The Niagara Conference 2025 is an annual event organized by the Cántaro Institute. This year’s conference, All Hail the King: Christ and Government, explores the Lordship of Christ and its implications for politics, the state, and the future of society.
Niagara Conference 2025
Join us on November 14-15, 2025 as we consider how the gospel shapes our understanding of governance, justice, and the cultural mandate, and how the gospel calls us to live faithfully under Christ’s reign in every sphere of life. Featuring Rev. Doug Wilson, Dr. Michael Wagner, Dr. Scott Masson, Dr. John Bellingham, and Rev. Steven R. Martins.
Conference Details
Location: 11 Rosedale Place, Welland, ON. L3B 1J2 (Parking on-site)
Ticket Price:
$30 Early Bird Rate (until Sept. 30/25)
$40 General Rate
Schedule:
FRIDAY
7:00PM – Doors Open
7:30PM – Session 1: The Blueprints for Building Mere Christianity – Rev. Douglas Wilson
9:00PM – Doors Close
SATURDAY
9:30AM – Doors Open
10:00AM – Session 2: Heralds of the Kingdom – Rev. Steven R. Martins
In the first century AD, Peter boldly declared that there is no other name under heaven by which man must be saved than Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12)—challenging Rome’s earlier claim of salvation in Caesar Augustus. As the church grew, it clashed with the state over one question: Who is Lord—Caesar or Christ? Today, we face a similar religio-cultural conflict. In this talk, Rev. Martins calls for renewed faithfulness as heralds of the kingdom.
11:30AM – Session 3: Leaving God Behind – Dr. Michael Wagner
In this talk, Dr. Wagner examines how Canada, once unmistakably Christian in its laws and public policies, gradually abandoned its Christian foundation. Drawing on historical evidence, he shows that the federal and provincial governments once upheld explicitly Christian principles. But with the adoption of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in 1982, a non-Christian worldview was embedded into Canada’s constitutional framework—one that continues to shape the nation’s laws, institutions, and cultural direction.
12:30PM – LUNCH (Not Included)
1:30PM – 2:00PM – Q&A Panel (Rev. Doug Wilson, Dr. Michael Wagner, Rev. John Bellingham)
2:00PM – Session 4: The Anduril Moment – Dr. Scott Masson
Using the narrative of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, Dr. Masson illustrates the challenging task of education in our own age. While intellectual life has largely been captured by the tenets of Cultural Marxism, which can be traced to the designs of its architects, this talk will focus as much on cutting-edge solutions as the problems of decades of apathy, decline, and the counsel of Wormtongues.
3:30PM – Session 5: The Necessity of Application – Rev. Douglas Wilson
5:00PM – Closing
Speaker Bios
Rev. Douglas Wilson
Rev. Douglas Wilson is the minister of Christ Church in Moscow, Idaho. He is a founding board member of Logos School, a senior fellow of theology at New St. Andrews College, and serves as an instructor at Grayfriars Hall, a ministerial training program at Christ Church. Wilson helped establish the Confederation of Reformed Evangelical Churches (CREC), is the editor of Credenda Agenda, and has authored numerous books on classical Christian education, the family, the church, and the Reformed faith. After serving in the U.S. Navy’s submarine service, he completed a B.A. and M.A. in philosophy and a B.A. in classical studies from the University of Idaho. Douglas and his wife Nancy have three children and several grandchildren.
Rev. Steven R. Martins
Rev. Steven R. Martins is the founding director of the Cántaro Institute and founding pastor of Sevilla Chapel in St. Catharines. He holds a Master’s degree summa cum laude in Theological Studies with a focus on Christian apologetics from Veritas International University (Santa Ana, CA, USA). He is the General Editor of the Old Spanish Reformers series, has translated several sixteenth-century works of the Spanish Protestant reformers, and has authored and coedited numerous books, including Apologetics and La Fuente: Iberoamerican Journal for Christian Worldview. Steven is married to Cindy, and they live in the Niagara region with their four children.
Dr. Michael Wagner
Dr. Michael Wagner is an independent researcher and writer based in Edmonton, Alberta. He holds a PhD in political science from the University of Alberta. Together with his wife, he has home-educated their eleven children. Wagner’s work focuses on conservative perspectives, and he has authored several books, including Canada: Standing on Guard for Thee, and The Anglosphere’s Broken Covenant. His writings and articles are accessible to the public online.
Dr. Scott Masson
Dr. Scott Masson (PhD, Durham) is an Associate Professor of English Literature at Tyndale University in Toronto, Canada. His research traces the destructive anthropological heresies of Romanticism and their contribution to the atheistic reframing of education. Dr. Masson has long advocated for Classical education and has contributed to its revival in Canada, founding Westminster Classical Christian Academy in Toronto. He is currently collaborating with the Discovery Institute and Christian Halls International in the ongoing work of transforming Christian education. He is currently writing a monograph entitled C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien: Defenders of Freedom and Dignity. He resides in Toronto with his wife and two children.
Rev. John Bellingham
Rev. John Bellingham, Lead Pastor at Rosedale since 2013, is an ordained minister with the Fellowship of Evangelical Baptists in Canada (FEB). Born and raised in the Niagara Region, John served as a Chaplain for college and university students in Montreal before completing his MDiv at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in 2010 and an MA in Historical Theology from McGill University in 2014. Passionate about expository preaching, John emphasizes the authority of Scripture and a Reformational vision that proclaims Christ’s Lordship over all aspects of life.