemer has “never had a single complaint about religious or academic freedom, nor has CAUT received any.”
However, Krygsman said he is grateful for support coming in from academic institutions across Canada, “especially from people who don’t necessarily agree with our ideology.”
Concordia University theology professor Paul Allen initiated a petition in late January opposing the CAUT investigations.
Allen said he feels CAUT “is unfairly maligning Christian universities without anything in the way of serious evidence for a lack of academic freedom.”
He said the petition already has over 180 signatures of academics from religious and secular institutions.
The petition calls on CAUT to “cease its harassment of these institutions, for which there is no mandate from the membership at large.” Allen explained that the allegations are “based on a false dichotomy: the idea that if an institution is religious, it cannot be free.”
Shane Pennells, a former Redeemer student, said he feels these allegations are “painting the schools with a very broad brush, equating religious beliefs with indoctrination.”
“From personal experience, that isn’t how Redeemer works or has worked in the past,” he said.
“In most classes, the religious mandate amounted to ‘What ethical and moral obligations does one’s Christianity require of you?’”
All four universities are members of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada, which requires that all member institutions must “have the freedom to set their research and educational priorities” which “are best determined within the universities themselves.”
Though both CAUT and religious universities have claimed their fundamental rights are at risk, “there is nothing illegal going on here,” said Cara Zwibel, director of the Fundamental Freedoms Program at the Canadian Civil Liberties association.
“The same way the schools are exercising their freedom of religion, CAUT is exercising their freedom of expression,” Zwibel said.
