Posted: June 09, 2008

A Canadian human rights tribunal ordered a Christian pastor to renounce
his faith and never again express moral opposition to homosexuality,
according to a new report.

In a decision dated May 30 in the penalty phase of the quasi-judicial
proceedings run by the Alberta Human Rights Tribunal, evangelical pastor
Stephen Boisson was banned from expressing his biblical perspective of
homosexuality and ordered to pay $5,000 for "damages for pain and
suffering" as well as apologize to the activist who complained of being
hurt.

According to a report from Pete Vere at the Catholic Exchange, the
penalty could foreshadow the possible fate of the Rev. Alphonse de Valk,
who also cited the biblical perspective on homosexuality in the nation's
debate over same-sex "marriage" and now faces HRC charges.

Boisson wrote a letter to the editor of his local Red Deer, Alberta,
newspaper in 2002 denouncing the advance of homosexual activism as
"wicked" and stating: "Children as young as five and six years of age
are being subjected to psychologically and physiologically damaging
pro-homosexual literature and guidance in the public school system; all
under the fraudulent guise of equal rights."

The activist, local teacher Darren Lund, filed a complaint, and the
guilty verdict from Lori G. Andreachuk, a lawyer, was handed down Nov.
30, 2007. The latest decision involved the penalty phase of the trial.

"While agreeing that Boisson's letter was not a criminal act, the
government tribunal nevertheless ordered the Christian pastor to [stop
expressing his opinion]," Vere reported.

Andreachuk noted that Lund, who brought the complaint, wasn't, in fact,
injured.

"In this case there is no specific individual who can be compensated as
there is no direct victim who has come forward," she wrote.

However, that did not stop her from ordering the payment anyway.

And as for the future, she wrote:

"Mr. Boissoin and The Concerned Christian Coalition Inc. shall cease
publishing in newspapers, by e-mail, on the radio, in public speeches,
or on the Internet, in future, disparaging remarks about gays and
homosexuals. Further, they shall not and are prohibited from making
disparaging remarks in the future about … Lund or … Lund's witnesses
relating to their involvement in this complaint. Further, all
disparaging remarks versus homosexuals are directed to be removed from
current Web sites and publications of Mr. Boissoin and The Concerned
Christian Coalition Inc.," the lawyer opined.

Andreachuk also ordered Boissoin to apologize for the original letter in
the Red Deer Advocate and told the two "offenders" to pay $5,000.

The apology letter, Vere said, "threatens civil liberties in Canada,
according to Ezra Levant, an author and lawyer who himself was targeted
by an HRC attack."

"[The] government now believes that if it can't convince a Christian
pastor that he's wrong, it will just order him to condemn himself?"
Levant wrote on his blog. "Other than tribunals in Stalin's Soviet Union
and Mao's China, where is this Orwellian 'order' considered to be justice?"

"This is like a Third World jail-house confession – where accused
criminals are forced to sign false statements of guilt," Levant wrote.
"We don’t even 'order' murderers to apologize to their victims'
families. Because we know that a forced apology is meaningless. But not
if your point is to degrade Christian pastors."

"In essence, the Alberta Human Rights Tribunal is ordering to the
minister to renounce his Christian faith, since his opposition to
homosexuality is based upon the Judeo-Christian Bible," Vere wrote.

We reported recently about de Valk, the target of a Human Rights
Commission case over his biblical references regarding homosexuality.

"Father [de Valk] defended the [Catholic] Church's teaching on marriage
during Canada's same-sex 'marriage' debate, quoting extensively from the
Bible, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and Pope John Paul II's
encyclicals. Each of these documents contains official Catholic
teaching. And like millions of other people throughout the world and the
ages – many of whom are non-Catholics and non-Christians — Father
believes that marriage is an exclusive union between a man and a woman,"
Vere wrote.

Vere raised the question that Canada now considers morality a "hate crime."

"If one, because of one's sincerely held moral beliefs, whether it be
Jew, Muslim, Christian, Catholic, opposes the idea of same-sex marriage
in Canada, is that considered 'hate'?" he asked.

Vere wrote that the response he got from Mark van Dusen, a spokesman for
the federal human rights prosecution office, shocked him.

The government agent confirmed the agency investigates complaints but
doesn't set public policy or moral standards. He said the agency job is
to look at the circumstances and decide whether to advance it or dismiss it.

What is shocking about that, Vere wrote, is the admission that
unjustified complaints can be dismissed, yet the case against de Valk
has continued now for more than six months.