To what does the Citizenship Oath really bind those who take it?
To three things. First, the individuals who take it commit themselves to fidelity to the head of our country, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II — the person in whom, in accordance with the Constitution, the Government of Canada and the Command in Chief of the Canadian Forces are vested; who is one of the three parts of the Parliament of Canada; in whose name the law is administered; and who personifies the history of Canada in which her family for five hundred years have been a creative force. (But such individuals are not swearing loyalty to the government policies of the day.) Secondly, they are promising to observe the laws of the country, (but not necessarily to support or advance them if their conscience tells them otherwise). Finally, they state that they will be good citizens of Canada.