A Distant Greeting from a Former Resident

(At the end of this post is mention of evangelist/apologist Ravi Zacharias and the serious acknowledgement of his sexual misconduct over a period of years. I reference this with deep disappointment for him and all who valued his public ministry).

(I have sent the following letter to the local Record News newspaper in Smiths Falls Ontario, the first town in which I pastored) "Forty years ago in the month of September I came to Smiths Falls to pastor Calvary Bible Church on Beech Street. Christine and I lived happily in town during a five year span from 1969-1974. Coming to town fresh from my pastoral training, I was certain about most theological subjects and was not timid about sharing these evangelical sureties. Maturity has not diminished my confidence but has tuned my discretion factor. At the time The Record News carried a weekly religious article stating opinions with which I often took issue. Christine and I were not in town long before I walked into the office of the Record News editor and told him that the regular religion article did not reflect the mind of many of the newspaper’s readers. He asked what I was prepared to do about it and I offered a column called ‘To the Point.’ For five years the column enjoyed an appreciative audience as well as drawing the ire of some who disagreed with me.

One of my memory highlights was organizing eight days of nightly meetings in 1972 with a young evangelist named Ravi Zacharias, who went on to become a prominent Christian apologist, spokesperson and best selling author with an international ministry. These meetings drew support from area churches and numerous local musical groups. 

I myself went on to pastor three other churches in Peterborough, Toronto, and Cloverdale, B.C., where I continue to live. I concluded my career in July 2008 after serving six years as President of the denomination known as the Evangelical Free Church of Canada. Christine and I look back with fondness upon our time in Smiths Falls where our second child was born, where we made many friends and where I received my enriching ministry start. Thank you to the Record News for its early encouragement to me to write. In retirement I have picked up my palette and paint brushes and am painting pictures of God’s creation, landscapes and people.” 

 With appreciation, Dr. Ron Unruh 

Photo credit: Smiths Falls Lock Panorama photo by: Ken Watson, 2003 See Ken's site on Digital Photos 

UPDATE:Ravi Zacharias died at his home in Atlanta on 19 May 2020, at the age of 74. He had been diagnosed in March 2020 with a malignant and rare cancer in his spine. For several years before his death, allegations surfaced that Ravi was involved in sexual misconduct both at home and during international ministry trips. Women began to come forward with their stories. Multiple sources accused Zacharias of serious sexual misconduct including rape. RZIM ministries and Ravi himself initially denied the allegations despite the mounting evidence. Following his death, on 9 February 2021, Miller & Martin, the law firm hired by RZIM to look into these allegations, concluded in their investigation report that Mr Zacharias had engaged in sexual misconduct. The RZIM Board issued an official public confession of their own failures as well as their acknowledgments of Ravi’s misconduct.