Dear Friend,
We’re going to court this November, and we need your support!
The case involves Harvest Ministries International (HMI), a B.C.-based Christian group who had booked the Quebec City Convention Centre for their 10-day “Faith, Fire and Freedom” event in June 2023. About 1,200 people were expected to attend the prayer and worship event.
With just weeks to go, HMI was forced to cancel the event because Quebec’s tourism minister ordered the convention centre to cancel the rental booking. Why? Because HMI’s pro-life beliefs were deemed to be contrary to “Quebec’s fundamental principles.” Since the event was not even an anti-abortion event, it appears that the contract was cancelled because of HMI’s pro-life stance and the mere possibility that pro-life views
might be expressed at the event.
If this action is allowed to stand, a precedent may be set. Religious organizations will find it harder to be able to rent publicly owned spaces (e.g., schools, community centres, recreation facilities, etc.) just because the religious views they hold, and/or express, don’t align with those espoused by the government.
This would have a significant impact on all faith-based organizations, but especially on those that rely on their ability to rent public facilities to hold religious services. As well, religious groups may sometimes need larger venues for special events, conferences or charitable activities.
This case is scheduled to be heard by the Quebec Superior Court in early November. The EFC is co-intervening with Réseau évangélique du Québec (Evangelical Network of Quebec) and the Canadian Centre for Christian Charities. The ability of religious groups to gather in public spaces to express their faith – to learn, to serve, or to worship – is being challenged. And this challenge cannot go unanswered.
It is clear that Canada is becoming more secularized. For many Canadians now, freedom of religion means people should only have the freedom to practice their religion and express their beliefs in private settings (e.g., within the home or places of worship). In public spaces and in public affairs, they believe there should be complete freedom
from religion.
But in Canada, the
Charter is intended to provide protection from government overreach, including the unfair censorship of religiously motivated messages they dislike or disagree with. Here are just a few recent examples that the EFC is aware of…
In 2021, an Ontario chapter of the Association for Reformed Political Action (ARPA), a Christian political advocacy group, tried to place a
Defend Girls campaign ad on local city buses. The ad read, “We’re for women’s rights. Hers. Hers. Hers. And Hers.” and showed images of a female adult, a female youth, a female child, as well as an ultrasound image of an unborn female fetus.
The ad was meant to garner support for a federal private member’s bill that would ban sex selective abortion – the termination of a pregnancy based on the sex of the fetus, usually done to prevent the birth of a female child. The municipal government, with its pro-choice stance, rejected the ad because referring to an unborn child with a pronoun (“her”) would imply that unborn children are human beings.
Again, in August 2025, ARPA purchased an ad for their
Let Kids Be campaign, this time on a private billboard. The billboard message read “Stop medical transition for minors.” It was created to garner support to stop medical transition procedures for minors, out of genuine concern for vulnerable kids and youth. Scientific research has shown that administering puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and conducting surgeries to treat gender dysphoria in minors can be unhealthy and harmful. But the mayor of a city felt the ad was an attack on the LGBTQ+ community and ordered it to be removed.
Most recently, this past summer, an American Christian pastor, political activist, and worship leader, known for his controversial views, had booked 11 venues in major Canadian cities for his tour. However, almost all the cities revoked his performance permits. In their public statements, local authorities said that the permits were cancelled due to “safety and security concerns.”
Sadly, these are only a few recent examples that we’re aware of where a government has infringed upon the rights of a person or group to freedom of religion, freedom of expression, and/or freedom of association. The EFC is involved with the HMI case because we are concerned about these freedoms.
In a free and democratic society, the ability to have open and vibrant dialogue that reflects the diversity of beliefs, culture and identities on the issues that matter should be respected and protected. Otherwise, governments are undermining their own principles of inclusion, dignity and equality. Public spaces belong to everyone. Excluding or silencing views that are unpopular or differ from the mainstream robs all of us of the ability to hear differing views (even views that offend), the ability to challenge or critique them, and the ability to draw our own conclusions.
This November, a court will be asked to decide whether HMI’s
Charter rights were infringed upon. Please pray as we prepare to intervene in this important, precedent-setting case. And please consider making a donation towards our legal intervention work. Our Legal Fund appeal in April did not raise as much monies as it has in previous years. We can’t do this without your help! We are very grateful for your partnership!
Sincerely,
Dr. David Guretzki
President & CEO