10/31/2023 0 Comments Pastor james coates arrestCoates’ choice to make.”Ĭoates was ultimately released in late March without any conditions and the government dropped all but one of its charges against the preacher. “He chose to remain in jail,” Shaigec said of Coates, according to CTV News. Shaigec went on to argue a 35-day stint behind bars for preaching to a full congregation was not a violation of Coates’ religious freedoms because he could have been released had he acquiesced to “a single condition,” which was that he agreed to stop leading services and restricted his congregation to only 15% of the facility’s total operational capacity - a stipulation Coates argued violated his conscience as a pastor. ***As the number of voices facing big-tech censorship continues to grow, please sign up for Faithwire’s daily newsletter and download the CBN News app, developed by our parent company, to stay up-to-date with the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.***Īccording to the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, which is representing Coates, the judge acknowledged the “sincerity of Pastor Coates’ religious convictions,” but suggested his religious freedoms weren’t “reasonably threatened in more than an insubstantial way.” He dismissed the pastor’s application Monday, The Canadian Press reported. Provincial court Judge Robert Shaigec, however, disagreed. A judge in Canada ruled Monday that the religious freedoms of Alberta Pastor James Coates - who was in jail for more than a month after holding in-person worship services at his church despite COVID restrictions - were not violated.Ĭoates, who leads GraceLife Church in Edmonton, recently submitted a Charter challenge, claiming pandemic-related health orders in Alberta violated his religious liberties.
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