Supreme Court cases send mixed messages on religious freedom

Competing rights discussed

Evangelical Fellowship of Canada vice president Don Hutchinson, Laurentian
Leadership Centre director Janet Epp Buckingham and law professor Natasha Bakht
discuss Supreme Court cases involving religious freedom March 28. (Photo: CCN)

A panel at the University of Ottawa discussed the unclear stand religious freedom has in Supreme Court cases. Deborah Gyapong reports:

Don Hutchinson noted the Whatcott decision welcomed the preaching, teaching and dissemination of religious beliefs. “It’s important to have them recognize religious expression is welcome in the public square.”

The Court determined the Bible is “not hate literature,” he said. “Except in certain rare circumstances and contexts but they don’t tell us what they are.”

Hutchinson advised prudence and wisdom when commenting on prohibited behaviors from a biblical perspective. He noted it took 20 years after the Taylor decision for another hate speech case to work its way to the Supreme Court of Canada.

For full story, see The B.C. Catholic website.