Our Research

In this paper, André Schutten and John Sikkema explore church-state relations in Reformed Christian thought. They describe the high view of both government and local church authority present in the Reformed tradition. They examine recent legal conflicts in Canada between church and state, including Supreme Court cases such as Wall v. Highwood Congregation and the two Trinity Western University cases (2018), and human rights tribunal proceedings regarding the institutional autonomy of congregations to enforce church discipline. This paper is the third in a series of presentations made at the Cardus Religious Freedom Institute's Symposium on the Intersection of Civil and Canon Law.

This paper answers questions such as "What is Canon Law?" and "What are its sources, uses, and its theological basis in the Roman Catholic Church?" Fr. Laschuk, the Judicial Vicar for the Archdiocese of Toronto, also explores Christian and canonical understandings of the proper relationship between church and state and between civil and canon law. This paper is the second in a series of three papers published by the Cardus Religious Freedom Institute on the intersection of civil and canon law.

The paper, "Canon Law and its Intersection with Civil Law Throughout Canadian History" authored by Rev. Francis Morrisey briefly traces the history of Roman Catholic canon law in New France and Canada from the 16th century to the present. It was delivered at the first Decretum Symposium of the Cardus Religious Freedom Institute in Ottawa in October 2018.

Extensive public opinion research shows that faith and religion are an integral part of Canadian society. But that doesn’t mean we’re comfortable addressing the subject – or even laughing about it.

This submission to the Ontario Ministry of Education offers several recommendations to improve education policy and learning in Ontario. The report offers incremental steps to enhance parental choice, increase educational diversity for the common good, and establish a more accountable and cooperative relationship with Ontario's growing independent school sector.

Is marriage going out of style? The statistics suggest yes. What hasn't gone out of style, however, is love and relationships. When it comes to teaching healthy relationships to youth, marriage is the highest standard for consensually entered, safe relationship.

This paper outlines why marriage should be included in modern sexuality education curricula in Ontario and across Canada.

This paper tackles critical but neglected questions affecting diverse societies today. What activity does freedom of conscience protect? Why protect this activity in a bill of rights? When can governments limit this freedom? Can governments pressure citizens to adopt beliefs against their conscience? How does freedom of conscience differ from religious freedom? What is the relationship between human dignity and freedom of conscience? 

This paper grapples with the current relevance of freedom of conscience and makes the case for robust protection of this fundamental human right.

Has the growth of online dating services and apps made finding a suitable partner easier?  The evidence suggests that fewer Canadian young adults are in marriages and cohabiting partnerships than in the past. In short, young people today are more likely to be on their own.

Better is Possible proposes a new way forward for improving education for everyone: increased independent school enrollment. If provincial governments deliberately sought to increase independent schools’ share of all enrollment by five to 10 percent, the sector would be large enough to provide parents with a stronger education alternative without system-wide disruption. Moreover, Cardus President and CEO Michael Van Pelt argues a stronger independent school sector would spur innovation and increased accountability among Canada’s public schools.

In 2016 Cardus Education delivered its second report on the Cardus Education Survey for Canada. Those reports—and this—present findings from surveys examining outcomes for secondary-school graduates of independent schools and public schools. The Cardus Education Survey makes a significant methodological, theoretical, and empirical contribution to the research into religious schools in Canada and the United States and is the only study that uses repeated measures to report on the outcome of religious non-government schooling and compares it to public-school outcomes. One of the main problems with existing data is the lack of attention to diversity within the independent school sector. In addition, regional differences in the impact of independent schools on students’ lives have not been carefully considered.

This report concentrates on Ontario graduates in 2018, drawing on graduates between twenty-four and thirty-nine years old who attended one of the following sectors in Ontario: public, separate Catholic, independent Catholic, evangelical protestant, and non-religious independent. 

This report presents findings from surveys examining outcomes for secondary school graduates of independent schools and public schools. The Cardus Education Survey makes a particularly significant methodological, theoretical, and empirical contribution to the research into religious schools in Canada and the United States and is the only study that uses repeated measures to report on the outcome of religious non-government schooling and compare it to public school outcomes. One of the main problems with existing data is the lack of attention to diversity within the independent school sector. In addition, regional differences in the impact of independent schools on students’ lives have not been carefully considered. Cardus research addresses this gap in the literature. 

This report concentrates on British Columbia graduates in 2018, drawing on graduates between twenty-four and thirty-nine years old who attended one of the following sectors in the province: public, independent Catholic, evangelical Protestant, and non-religious independent.

If children are doing poorly—parents need to be part of the solution

A key component of diversity is religion. Businesses, workplaces, and other public spaces can be more attentive to matters of faith. This two-pager provides four steps for businesses to follow in order to more deliberately and systematically make room for religious diversity in the workplace.

A review of the municipal budgets of the affected cities in Ontario shows that over $2 billion worth of public construction work in Ontario is subject to oligopolies annually. And a survey of estimated costs that come as a result of these municipalities being forced to work outside of procurement best practice show that these restrictions are costing Ontarians on average $370 million per year.

Our research shows that closed tendering remains an ongoing challenge for Ontario municipalities that are struggling to build and maintain the infrastructure that serves its citizens in their daily lives, and that is necessary for sustainable economic growth in the province.

Meet Ontario’s new old sex ed, same as Ontario’s old new sex ed, writes Cardus Family Director Andrea Mrozek. Meanwhile, Mrozek notes, the proven, enduring good of marriage gets crickets.

This paper is a first effort to understand the place of school associations in the Canadian independent school landscape. 

These associations strengthen the voice of the independent school sector, increase capacity, and promote values and standards among the diverse forms of quality non-government K-12 education. Within this paper are mapped the functions of 56 provincial, national, and international education associations from across Canada.

Six years ago the province of Saskatchewan created an additional funded independent school category: Qualified Independent Schools. This paper examines changes in enrollment and independent school distribution between 2011/2012 and 2017/2018—the six-year period following the introduction of Qualified Independent Schools in Saskatchewan. 

This innovation provides the unique opportunity to observe how the independent school sector responds to substantive policy change. 

The evidence is in: Restricted contract bidding based on union affiliation is not in the public interest. Skimming off the Top uses industry benchmarks and best practices to evaluate procurement policy for public infrastructure construction. This paper explores the cost implications, but also goes beyond those numbers to consider the effects that the diversion from best practices can have on the construction industry, workers, and the public good.

In a decision delivered in April 2018, a Newfoundland court recognized three legal parents (two fathers and one mother), based on the throuple’s sexual relationship 

A new report finds that marriage is declining as cohabitation rates double among middle-aged Canadians.

This paper is one of two providing an on-the-ground look at the end-of-life care landscape in two of Ontario's largest cities. To read more about encouraging signs of progress and frustrating roadblocks to improvement, read both this case study and the study in Hamilton.

This paper is one of two providing an on-the-ground look at the end-of-life care landscape in two of Ontario's largest cities. To read more about encouraging signs of progress and frustrating roadblocks to improvement, read both this case study and the study in Ottawa.

While national statistics have their place, they can be frustrating since they often gloss over regional particularities. Cardus has developed two case studies (in Hamilton and Ottawa) to attempt to better survey the landscape of end-of-life care in Canada from "ground zero."

Looking at several large social surveys in the U.S., this paper finds that religious school isn’t a bulwark against extended adolescence. However, American religious school grads do follow some different patterns going into adulthood when compared to their public school counterparts.

Ontario’s new payday lending laws provide municipalities with both opportunities and responsibilities. This paper presents guidelines for addressing the challenges that accompany payday lending in cities.