How Worried Should We Be About Bill C-9?
Is Bill C-9 intended as a shield or a sword? That’s the question a lot of Canadians are asking in light of the recent legislative partnership between the Liberal party and the Bloc Quebecois. Bill C-9 purports to combat hate crimes by amending the Criminal Code to create new offences and to remove certain exemptions and perceived hindrances to prosecution. The bill was proposed by the governing Liberals, ostensibly to protect the Jewish community in Quebec from harassment by Islamic fundamentalists.
The proposed amendments include provisions that would criminalize harassing people attempting to enter a place of worship, and preaching in such a way as to incite violence against particular groups (as was recently done by Montreal Imam Adil Charkaoui when he called for the extermination of “Zionist aggressors” during a public prayer service). If the bill was carefully written and scrupulously deployed to the narrow end of protecting minority religious groups from violence and intimidation, it is difficult to imagine any Christian in Canada opposing it. However, a strong shield can easily be deployed as a sharp sword by malevolent actors, and so concerns have understandably been raised.
Most of the online discourse surrounding Bill C-9 has had to do with the removal of the so-called “good faith” defence. The law currently creates a defence for expression that might otherwise be deemed hateful if it is based in a “good faith” interpretation of a religious text. Bill C-9, as currently written, would remove that defence. It should be noted that the “good faith” exemption has never been used successfully.
The greater danger in Bill C-9 is the proposed plan to eliminate the need for a provincial attorney general to sign off before any charges could be brought involving a purported hate crime. This may allow local law enforcement to take action against citizens even where there is no reasonable prospect of conviction. The bill would also allow for complaints from private individuals, which could draw churches and pastors into costly and distracting legal action, however unlikely it would be to result in significant fines or jail time.
On Thursday, December 4, Bill C-9 was debated at length by the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights. Significant objections have been raised with respect to the bill’s wording, provisions, scope, reach, and potential for unintended consequences. Christian Legal Fellowship, Canada’s national association of Christian lawyers, previously urged the Committee to ensure the bill “achieves the dual objectives of targeting manifestations of hatred with precision and preserving appropriate protection for freedom of expression”. It now seems likely that the Conservatives will stall the bill before the Committee until after the Christmas break, giving time for reservations to be voiced by members of the wider public. Once the bill makes it out of the Committee, it would still need to be voted on by the House of Commons before being sent to the Senate. The bill could undergo significant revision at each stage of the process before receiving royal assent – assuming it is even passed at all.
Bill C-9 should be concerning to all Canadians, and particularly so to Christians who would reject the right and capacity of the government to adjudicate religious speech. The provisions of the bill are concerning enough to warrant discussion with elected officials and participation in other forms of democratic expression, but they need not result in any changes to what pastors, parents or private Christian citizens say or do in pursuit of the Great Commission.
What Should People Do If They Are Concerned About Bill C-9?
There are four things I would recommend you do if you are concerned about Bill C-9:
- Speak to your MP. I had a conversation with my MP today, and I encouraged him to vote against this proposed legislation and to instead encourage the government to enforce the laws we already have on the books to punish people who incite violence against minority groups. He was extremely receptive to my point of view. I encourage you to engage in similar discussions with your representative. The more voices speak to this issue, the less likely it is to pass as currently written.
- Participate in one of the online petitions. The Conservative Party has an available petition on Bill C-9 that you can find here.
- Continue to defend minority groups from intimidation and harassment.
- Continue to speak the truth in love.
I intend to preach the same sermon on Sunday that I wrote on Tuesday before the committee discussion of Bill C-9 on Thursday. I recommend you do the same. Say what you understand God’s Word to teach. Say it with steel in your spine and love in your heart and let the chips fall where they may. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that preaching the gospel will always be free. It may cost more tomorrow than it did in the past. But free or not, easy or not, welcome or not, we believe and therefore we must speak; only let us do it with gentleness and respect.
O God help!
Pastor Paul Carter
Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice. This is pastoral advice for concerned pastors and Christians in Canada on a matter of political concern.
If you are interested in Bible teaching from Pastor Paul you can access the entire library of Into The Word episodes through the Audio tab on the Into the Word website. You can also download the Into The Word app on iTunes or Google Play.
