His daily radio broadcasts usually centre on God's will and the everyday hurdles of life, from disciplining strong-willed children to caring for neglected husbands.
But this week, in an uncommon call to action, the influential American founder of Focus on the Family urged Canadians to join the battle against the federal government's plan to legalize same-sex marriage.
"I ask for your supporters and listeners to let you know that they're standing with you, that they're praying for you and that they're going to contribute to make it possible for you to fight this battle," James Dobson said on a broadcast recorded in California. "I know you've got a lot of support there and I just pray that it will be very evident as you get farther into this struggle."
Dr. Dobson's southern drawl, which is translated into 25 languages and heard by more than 200 million listeners in 164 countries, reaches Canadians' ears on stations with names like Joy 1250, Praise FM and Alive 99.5.
His is no ordinary media ministry. While Focus on the Family is a tip-dispensing, family-rights organization that claims to cure homosexuals, it is also the very powerful voice of the U.S. Christian right.
Many credit Dr. Dobson as one of the main forces behind U.S. President George W. Bush's election to a second term and a key architect in the passage of gay-marriage bans in 11 states, including left-leaning Oregon.
Drawing on his enormous sway, he helped mobilize so-called "values voters" by playing host to huge, stadium-sized "stand for family" rallies, appearing in ads and writing hundreds of thousands of his supporters in battleground states. Focus on the Family, which has an active mailing list of 2.5 million Americans, distributed more than eight million voting guides.
More recently, Dr. Dobson, a child psychologist and author, made news when he took aim at SpongeBob SquarePants, saying the popular cartoon character that holds hands with his sidekick, Patrick, is fronting a campaign to spread homosexuality among children.
He's now turning his sights to helping the Canadian wing of his controversial evangelical organization fight what will be its biggest war: preserving the traditional definition of marriage.
"I'm not a SpongeBob expert, but I think that the fact that Focus on the Family is out to stomp out cartoon characters they don't like underscores how that kind of far-right American approach is alien in Canada," said Alex Munter, national co-ordinator of Canadians for Equal Marriage, a coalition of organizations that support legalizing same-sex unions. This week, the group moved its headquarters to Ottawa from Toronto to focus on Parliament Hill.
With Dr. Dobson's encouragement, Focus on the Family Canada, which is headquartered in Langley, B.C., is working in overdrive to mobilize its supporters to make their voices heard like never before. While the Liberal government is expected to introduce a bill to legalize gay marriage next week, it could take a few months for it to be passed into law.
Canadians who share the Christian charity's beliefs -- 87,000 are on its mailing list -- appear to be heeding the call. This month, Focus on the Family put a link on its website to allow supporters to send e-mails to members of Parliament. Within two weeks, its servers were so overloaded it temporarily discontinued the service. But in that short time "hundreds of thousands" of e-mails zipped their way to MPs inboxes.
"We were really taken aback at what the response was to that and I think it's just a sign of more to come," said Derek Rogusky, vice-president of family policy. "I don't think I've seen them quite as concerned about something and willing to act upon it as they are about this."
The overwhelming reaction, Mr. Rogusky believes, is evidence Canadians are energized now that same-sex marriage has finally landed in politicians' laps after four years of court challenges.
Although it appears the Liberals have enough support to pass a bill, Focus on the Family says its efforts are far from doomed. It says most Canadians are on its side -- its opponents make the same assertion -- and that its message is resonating. Mr. Rogusky, noting the fragility of the Liberals' minority government, said the group's opposition will continue "as long as it takes to get to a final vote."
Focus on the Family is also considering an advertising campaign; its previous controversial ads featured a man, woman and child with the headline: Traditional marriage -- if you believe in it, protect it. But as a charity, it cannot spend more than 10 per cent of its resources on political activities.
The organization, which set up shop in Canada in 1983, has a budget of $11-million, 80 per cent of which comes from contributions of $5,000 or less from individuals, churches and small businesses.
About 15 per cent comes from foundations and the rest is from the sale of books and other resources.
And so Focus on the Family concentrates on spurring its grassroots supporters, and their friends and acquaintances, to action on the issue by giving them the tools to directly, and repeatedly, contact MPs.
The organization developed a "Marriage Action Kit," available on its website, which urges people to telephone, write, e-mail and fax their MP -- and even visit them in their constituency offices. The pamphlet includes sample letters to photocopy and give to friends and acquaintances, tips on writing letters to the editor, a church bulletin insert and a marriage petition.
Its website, which notes MPs are in their constituencies until the House resumes Monday, also schools supporters in some of the fine points of telephone advocacy: "Be polite." "Don't debate your point -- simply state it."
It even provides a script: "Hello, my name is . . . and I live in . . . . I am calling to encourage you as my member of Parliament to do everything possible to protect the definition of marriage as the union of one man and one woman. As we approach the next election I will be supporting and working for the candidate who takes a firm stand on this issue."
But does receiving hundreds and thousands of form e-mails and rote phone calls from supporters of interest groups like Focus on the Family sway MPs' views?
Rahim Jaffer, an Edmonton Conservative MP who plans to vote against the Liberal bill, said he places less weight on form e-mails from across the country than personalized communications from his voters. But he is astonished at the volume of feedback he has received -- about 10,000 responses -- both from Canadians outside his riding and constituents who responded to his survey on the issue.
"Certain things really do motivate people and others don't. This one clearly has Canadians really interested on both sides of the issue," he said.
Libby Davies, a New Democrat MP who supports same-sex marriage, said groups that are lobbying on the issue are "being very sustained in their efforts."
"You take information at different levels and you recognize that it comes to you in different ways and different formats, partly through organized campaigns and partly from individual letters or phone calls and people you see on the street."
Ms. Davies, who is a lesbian, sees Focus on the Family as having close ties to Conservative Leader Stephen Harper, who is against redefining marriage. Darrel Reid, a former president of the group's Canadian affiliate, was a chief of staff to former Reform Party leader Preston Manning and ran as a Reform candidate in 1997.
"They kind of pat each other on the back, they kind of whip each other up into this frenzy and it sort of spews out in this moralistic way about tradition."
Back on the airwaves, Dr. Dobson tells his followers that the struggle for traditional marriage "has turned ugly" in Canada and encourages them to offer money and prayers because God is "in the business of answering prayers, especially those prayed in accordance with his will."
He quotes from the Book of Genesis: " 'For this reason a man shall leave his mother and father and be united to his wife and the two shall be one flesh.' That is His plan, that is His concept of the family and we dare not throw it on the ash heap of history."
Jill Mahoney