A group of seven churches in Manitoba have lost their court challenge against COVID-related public health restrictions that include mandating closures of churches. I guess you could say that in the case of pandemics, science and medicine trump the practise of faith, at least in our present case.

I am not surprised at the recent court verdict in favour of public health measures over faith gatherings. I do understand the arguments of the churchgoers who claim their right to worship freely but I have no hesitation in agreeing that safeguarding public health is the highest priority. As one commentator states in the article excerpts below, the virus transmits from person to person whether you’re at a hockey game or at church. Obviously, being in church is not protective against a virulent transmissible infection. If you can contract COVID at the grocery store (and you can) you can succumb at church too. Unless you believe in divine intervention in this regard – that if you are attending church God will personally protect you. If so, that explains why scientific fact and reason itself cannot reach some people and help to change their minds about the value of public health mandates in controlling the pandemic.


The Challenge:

May 2021:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/manitoba-churches-charter-challenge-covid-1.6009289

“Seven rural Manitoba churches hope to convince a judge that the province's lockdown measures are unjustified violations of Charter-protected freedoms of conscience, religion, expression and peaceful assembly — and that the chief medical officer of health failed to consider the "collateral social and health costs" of locking down society.

“Across Canada, religious resistance to public health measures is growing. Some church groups continue to hold large rallies and in-person services in defiance of public health orders.

“In the Manitoba case, JCCF lawyers are representing Gateway Bible Baptist Church, Pembina Valley Baptist Church, Redeeming Grace Bible Church, Grace Covenant Church, Slavic Baptist Church, Christian Church Of Morden, Bible Baptist Church, church deacon Thomas Rempel and Winnipegger Ross MacKay.

“They are also representing Tobias Tissen, the minister for the Church of God Restoration near Steinbach. Both he and the church have been fined numerous times for violating Manitoba's public health orders.

“Lawyers are challenging public health orders that prohibit or restrict gatherings at private residences, restrict public gatherings and public expression, and restrict and close places of worship.

"Personal rights and freedoms have vanished almost overnight, with no end in sight," say court documents filed by the JCCF.

“The documents describe "draconian" measures that closed churches because they were considered non-esssential services, turning church-goers' lives "upside down" and causing "tremendous mental and spiritual hardship."

"The stress and loneliness that these measures have caused the Applicants, (and all Manitobans) is profound and devastating. How 'flatten the curve' turned into more than a year of crushing public health measures which restrict everything that makes Manitobans happy and human is unfathomable," court documents say.

“The basic Charter argument is that restrictions on religious events, such as weddings, funerals and Sunday services, infringe on the fundamental freedom of religion protected by Section 2 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

“The Charter protects both a person's religious beliefs and the religious actions that come as part of that belief system, said Eric Adams, a constitutional expert and professor in the Faculty of Law at the University of Alberta in Edmonton.

"We know that religious rights are being interfered with. There's no question that's been one of the tremendous harms of the pandemic," Adams said. "But we know that on the other side of the ledger, we are in the midst of a crisis in which people are dying.

"To the extent that that transmission occurs which sends people to hospital, sends people to ICU or in some cases continues to kill Canadians, then governments are going to, I think, have strong arguments that that a cautious approach is perfectly appropriate."

“This provides an opportunity to ask if alternate policies could allow for limited gatherings, but still ensure churches don't become super-spreader events. For example, drive-in or outdoor services with face coverings and proper physical distancing in place.

"As long as we remain in the grips of the third wave of this pandemic ... those government lawyers are going to have a very, very strong case that these are reasonable limits," Adams said.

"Because whether or not you're at a church service or whether or not you are at a hockey game, the virus doesn't care. It only cares about transmitting from one person to another in gatherings."


The Judgment:

October 2021:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/manitoba-churches-charter-challenge-covid-decision-1.6217925

“Manitoba judge rules pandemic restrictions didn't violate charter rights”

“7 Manitoba churches challenging province's COVID-19 pandemic powers in court”

“Lawsuit challenges powers of Manitoba's top doctor, says health orders 'unconstitutional'”

“A Manitoba judge has ruled pandemic restrictions put in place by the province last year were not a violation of charter rights, in response to a court challenge brought by seven rural Manitoba churches and three individuals last December.

“In a two-part decision handed down Thursday, Court of Queen's Bench Chief Justice Glenn Joyal said he found that the public health orders were reasonable limitations on the group's charter rights in the context of the pandemic, and that Manitoba's chief public health officer did have the authority to execute them.

“The group had argued measures instituted by the province last year to curb the spread of COVID-19 were unjustified violations of charter-protected freedoms of conscience, religion, expression and peaceful assembly.

“Joyal said that while fundamental freedoms should not disappear in a pandemic, he accepted that the Manitoba government had to make swift, decisive decisions in order to regain control of the virus and save lives.

“The applicants … had failed to make a convincing argument that there was insufficient proof to justify the restrictions, saying that the evidence they presented in court represented "at best, a contrary if not contrarian scientific point of view."

“At the time the challenge was brought forward, Manitoba was in the midst of the second wave of the pandemic, with hundreds of people in hospital and multiple deaths from the illness each day.

“Manitoba moved to the red, or critical, level of its pandemic response system on Nov. 12, and restrictions were soon tightened even further, ushering in widespread closures to the retail sector, places of worship and a range of other services deemed non-essential.

“During two weeks of hearings in May, lawyers for the group of churches presented a case that the province had failed to consider the social costs and impacts on people's mental health from the restrictions.

“Among the first witnesses to testify was Tobias Tissen, a pastor with the Steinbach-area Church of God, who said he had "no authority scripturally based and based on Christian convictions" to impose the restrictions and prevent people from attending church.

“Tissen and his church have repeatedly flouted the province's public health measures during the pandemic and participated in protests against the restrictions. Earlier this week, Tissen was arrested for violation of the orders, after an arrest warrant was issued earlier this year.

“…the province's lawyers argued the restrictions were a necessary limitation on personal freedoms to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and keep the health-care system from being overwhelmed.”

-----

I do feel for people for whom church is an important part of their lives. For many it is their social centre, providing structure, helping to combat loneliness, a source of finding friends, a way to connect to their community, helping them meet people to ask for help when needed for various reasons. However, in emergency situations, such as the pandemic, public health must trump all other considerations. Churches potentially becoming breeding grounds for deadly infections is obviously not what anybody would want and must be avoided. If churches were singled out and mandated to close and stay closed while other venues were allowed to reopen, now that may be a successful court case. But that isn't what happened. Many venues were closed in attempts to protect public health and many continue to be, depending on location and the situation on the ground. That reality negates a church's challenge that they have been unfairly restricted.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/21/2021 01:33PM by Nightingale.

The US college football games are full on..

dumb

As we know, Covid is creating all kinds of pressures in society over and beyond the sickness aspect, in good places and bad.

I spoke with a friend recently who has two granddaughters who are nurses in the Idaho system. He told me they, like most, are near breaking point over the requirements placed on them by Covid.

I have tried to be of support to an individual in the Idaho Correctional Center. I am perhaps his only contact with the outside world except for his mother, 100 years old this December, because due to Covid and terrible staffing shortages no visitors have been allowed for almost two years. Often his calls are interrupted by sudden lock downs because there are not enough officers to handle things. It seems a powder keg about to explode.

It would be nice if the U.S. courts, especially the U.S. Supreme Court, followed this lead.

Unfortunately, they're not.

But I can dream, can't I?

I saw an interesting analogy on Reddit:

During WWII there existed the concept of a "Blackout", during which no lights were to be seen from from 'outside' and wardens were out enforcing the Blackouts.

Obviously in the US, it was not a big deal. But in England, there really were possible scenarios that scared the crap out of the citizenry. So were there any Rights under English law that would have been granted so that lights visible from the sky would have been permitted?

What would have been the fate of a stout yeoman who lit a bright cross on his home because his devotion to Jesus made it an imperative?

Wow. Excellent one, EOD. Indeed there were no exceptions to following blackout regs, for the good of the entire community, and if people wished to survive close air attacks they would dash to the nearest blackout shelters when the warning sirens wailed no matter how disruptive it all could be.

I can understand the imperative for devoted churchgoers to go to church, by definition, but surely their faith isn't dependent on Sunday services, despite the instruction to gather together. The verse doesn't state "no matter what". Many churches have set up online services for those who have access. If not you can do your own devotions, in whatever form, and also be in contact with church friends and leaders by phone or even in person with precautions, just not in a crowd of singing and talking and kissing and hugging folks.

Too, I think at least a small part of the push in some cases to keep churches open could indeed be the preach and be a good example pieces of Christian belief. That involves maintaining a robust and lively church life.

I'm afraid that as soon as the idea became entrenched that religious liberty was being infringed upon this became a prolonged fight that is not easily settled. Some churches and even individual pastors in our area have been heavily fined for disregarding public health orders against mass gatherings.


As I've mentioned, too bad the (2nd) greatest commandment isn't paramount in the minds of the most dug-in church folks:

Matthew 22:

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

"Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment."

"And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’

"All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”


That's pretty awesome for believers, you'd think. First, love God, second love your neighbour. And all else comes after those two principles.

How do you love your neighbour if you ignore public health warnings designed to prevent widespread contamination with a potentially deadly virus? Especially one that by definition, being airborne, is transmitted by basic reflexes and actions such as breathing, talking, laughing, singing, kissing, hugging, eating together, etc.

The Bible also instructs believers to obey civil authorities.

It's hard to see how ignoring the clearly stated major principles in their own holy book (love your neighbour; obey authorities) can be justified by Christians and their leaders. It's too bad that many of them have drawn this line in the sand as it's hard to see how they climb down from their entrenched position and it's a fight they can't win.

I understand raising objections and making inquiries about the mandates against church openings. It's too bad though that some feel it's a hill they want to die on, perhaps literally. It's not so good either for the proselytizing churches if they hope to gain converts. I would certainly not attend or join a church that did not follow public health directives, even once the crisis is over. They could have a master orator for a pastor, the finest church lady cooking, the best building, the most beautiful music, the friendliest people but beneath it all is a screw rattling around loose, in my view. Scary. I'm done with fundamentalist-style religion, thankyouverymuch.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/22/2021 04:27PM by Nightingale.

elderdog, the blackout was rigorously enforced, especially after the bombing began in earnest. Indulge me a small personal story. I was born in early January 1940 and the blackout was in full swing. I was born at home during the night and while there was no air raid that night you can imagine the toing and froing going on inside the house on that darkened street. The next morning after my birth a note was pinned to the front door. It was from the air raid warden and it read:

I passed by your window one dark, starry night

And I was surprised to see a chink of bright light.

Now I am only just warning you,

It's my duty, you know.

If you're not more careful

You will spoil the whole show.

It was a note memorized by my older sister who related it to me.

I vividly recall being a little older in the war years and everyone carrying hooded flashlights (torches) to see their way down the darkened streets, the only visible light being the anti aircraft searchlights that criss-crossed the sky.

Wow. Born just in time for the Blitz.

The Warden managed to deliver his message in a kind way. That speaks highly for him.

I may have mentioned previously that no single event shaped me the way the war years and the difficult years after did.