Prime Minister Stephen Harper

: Saturday announcement that regulations would be relaxed in a bid to allow thousands of refugees into Canada by the end of the year appeared to do little to ease their concerns, according to Hamilton Spectator. Ryan Dueck, pastor of a Mennonite church in Lethbridge, Alta., believes many will feel the gesture offers too little too late. Prime Minister Stephen Harper oft-repeated pledge to allow 10,000 refugees into the country over four years did not always sit right with voters stereotypically believed to be at the core of his support base. He noted that Immigration Minister Chris Alexander continued to place security concerns ahead of humanitarian ones, prompting him to view the midcampaign pledge with a degree of skepticism. "Nobody saying that we just uncritically fling the doors open, at least not to my knowledge, I wonder if his articulation of this as a 'top priority' might prove to be a way of giving the Conservative government a bit of room to manoeuvre once the election campaign has come and gone," Dueck said. "I don't know this for sure, of course … I'm just thinking that given the party history of prioritizing security and using this as a reason for not moving more quickly, I wouldn't be shocked to see 'prioritizing' of security show up down the road as a reason for why the refugee situation hasn't improved as quickly as Canadians hoped it might." The promise also runs the risk of alienating hard-liners who may see the policy shift as yielding to election-related pressure from the left, he added. Christians of many denominations are aware of a public stereotype equating belief in the Bible with support for right-wing governments, but argue such thinking fails to account for the many nuances in the teachings they espouse. Whatever the outcome, observers of the faith believe the Syrian refugee crisis may challenge the widely held public perception that devout Canadians represent a nucleus of support for the Conservative party. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.