{"id":18236,"date":"2014-09-29T10:31:26","date_gmt":"2014-09-29T14:31:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/?p=18236"},"modified":"2021-10-07T12:08:52","modified_gmt":"2021-10-07T16:08:52","slug":"a-referendum-on-religious-freedom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2014\/09\/29\/a-referendum-on-religious-freedom\/","title":{"rendered":"A Referendum On Religious Freedom"},"content":{"rendered":"
This entry is part 4 of 42 in the series Trinity Western University<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>

What is the point of enshrining religious freedom in the Canadian Charter of Rights<\/em> if you can call a referendum to take it away?  It would appear that the British Columbia Law Society\u2014its benchers and membership\u2014no longer see that irony in their animus against Trinity Western University\u2019s Law School.<\/p>\n

In its vocal displeasure of Christian morality as enshrined in the TWU Community Covenant, the Law Society proves that it is more interested in being politically in tune with legal academia, the media, and popular opinion than following the rule of law and protecting the religious freedom of a minority university community.<\/p>\n

The B.C. Law Society\u2019s mandate, as with all such bodies across the country, is to protect the \u201cpublic interest.\u201d  That interest appears to include the demand that there be no religious belief and practise of traditional marriage as one man and one woman for life.<\/p>\n

For a long time we have been socially constructed to view traditional marriage as anachronism, sexist, and patriarchal.  Since 1968 Canada has been a world leader in reforming its law to allow for the easy dissolution of marriage, and in 2004-2005 redefined marriage for civil purposes to be \u201cany two persons.\u201d  Our media is rampant with anecdotes, drama, music, and the like that has belittled and derided those who continue to advocate traditional marriage.  Traditional marriage within religious institutions now appears to be in the crosshairs of our intellectual elite who, in their Orwellian doublespeak, claim to be fighting discrimination when they demand religious institutions follow their lead in implementing the \u201cpublic\u201d understanding of marriage.<\/p>\n

Given that the law society\u2019s decisions in Nova Scotia and Ontario to deny accreditation to TWU Law School are already before the courts, it was not necessary for the B.C. Law Society to force a referendum on its membership.  However, listening to the BC Benchers articulate their positions, it was evident that part of the motivation of implementing this referendum was to send a message to the Supreme Court of Canada.<\/p>\n

I understand that part of the message to be sent to the supreme court of our country is this: \u201cReligious belief and practise of traditional marriage in Canada must yield to equality rights.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not only is the Supreme Court of Canada hearing that message, but so too is the religious community.  We understand that when it comes to religious freedom, the legal profession\u2014in some jurisdictions at any event\u2014does not \u201chave our back.\u201d  They speak as if to support religious freedom; however, what they really mean is that we have the freedom to \u201cbelieve\u201d in traditional marriage but not the freedom to \u201cact\u201d on that belief.<\/p>\n

The BC Law Society Benchers are not the only ones with that message. Consider the following argument of J. Ren\u00e9 Gallant, president of the Nova Scotia Barristers\u2019 Society, who argues that the requirement to sign the Community Covenant in keeping with TWU religious beliefs is a step too far:<\/p>\n

[TWU has the right to] hold those beliefs. They have the right to talk about those beliefs. They have a right to explain those beliefs and to be around people like themselves that [sic<\/em>] believe in those principles and those values, but where we say it stops, and we think the law will support this, is that when you are going to require other people to sign a document that says that they will also follow those beliefs, as a condition of coming into the law school, we think that is wrong. And in particular, not only do they have to sign the document but if they are violating those beliefs while they are at law school, they can actually be disciplined, including being expelled from the law school. So it\u2019s taking those beliefs and taking them into action the way they have done; that\u2019s the real problem. But what we said is you can have those beliefs, we can balance religious freedom, just don\u2019t make the law students sign the document, and then you will be fine and we will accept them here in Nova Scotia.[i]<\/a><\/p>\n

The argument that Gallant and others are making is that the requirement to sign the covenant is in fact the \u201cact\u201d that justifies the law societies\u2019 rejection of TWU Law School. That argument fails to acknowledge the similarity between the current requirement to sign the Community Covenant and the requirement to sign the \u201cCommunity Standards\u201d document that the Supreme Court of Canada had to deal with in 2001.[ii]<\/a> In that case, the Court said, \u201cthe proper place to draw the line . . . is generally between belief and conduct. The freedom to hold beliefs is broader than the freedom to act on them.\u201d However, the Court  did not make any reference to the \u201cact\u201d in signing the Community Standards as being an unacceptable act.<\/p>\n

Indeed, one would suspect that the Court will say today that the \u201cact\u201d is not the requirement to sign the covenant, but whether the TWU graduates discriminate against the LGBTQ clients when they practise law. Since there will be no TWU law graduates until at least 2019, such evidence will be hard to come by.<\/p>\n

Further, the argument belittles the promise of religious freedom as enunciated by Chief Justice Dickson: \u201cThe essence of the concept of freedom of religion is the right to entertain such religious beliefs as a person chooses, the right to declare religious beliefs openly and without fear of hindrance or reprisal, and the right to manifest religious belief by worship and practice or by teaching and dissemination. But the concept means more than that.\u201d[iii]<\/a><\/p>\n

Religious freedom is more than beliefs; it demands a response, a carrying out of its precepts and principles in one\u2019s daily life, or \u201cpractice,\u201d as Dickson rightly noted. The Community Covenant is an outward expression and practice of the belief of marriage by a religious institution that is private, whose students voluntarily apply to attend. It is not a context where students are caught in an oppressive environment where they are forced to attend. They do not have to be there. As the Court noted in 2001:<\/p>\n

TWU is not for everybody; it is designed to address the needs of people who share a number of religious convictions. That said, the admissions policy of TWU alone is not in itself sufficient to establish discrimination as it is understood in our s. 15 jurisprudence. It is important to note that this is a private institution that is exempted, in part, from the British Columbia human rights legislation and to which the Charter does not apply. To state that the voluntary adoption of a code of conduct based on a person\u2019s own religious beliefs, in a private institution, is sufficient to engage s. 15 would be inconsistent with freedom of conscience and religion, which co-exist with the right to equality.[iv]<\/a><\/p>\n

What appears to be driving this debate is the underlying discomfort\u2014or, dare I say, disgust<\/em>\u2014the opposition feels toward TWU\u2019s religious position on marriage. Law professor Richard Moon exemplified this sentiment when he said that public commitment to sexual orientation equality (in public schools) \u201cwill involve nothing less than a repudiation of the religious view that homosexuality is sinful.\u201d[v]<\/a><\/p>\n

This attitudinal bias against religion is overshadowing any commonsensical understanding of the right of a religious institution to maintain its beliefs and practices regarding religion, even though it is Charter protected. With respect to marriage, the opposition prefers religious freedom that is in form or theory only\u2014without any substance.<\/p>\n

As University of Victoria Law School professor, Mary Anne Waldron, recently noted, the opposition against TWU is motivated by \u201ca desire to exclude and repress those who disagree . . . If you will not approve a wide range of sexual conduct as equally moral, then you must not receive accreditation to teach law . . . [T]he rights of those who adhere to a traditional religious vision are excluded from the conversation and, indeed, from full participation in society.\u201d[vi]<\/a><\/p>\n

—–<\/p>\n

[i]<\/a> Rachel Ward, \u201cInsights,\u201d Accessible Media Inc. (April 30, 2014), online: http:\/\/wpc.2269.edgecastcdn.net\/002269\/mps\/Accessible_Media_Inc._VMS\/622\/139\/INSIGHTS_-_Wednesday_April_30,_20141398807729280.mp3<\/a><\/p>\n

[ii]<\/a> Trinity Western University v. College of Teachers<\/em>, [2001] 1 S.C.R. 772, at para. 36.<\/p>\n

[iii]<\/a> R. v. Big M Drug Mart Ltd., [1985] 1 S.C.R. 295, at para. 94.<\/p>\n

[iv]<\/a> Trinity Western University v. College of Teachers, [2001] 1 S.C.R. 772, at para. 25.<\/p>\n

[v]<\/a> Richard Moon, \u201cThe Supreme Court of Canada\u2019s Attempt to Reconcile Freedom of Religion and Sexual Orientation in the Public Schools,\u201d in David Rayside and Clyde Wilcox, eds., Faith, Politics, and Sexual Diversity in Canada and the United States <\/em>(Vancouver, B.C.: UBC Press, 2011), 321 at 338.<\/p>\n

[vi]<\/a> Mary Anne Waldron, \u201cSacred and Secular Belief:  Can We Have Peace?\u201d Comment<\/em> (Fall 2014) (Hamilton: Cardus, 2014), pp. 21-27 at p. 26.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This entry is part 4 of 42 in the series Trinity Western University<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>

What is the point of enshrining religious freedom in the Canadian Charter of Rights if you can call a referendum to take it away? It would appear that the British Columbia Law Society\u2014its benchers and membership\u2014no longer see that irony in their animus against Trinity Western University\u2019s Law School. In… More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ts_fic_featured_image_caption":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[137],"tags":[],"series":[301],"class_list":["post-18236","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","series-trinity-western-university"],"yoast_head":"\nA Referendum On Religious Freedom - CCCC Blogs<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2014\/09\/29\/a-referendum-on-religious-freedom\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A Referendum On Religious Freedom - CCCC Blogs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"What is the point of enshrining religious freedom in the Canadian Charter of Rights if you can call a referendum to take it away?  It would appear that the British Columbia Law Society\u2014its benchers and membership\u2014no longer see that irony in their animus against Trinity Western University\u2019s Law School. 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Decisions Background Trinity Western University is a private religious university in Langley, British Columbia.\u00a0 It\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"equality rights\"","block_context":{"text":"equality rights","link":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/tag\/equality-rights\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/IMG_5726.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/IMG_5726.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/IMG_5726.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/IMG_5726.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/IMG_5726.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":28420,"url":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2019\/06\/14\/one-year-ago\/","url_meta":{"origin":18236,"position":1},"title":"One Year Ago","author":"cccc","date":"June 14, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"One year ago, those of us in the religious freedom field were waiting with great anticipation the June 15, 2018 decisions of the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) concerning Trinity Western University's (TWU) bid to have a law school. (One decision on the Law Society of BC's refusal to accredit\u2026","rel":"","context":"With 1 comment","block_context":{"text":"With 1 comment","link":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2019\/06\/14\/one-year-ago\/#comments"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/IMG_7981.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/IMG_7981.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/IMG_7981.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/IMG_7981.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/IMG_7981.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/IMG_7981.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":23794,"url":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2016\/11\/04\/the-game-changer-my-running-commentary-on-the-bc-court-of-appeals-decision-on-twu\/","url_meta":{"origin":18236,"position":2},"title":"The Decision That Has Changed Everything For TWU","author":"cccc","date":"November 4, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"As counsel for Canadian Council of Christian Charities, one of the interveners in the TWU case, I cannot but be pleased with the November 1 decision delivered by the British Columbia Court of Appeal. A 5-0 decision is significant, especially when you consider that the Court had the benefit of\u2026","rel":"","context":"With 15 comments","block_context":{"text":"With 15 comments","link":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2016\/11\/04\/the-game-changer-my-running-commentary-on-the-bc-court-of-appeals-decision-on-twu\/#comments"},"img":{"alt_text":"img_2023","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/IMG_2023-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":23892,"url":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2016\/11\/14\/law-society-of-bc-appeals-twu-to-supreme-court-of-canada\/","url_meta":{"origin":18236,"position":3},"title":"Law Society of BC Appeals TWU To Supreme Court of Canada","author":"cccc","date":"November 14, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"\u201cThe Law Society is of the view that this is a matter of national significance,\u201d said\u00a0David Crossin, QC, BC Law Society President. Indeed, one would have to agree wholeheartedly with Mr. Crossin. This case will, in my view, shape the future of the interrelationship between freedom of religion and sexual\u2026","rel":"","context":"With 2 comments","block_context":{"text":"With 2 comments","link":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2016\/11\/14\/law-society-of-bc-appeals-twu-to-supreme-court-of-canada\/#comments"},"img":{"alt_text":"img_2901","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/IMG_2901-e1478280984973-200x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":22215,"url":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2016\/05\/31\/cccc-at-the-british-columbia-court-of-appeal\/","url_meta":{"origin":18236,"position":4},"title":"CCCC at the British Columbia Court of Appeal","author":"cccc","date":"May 31, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Barry W. Bussey, Director of Legal Affairs has just arrived in Vancouver to appear before the British Columbia Court of Appeal this week in the Trinity\u00a0Western University case against the Law Society of British Columbia\u2019s refusal to accredit TWU\u2019s proposed School of Law.\u00a0 Canadian Council of Christian Charities was granted\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Charity law and policy"","block_context":{"text":"Charity law and policy","link":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/category\/charity-law-and-policy\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Entrance to the British Columbia Court of Appeal","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/IMG_2023-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":22239,"url":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2016\/06\/09\/the-experts-demand-deference-law-societies-twu\/","url_meta":{"origin":18236,"position":5},"title":"The Experts Demand Deference: Law Societies & TWU","author":"cccc","date":"June 9, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"I detected a general theme in the respective Court of Appeal arguments of the Law Societies in British Columbia and Ontario over the last two weeks.\u00a0 \u201cWe are the experts.\u00a0 We know what we are doing.\u00a0 Now give us deference.\u00a0 Our decisions against accrediting Trinity Western University\u2019s School of Law\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Law and Religion"","block_context":{"text":"Law and Religion","link":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/category\/law-and-religion-2\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"IMG_2897","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/IMG_2897-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p30X8p-4K8","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18236","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18236"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18236\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18236"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18236"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18236"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=18236"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}