Many Christians are concerned about the impact of a proposed hate crimes bill on religious expression. Bill C-9 has passed in the House of Commons and is moving through the Senate. A Senate committee is now studying the bill and hearing from witnesses.
Would you pray for us?
The EFC is slated to appear before the Senate committee on Thursday afternoon. Please pray for wisdom, discernment and peace for the EFC director of public policy Julia Beazley. Pray the senators will be open to hear our concerns and recommendations. Above all, please pray that God would be lifted up through our interactions.
We are hearing from many of you with questions about why the bill was introduced, what it does, what the EFC’s concerns are, and how Christians can respond. The EFC’s resources and testimony at the Senate committee provide answers to many of these questions.
What will the EFC recommend?
Our message to the Senate committee will focus on three recommendations.
- We will ask the Senate committee to maintain the religious belief defence and to delete the provision that removes it.
- We will recommend the new clarifying clause be amended to add the needed clarity and protection.
- We will recommend the new stand-alone ‘offence motivated by hatred’ apply only to Criminal Code offences, not to offences under any Act of Parliament.
For more detail on the EFC’s concerns, see TheEFC.ca/C9. The EFC’s written submission to the House of Commons committee walked through the bill and needed changes, some of which were made, as noted in an EFC blog.
Why was this bill introduced?
Jewish groups have been advocating for the federal government to address the dramatic increase of antisemitism in Canada. As the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs told the Senate committee:
Since the Hamas-led terrorist attacks of October 7, Canada has experienced the most severe wave of antisemitism in generations. The escalation of violence, intimidation, and attacks targeting the Jewish community this year alone is unprecedented …That is why this legislation matters …Nobody should fear dropping their children off at school, visiting an elderly parent, or attending religious services.
This was echoed by other Jewish groups appearing before the committee.
Other witnesses from religious and ethnic groups also described being the target of hate crimes and feeling those crimes were unaddressed or inadequately addressed.
As Christians, we understand the danger when groups are singled out or targeted on the basis of religious belief. We believe it is the government’s duty to ensure the protection of Canadians, including religious Canadians. The government must take steps to address anti-religious threats and violence, including the escalating tide of antisemitism.
The EFC agrees it is important to protect the access of Canadians to religious sites and services. We believe anti-religious threats should be addressed in a way that upholds existing protections for minority religious groups.
The new “for greater certainty” clause
After MPs heard from Canadians concerned about the removal of the religious belief defence, a clarification clause was added to Bill C-9. The Justice Minister told the Senate committee that a clarification clause shifts the protection of good faith religious practice so that it is considered from the beginning, in the definition, rather than as a defence. He said,
[The religious defence] would suggest that the practice of your faith could be a hate crime but if you are in good faith expressing it, that operates as a defence to what otherwise is classified as a hate crime. In my view, we should recognize through the definition of hate that the ordinary practice of faith is not a hate crime to begin with.
We would welcome an approach that made clear that the good faith practice and expression of religious belief “is not a hate crime to begin with under any circumstances,” as the Minister said.
However, as currently worded, the new “for greater certainty” clause in Bill C-9 doesn’t provide the needed clarity and protection for religious expression. Rather, it says that the wilful promotion of hatred offence only prohibits religious or other statements if they wilfully promote hatred.
Read more for what Bill C-9 does and how Christians can respond.
What does Bill C-9 do?
Briefly, Bill C-9 introduces four new offences in the Criminal Code.
- wilfully promoting hatred by displaying terrorist symbols
- intimidating a person to impede their access to a religious or cultural site
- intentionally obstructing a person’s access to a religious or cultural site
- committing an offence motivated by hatred
It also adds a definition of “hatred” to the Criminal Code.
The bill was amended in the House of Commons to remove the religious belief defence. This is one of the four defences to the charge of wilful promotion of hatred in s. 319(2) of the Criminal Code. The wilful promotion of hatred and the four defences have been part of Canada’s criminal law for more than 50 years.
The religious belief defence has rarely been invoked and never successfully, but the EFC believes it is an important safeguard for religious expression.
How can Christians respond?
Please pray for our leaders as instructed in 1 Timothy 2:1-2. Pray for the good of our country. Pray that all of us as Canadian Christians will be faithful witnesses to Christ, loving God and loving our neighbour as ourselves. Please pray for the EFC’s presentation to the committee on Thursday.
Consider civic engagement. The EFC has a summary of the bill with information on how to contact senators.
Photo of Senate of Canada: John Smith/Unsplash
Author:
Beth Hiemstra