Canada’s conversion therapy ban
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Canada isn’t just a post-Christian nation — it’s an anti-Christian nation. And it’s past time we Canadian Christians accepted that.
Earlier this year, Canada fined and imprisoned several Canadians for faithfully pastoring their churches throughout COVID lockdowns and restrictions.
Now, Canada is passing a bill that will fine and imprison Canadians for faithfully preaching what the Bible says about homosexuality and transgenderism.
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On Wednesday, Canada’s House of Chambers unanimously passed Bill C-4, a bill that if — or when it passes in the Senate, will make conversion therapy an illegal offense punishable by up to five years in prison.
The bill says:
“Conversion therapy means a practice, treatment or service designed to:
a. change a person’s sexual orientation to heterosexual;
b.Change a person’s gender identity to cisgender;
c.Change a person’s gender expression so that it conforms to the sex assigned to the person at birth;
d.Repress or reduce non-heterosexual attraction or sexual behaviour;
e.Repress a person’s non-cisgender gender identity; or
f.Repress or reduce a person’s gender expression that does not conform to the sex assigned to the person at birth.”
Therefore, anyone who influences a person to undergo conversion therapy or provides conversion therapy to that person could be fined or sentenced to up to five years in prison. And anyone who promotes conversion therapy could be fined or sentenced to up to two years in prison.
According to the bill: “conversion therapy causes harm to society because, among other things, it is based on and propagates myths and stereotypes about sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression, including the myth that heterosexuality, cisgender gender identity, and gender expression that conforms to the sex assigned to a person at birth are to be preferred over other sexual orientations, gender identities and gender expressions … in light of those harms, it is important to discourage and denounce the provision of conversion therapy in order to protect the human dignity and equality of all Canadians.”
In other words, the Canadian government believes the Bible is filled with harmful myths about homosexuality and transgenderism — therefore, it is necessary to strip freedom of expression and freedom of religion from Canadian Christians.
Of course, the conversion therapy ban isn’t explicitly directed at Christians. However, LGBTQ activists in Canada have explicitly targeted Christians in their campaigns against conversion therapy.
Though many Canadian churches are either accepting or silent on homosexuality or transgenderism, Canadian Christians are still the most conservative Canadians on LGBTQ issues. Therefore, similar to the COVID lockdowns and restrictions, Bill-C4 primarily threatens the fundamental freedoms of Canadian churches and Christians.
Canada isn’t the first nation to introduce some form of bill against conversion therapy. However, from my research on conversion therapy bans across the world — Canada’s conversion therapy ban would be indisputably the most authoritative and severe ban yet.
Other than Canada (and Australia earlier this year), essentially every conversion therapy ban in other nations is explicitly related to psychotherapy or coercion.
Therefore when Bill C-4 becomes law, anyone who preaches what the Bible says about homosexuality and transgenderism could be sentenced to up to five years in prison.
Earlier this week on social media, I said:
“You’re not homophobic or transphobic if you share Biblical truth with LGBTQ people. You’re homophobic or transphobic if you have a phobia of sharing Biblical truth with LGBTQ people.”
However, when Bill C-4 passes, sharing Biblical truth with LGBTQ people in Canada could make you a criminal.
That includes pastors and Christian counselors who believe what the Bible says about homosexuality and transgenderism.
Pastors and Biblical counselors who teach that homosexuality and transgenderism are unnatural and sinful thoughts and behaviors could be sentenced to prison. Christians who attempt to help homosexual and transgender people repent from their sins so they can have freedom in Christ might lose their freedom and be sentenced to prison.
This is because Canada isn’t a post-Cristian nation — it’s an anti-Christian nation. Meaning, it isn’t a conservative nation either. Canada is also a post-conservative nation.
Canada has a federal party that calls itself the Conservative Party. But we do not have a conservative party — not anymore. They are conservative in name only.
Not only did a Conservative MP make the motion to fast-track Bill C-4 — there wasn’t even one dissenting voice from the 119 Conservative MP’s at the House of Commons.
The motion received unanimous approval from the House of Commons, prompting the entire House to erupt in cheers and hugs — despite their supposed concerns over Omicron. And Canada’s relatively small conservative media is either supportive or silent about this.
Soon I will be engaging in criminal behavior if I write that homosexual and transgender people need to repent of their sins and believe in Jesus Christ. And yet, the Conservative Party is celebrating over that.
That’s the state of conservatism in Canada — that’s the state of Christianity in Canada.
If it’s criminal to convert homosexual and transgender people to Christianity, why isn’t it criminal to convert other kinds of sinners to Christianity as well? But considering what the government says about supposedly harmful myths, perhaps the Canadian government is only a short time away from banning Christians from attempting to convert anyone with the Gospel.
Nevertheless, I am not afraid of what Canada will do to Christians. I’m afraid of what God will do to Canada. Canada isn’t just persecuting Christians, it's persecuting Christ — and it won’t win.
Please pray for Christians in Canada. Please pray for Canadian pastors and Biblical counselors. And please pray for Canada.
Originally published at Slow to Write.
Samuel Sey is a Ghanaian-Canadian who lives in Brampton, a city just outside of Toronto. He is committed to addressing racial, cultural, and political issues with biblical theology, and always attempts to be quick to listen and slow to speak.
