{"id":26526,"date":"2017-11-06T10:27:52","date_gmt":"2017-11-06T15:27:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/?p=26526"},"modified":"2021-10-07T11:02:38","modified_gmt":"2021-10-07T15:02:38","slug":"cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/","title":{"rendered":"CCCC Makes Oral Argument At Wall Case"},"content":{"rendered":"
This entry is part 4 of 8 in the series Wall v. JWs<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>

Below is the written text of the oral argument I made at the Supreme Court of Canada on November 2, 2017.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Barry W. Bussey, counsel for CCCC as intervener before the Supreme Court of Canada in the Judicial Committee of the Highwood Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses (Vaughn Lee – Chairman and Elders James Scott Lang and Joe Gurney) and Highwood Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses v. Randy Wall<\/p><\/div>\n

Note:  The written legal brief “Factum” filed by CCCC in the court can be found here.<\/a> For a video of the oral arguments at the hearing see:  The Supreme Court of Canada’s webcast.<\/a> The following oral argument by Barry W. Bussey is found at minute 58 to 1:03.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Barry W. Bussey and Philip A.S. Milley represented CCCC at Supreme Court of Canada<\/p><\/div>\n

Oral Argument<\/strong><\/p>\n

Judicial Committee of the Highwood Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses and Highwood Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses v. Randy Wall<\/p>\n

Barry W. Bussey<\/p>\n

November 2, 2017<\/p>\n

May It Please the Court:<\/p>\n

There are three points I would like to make today:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Religious membership is a private matter that does not engage a public interest;<\/li>\n
  2. The law is not equipped to review private religious matters;<\/li>\n
  3. This decision will impact my client\u2019s membership.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    \"\"

    Barry W. Bussey speaking on behalf of CCCC at the Supreme Court of Canada<\/p><\/div>\n

      \n
    1. Religious membership is a private matter that does not engage a public interest <\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      My client submits that the law is not required, nor should it be burdened with the complexities of internal religious disputes.  Justice does not require law to extend to private intricate concern of theological controversy.  The law does not extend to every nook and cranny of private religious enterprise.<\/p>\n

      Having chosen to be a member of a voluntary religious community the individual chose to live in accordance with the norms of that community and to live with the realization that that community is the ultimate arbiter of their continued fitness for membership.  The law ought to respect this individual\u2019s free choice even though, upon the dissolution of the relationship, there may be hard feelings and a loss of camaraderie.<\/p>\n

      Western Civilization has learned through history\u2019s anvil that religious disputations are best left to the adherents.  This very week we have commemorated 500 years since the nailing of Luther\u2019s 95 Theses on Wittenberg\u2019s church door.  We are all aware of the tumultuous history that followed as the various heads of state took sides on what was, in essence, a theological dispute.  We have learned from our history that it is the best course of action for the state to leave internal religious disputes alone.<\/p>\n

      Individually we may sympathize and have compassion with how a religious member\u2019s membership has been treated by his religious community, but our law has no place for such sympathy.  Not that the law is harsh or cruel but that the law is just in its realization that a person is free to join or not to join; that a religious community and its norms of membership, rooted as they are in theology and religious history, is to be respected.<\/p>\n

      \"\"<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. The Law is not equipped to adequately review private religious matters.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        The law has wisely recognized that it is not equipped to engage in theological disputes.   Secular law has no privity to the theological and socially contextual complexity of the religious community under review.  Our law has no understanding of such matters.  Nor, I would suggest, should it.<\/p>\n

        Consider, what might be the result of the law taking on religious disputes.  A religious community may argue about the nature of God \u2013 whether there is a Trinity.  Should the law hear a case about the lack of procedural fairness from those who lost the debate about the Trinity?<\/p>\n

        Debates about metaphysical truth within the context of religion are common.  In fact, it might be appropriate to say differences of opinion in religious matters are the norm.  Over the centuries religious communities in the West have shown themselves quite adept at handling religious disputes.  Unbridgeable differences have resulted in disgruntled members leaving and forming other religious communities. That, I suggest is the mark of a free society \u2013 free to enter; free to exit.<\/p>\n

        \"\"<\/p>\n

          \n
        1. The Effect on our Members<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          Should religious communities have to be concerned about providing procedural fairness, as secularly understood, it will be an imposition on the religious beliefs and practices.  There are currently some 33000 religious charities in Canada.  Much of the work carried out by charities is done by volunteers.  This works because these people are religiously motivated.<\/p>\n

          In our experience, with our 3400 members we find that government regulations such as filing the annual CRA return the T3010 is a serious challenge for many.  They are religiously motivated to carry out the good work of the charity but are not motivated to carry out government requirements.<\/p>\n

          Imposing secular norms of procedural fairness on religious decisions will only take the volunteers from their good works.  First, they may not understand the legal nuance and properly carry out the secular norms.  Second, they will be hamstrung by disgruntled members who may have an \u201caxe\u201d to grind in a religious dispute. Third, they have limited resources to deal with court actions \u2013 their community, indeed our country, needs those resources and energy spent in ministry, not fighting over procedure.<\/p>\n

          \"\"

          Barry W. Bussey (CCCC counsel); Michael A. Feder (counsel for Mr. Wall)<\/p><\/div>\n

          \"\"

          David Gnam, (counsel for Highwood Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses); Barry W. Bussey (counsel for CCCC)<\/p><\/div>\n

           <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          This entry is part 4 of 8 in the series Wall v. JWs<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>

          Below is the written text of the oral argument I made at the Supreme Court of Canada on November 2, 2017. Note: The written legal brief “Factum” filed by CCCC in the court can be found here. For a video of the oral arguments at the hearing see: The Supreme… 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":[150,149,355,138],"series":[347],"class_list":["post-26526","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-freedom-of-religion","tag-freedom-of-religion-or-belief","tag-jehovahs-witnesses","tag-law-and-religion","series-wall-v-jws"],"yoast_head":"\nCCCC Makes Oral Argument At Wall Case - 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:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"CCCC Makes Oral Argument At Wall Case - CCCC Blogs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Below is the written text of the oral argument I made at the Supreme Court of Canada on November 2, 2017. Note:  The written legal brief “Factum” filed by CCCC in the court can be found here. For a video of the oral arguments at the hearing see:  The Supreme... More\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"CCCC Blogs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CCCCCharities\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-11-06T15:27:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-10-07T15:02:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Supreme-Court-on-Wall-1-2-300x169.png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cccc\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@cccccharities\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@cccccharities\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cccc\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mail.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/intersection\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/06\\\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mail.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/intersection\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/06\\\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cccc\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/1462268d674891de61be3d5a4285105c\"},\"headline\":\"CCCC Makes Oral Argument At Wall Case\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-11-06T15:27:52+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-10-07T15:02:38+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mail.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/intersection\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/06\\\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":975,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mail.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/intersection\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/06\\\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/Supreme-Court-on-Wall-1-2-300x169.png\",\"keywords\":[\"freedom of religion\",\"freedom of religion or belief\",\"Jehovah's Witnesses\",\"law and religion\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mail.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/intersection\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/06\\\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mail.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/intersection\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/06\\\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\\\/\",\"name\":\"CCCC Makes Oral Argument At Wall Case - CCCC Blogs\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mail.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/intersection\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/06\\\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mail.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/intersection\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/06\\\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/Supreme-Court-on-Wall-1-2-300x169.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-11-06T15:27:52+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-10-07T15:02:38+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mail.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/intersection\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/06\\\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/mail.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/intersection\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/06\\\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mail.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/intersection\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/06\\\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/Supreme-Court-on-Wall-1-2-300x169.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/Supreme-Court-on-Wall-1-2-300x169.png\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/mail.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/intersection\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/06\\\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"CCCC Makes Oral Argument At Wall Case\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/\",\"name\":\"CCCC News & Blogs\",\"description\":\"CCCC Blogs\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Canadian Centre for Christian Charities\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/10\\\/260wbRGB.png?fit=260%2C260&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/10\\\/260wbRGB.png?fit=260%2C260&ssl=1\",\"width\":260,\"height\":260,\"caption\":\"Canadian Centre for Christian Charities\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/CCCCCharities\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/cccccharities\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/company\\\/canadian-council-of-christian-charities\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/1462268d674891de61be3d5a4285105c\",\"name\":\"cccc\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/02b29440f48da4a974e8b529d3dc8c20cb523dd511e5c1fc006363cde92b3025?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/02b29440f48da4a974e8b529d3dc8c20cb523dd511e5c1fc006363cde92b3025?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/02b29440f48da4a974e8b529d3dc8c20cb523dd511e5c1fc006363cde92b3025?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"cccc\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/cccc.org\\\/news_blogs\\\/author\\\/intersection\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"CCCC Makes Oral Argument At Wall Case - CCCC Blogs","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"CCCC Makes Oral Argument At Wall Case - CCCC Blogs","og_description":"Below is the written text of the oral argument I made at the Supreme Court of Canada on November 2, 2017. Note:  The written legal brief “Factum” filed by CCCC in the court can be found here. For a video of the oral arguments at the hearing see:  The Supreme... More","og_url":"https:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/","og_site_name":"CCCC Blogs","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CCCCCharities","article_published_time":"2017-11-06T15:27:52+00:00","article_modified_time":"2021-10-07T15:02:38+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Supreme-Court-on-Wall-1-2-300x169.png","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"cccc","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@cccccharities","twitter_site":"@cccccharities","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"cccc","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/"},"author":{"name":"cccc","@id":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/#\/schema\/person\/1462268d674891de61be3d5a4285105c"},"headline":"CCCC Makes Oral Argument At Wall Case","datePublished":"2017-11-06T15:27:52+00:00","dateModified":"2021-10-07T15:02:38+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/"},"wordCount":975,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Supreme-Court-on-Wall-1-2-300x169.png","keywords":["freedom of religion","freedom of religion or belief","Jehovah's Witnesses","law and religion"],"inLanguage":"en-CA"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/","url":"https:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/","name":"CCCC Makes Oral Argument At Wall Case - CCCC Blogs","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Supreme-Court-on-Wall-1-2-300x169.png","datePublished":"2017-11-06T15:27:52+00:00","dateModified":"2021-10-07T15:02:38+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-CA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-CA","@id":"https:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Supreme-Court-on-Wall-1-2-300x169.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Supreme-Court-on-Wall-1-2-300x169.png"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/mail.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/06\/cccc-makes-oral-argument-at-wall-case\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"CCCC Makes Oral Argument At Wall Case"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/","name":"CCCC News & Blogs","description":"CCCC Blogs","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-CA"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/#organization","name":"Canadian Centre for Christian Charities","url":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-CA","@id":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/260wbRGB.png?fit=260%2C260&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/260wbRGB.png?fit=260%2C260&ssl=1","width":260,"height":260,"caption":"Canadian Centre for Christian Charities"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CCCCCharities","https:\/\/x.com\/cccccharities","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/canadian-council-of-christian-charities"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/#\/schema\/person\/1462268d674891de61be3d5a4285105c","name":"cccc","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-CA","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/02b29440f48da4a974e8b529d3dc8c20cb523dd511e5c1fc006363cde92b3025?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/02b29440f48da4a974e8b529d3dc8c20cb523dd511e5c1fc006363cde92b3025?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/02b29440f48da4a974e8b529d3dc8c20cb523dd511e5c1fc006363cde92b3025?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"cccc"},"url":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/author\/intersection\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":25140,"url":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/04\/13\/supreme-court-of-canada-decides-to-hear-the-wall-case-is-a-church-member-entitled-to-sue-a-congregation-because-he-was-disfellowshipped\/","url_meta":{"origin":26526,"position":0},"title":"Supreme Court of Canada Decides to Hear The Wall Case: Is A Church Member Entitled To Sue A Congregation Because He Was Disfellowshipped?","author":"cccc","date":"April 13, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) decided today to hear the Wall case from Alberta.\u00a0 The SCC must decide if a court has jurisdiction to hear a case of a former church member who is suing for damages because he lost his membership due to church discipline.\u00a0 Here is a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"law and religion\"","block_context":{"text":"law and religion","link":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/tag\/law-and-religion\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/IMG_1808-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":26105,"url":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/08\/25\/canadian-council-of-christian-charities-granted-intervener-status-in-wall-case\/","url_meta":{"origin":26526,"position":1},"title":"Canadian Council of Christian Charities Granted Intervener Status in Wall Case","author":"cccc","date":"August 25, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"The Supreme Court of Canada has allowed 11 groups (some of which will appear jointly, making 9 applications) to intervene in the \u201cWall case.\u201d[1]\u00a0This case will be heard in Ottawa on November 2. It has attracted a lot of attention among religious communities because it deals with the rights and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"law and religion\"","block_context":{"text":"law and religion","link":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/tag\/law-and-religion\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/IMG_2727-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":28959,"url":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2020\/04\/10\/coalition-seeks-leave-to-intervene\/","url_meta":{"origin":26526,"position":2},"title":"Coalition Seeks Leave to Intervene","author":"cccc","date":"April 10, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"The Canadian Council of Christian Charities is joining with the Christian Legal Fellowship (CLF) and the Association for Reformed Political Action (ARPA) in applying for leave to intervene in the Aga case.[1] The case began when five members of St. Mary\u2019s Cathedral were expelled over an investigation into alleged heresy\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"aga case\"","block_context":{"text":"aga case","link":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/tag\/aga-case\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":26594,"url":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2017\/11\/09\/bussey-gets-op-ed-published-in-the-national-post\/","url_meta":{"origin":26526,"position":3},"title":"Bussey – National Post Op-Ed: Courts have no business reviewing religious decisions","author":"cccc","date":"November 9, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"On November 2, the Supreme Court of Canada was asked to do something Canadian courts never do: review the solely religious decision of a church community. Until now, the courts have recoiled from getting involved in religious disputes\u2014and for good reason. Read more here.","rel":"","context":"In \"Jehovah's Witnesses\"","block_context":{"text":"Jehovah's Witnesses","link":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/tag\/jehovahs-witnesses\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/Nat-Post-300x169.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":29814,"url":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2020\/12\/09\/cccc-attended-supreme-court-of-canada-hearing-on-the-aga-case-today\/","url_meta":{"origin":26526,"position":4},"title":"CCCC Attended Supreme Court of Canada Hearing on the Aga Case","author":"cccc","date":"December 9, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Supreme Court of Canada. Photo: Barry W. Bussey CCCC\u2019s Director of Legal Affairs, Barry W. Bussey, represented the CCCC at the Supreme Court of Canada\u2019s virtual hearing today (Dec 9) in the case of Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church of Canada St. Mary Cathedral, et al. v. Teshome Aga, (39094). CCCC\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/IMG_9943-scaled.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\/2020\/12\/IMG_9943-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/IMG_9943-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/IMG_9943-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/IMG_9943-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":27656,"url":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/intersection\/2018\/05\/31\/supreme-court-of-canada-decides-jehovahs-witnesses-v-wall\/","url_meta":{"origin":26526,"position":5},"title":"Supreme Court of Canada: Churches Free to Determine Membership Requirements and Disciplinary Process Without Judicial Review","author":"cccc","date":"May 31, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Here is the head note of today's decision. Check back to this blog for more commentary: The Highwood Congregation of Jehovah\u2019s Witnesses is a voluntary, religious association. A member must live according to accepted standards of conduct and morality. A member who deviates and does not repent may be asked\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"religious freedom\"","block_context":{"text":"religious freedom","link":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/tag\/religious-freedom\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/IMG_5726-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p30X8p-6TQ","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26526","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=26526"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26526\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26526"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26526"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26526"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=26526"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}