Everyone can relax now; the Canadian government is not going to stop churches from issuing tax receipts

Everyone can relax now; the federal government is not planning to remove the charitable tax status for churches and other religious groups.

Not that it ever planned to do that. But ever since a single recommendation about that made it into the all-party report from the Standing Committee on Finance in December 2024, conservative Christian groups—and the Conservative Party of Canada—have been spreading misinformation that the Liberals intended to hobble churches by taking away their ability to give tax receipts to donors. 

The idea emerged after the recommendation appeared in a pre-budget report (that is prepared before every federal budget), one of 462 that the government under then Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was invited to consider. It was never a blueprint for government policy. (As I noted in a column in January this year.) 

But that didn’t stop those groups from continuing to issue false warnings about a report for a budget and a government that no longer existed. 

But now we have an official word from the office of Liberal MP Karina Gould, chair of the House of Commons Finance Committee, that there is no plan to remove religion as a charitable purpose from the Canadian Income Tax Act. 

Charitable status for religious organizations “is not under review, and this government has no plans to change that,” her office said. “Any suggestion otherwise is false.” 

Read about this non-issue in my latest Free Press column.

On the Ground: Brian Stewart on his time as a foreign correspondent with the CBC, the important role religion played in his reporting

 

During his time as a foreign correspondent and senior reporter with the CBC from the 1980s to early 2000s, Brian Stewart interviewed world leaders and reported about events like the first Gulf War, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Rwandan genocide and the Ethiopian famine. 

While reporting about those important events, one thing that stood out for Stewart was how often religion played a significant role in the news he shared with Canadians. 

“I was surprised to see how relevant religion was for my reporting,” he said, noting that, like many other journalists at that time, he had come to believe that religion was an outmoded and spent force. “I came to see that religion was part of many major stories, although it took a lot to convince my editors that was true.” 

Stewart has gathered the memories of his encounters with religion, and his overall time as a reporter, into a new book titled On the Ground: My Life as a Foreign Correspondent (Simon & Schuster). 

Read my interview with Stewart, including his thoughts about the importance of reporting about religion today, in my Free Press column.

Holy Hurt: New book aims to help those who have experienced spiritual trauma, alert faith leaders to its reality

 

When psychologist Hillary McBride encountered clients from religious backgrounds who had been hurt by their churches, she found their challenges didn’t fit into standard psychological categories—they weren’t only dealing with anxiety or depression, but also with fear of God’s anger and judgment. 

They were experiencing spiritual trauma, which McBride defines as hurt caused by abuse in a religious setting, including the hurt that results from doctrines that emphasize a harsh and punitive God and the worthlessness and wickedness of individual believers. 

Those experiences prompted her to write Holy Hurt: Understanding Spiritual Trauma and the Process of Healing (Brazos Press). 

McBride’s goals with the book is to help those experiencing spiritual trauma know they aren’t alone and that there is a path for recovery. She also wants to help faith leaders understand that spiritual trauma is real and that they have a role in preventing it—and to bridge the worlds of psychology and religion that are often kept far apart.

Read my interview with McBride about spiritual trauma in the Free Press. 

Are Gen Zers returning to church? Yes, some are, but religion scholars say it's too soon to call it trend

 

Are younger people returning to church? That’s what’s being reported about Gen Zers — people born between 1997 and 2012 — in places in Canada, the U.S. and the United Kingdom. That’s what’s being reported by some church leaders in the United Kingdom, Canada and in the U.S. 

Those who are writing about it say it’s happening because Gen Zers feel “lonely, isolated, anxious and fearful about the future. The promises of secularism for progress and freedoms simply have not delivered for them,” as one minister put it. 

Added to that is the unsettled and uncertain political situation in the U.S. and around the world, along with the employment challenges caused by tariffs and artificial intelligence for many in that generation. 

Those who study religion acknowledge something is happening, but say it is too early to call it a trend, with one saying there’s no data suggesting sizable conversion rates occurring among Gen Z in Canada or elsewhere. “We are not talking about a revival,” he says, suggesting church leaders need to be careful when talking about it. 

Read more about this in my Free Press column.

Photo above from On Mission.

 

A sampling of Winnipeg faith coverage over the past few weeks

I mostly post my Winnipeg Free Press columns on this blog. But I also regularly write news stories about faith in Winnipeg. (Four to eight stories a month.) So I thought I’d share a few of those from the past month so people can see how the Free Press is covering this aspect of life in Winnipeg. All my stories can be found here.

‘Sign of our welcome’: mural transforms plain-looking Prairie Spirit United Church entrance into inviting space (Photo above)

‘It’s our mission’: Inner-city church driven to help refugees 

Local faith groups express optimism after Canada’s formal recognition of Palestine 

‘Refreshing and uplifting’: Winnipeg Jews, Christians meet to promote dialogue

Plaque unveiled to honour Western Canada’s chief rabbi 

Winnipeg Catholics can pay tribute to ‘saint in sneakers’ 

Mennonite church treaty people tour provides a chance to pause, ponder 

Church branches out to beautify riverbank with help of non-profit 

 

‘You are not alone’: retired social worker takes time to listen during cross-Canada tour

In a polarized and divided world, where many may feel lonely and isolated, Paul Jenkinson has a message: “You are not alone. I will listen.” 

That’s what it says on a sign the 71-year-old retired social worker plunks down in public spaces from Nova Scotia to Manitoba as he makes his way across the country to B.C. 

“My goal is to simply listen,” said Jenkinson, a divorced father of two and grandfather of six who is on a cross-country journey that started in in May and is set to conclude in November. 

And people sit down with him—about 600 so far. After each person shares, Jenkinson asks if he can respond and tell them about his life. 

“I’m not offering counsel, just a conversation,” he said. “I just want to be there for people. I want to remind them they aren’t alone.” 

Read my story about Jenkinson’s tour in the Free Press.

If you want to understand what is happening in America, you need to know about the Seven Mountains Mandate

If you want to understand many things happening in the world today, you need to check out the religion angle. This is especially true in the U.S. 

An example of this is the Seven Mountains Mandate, a belief promoted by a conservative evangelical form of Christianity. Proponents of the Mandate believe that Christians need to dominate seven key spheres, or mountains, of society: government, religion, family, education, media, culture and the economy (business).

The idea of the Mandate has been around since the 1970s. But it has been popularized more recently by leaders in what is called the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR), a loosely connected movement of evangelical non-denominational and Pentecostal churches in the U.S. 

The premise behind the Mandate is that those seven key pillars of American society have been taken over by demonic powers. In order to make America great again, Christians need to reclaim control of these “mountains.” One way for that to happen is by placing Christians in influential positions in government and other places so they can get rid of the demons.

Read my story about the Mandate in the Free Press.