A pastor from Alberta, Canada, is awaiting a hearing in May in solitary confinement after refusing a bail agreement that would ban him from preaching.
James Coates, who was pastor of GraceLife Church in the Edmonton area, was first arrested in February after the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) repeatedly marked his church for refusing to obey public health orders. which limited attendance by 15 percent. While their pastor stays behind bars, the RCMP has since slapped the church with even more charges, according to the Western Standard.
‘Last week, on March 4, GraceLife Church’s legal counsel was summoned to attend Stony Plain Provincial Court on May 5, 2021. GraceLife Church has been charged as an entity for exceeding the 15 percent allowable capacity for the services held. on 21 February and 28 February 2021, in contravention of section 73 (1) of the Public Health Act, ”RCMP Cpl. Laurel Scott said.
‘The Parkland RCMP supported the AHS inquiry into GraceLife Church last Sunday. The Church does not comply with the Public Health Order because it has been allowed too much. The RCMP members were present for public safety and to support AHS, and did not enter the church. ”
“The investigation continues into the church through AHS and supported by the Parkland RCMP. These charges are now before the court and further comments will not be available. ”
Last Friday, Queen Michalyshyn, judge of the Queen’s bench, denied Coates ‘bail in appeal in Alberta court, saying Coates’ imprisonment remains “justified” and “necessary”.
‘Pastor Coates is bound by the rule of law. “His refusal of the conditions of release and multiple compliance with the intention to continue relates to public safety,” Michalyshyn said.
As the Edmonton Journal reports:
Michalyshyn said Coates and his congregation adhere to a ‘strong and literal interpretation of the holy scriptures’, which commands them to meet in person and expose their faces during worship. Kitchen said that his client is generally a law-abiding man, but that in cases where the law and his interpretation of the scripture clash, it prevails.
In an affidavit, Coates said the health orders “are in direct conflict with the authority of the local church and the supreme authority of the Lord Jesus Christ.” The affidavit cites Prime Minister Jason Kenney’s May 2020 references to COVID as a ‘flu’, which critics say underestimates the severity of the virus.
Coates’ case was a source of controversy in the Edmonton area, and protesters gathered outside his jail to protest his treatment. A statement on GraceLife Church’s website partially explains his reasoning:
After an enormous amount of research and interaction with doctors and health workers in the front line, it is clear that the negative effects of the government lock on society far outweigh the effects of COVID-19. The science used to justify lock-in measures is suspicious and selective. In fact, there is no empirical evidence that connections can effectively reduce the spread of the virus. We are very concerned that COVID-19 is being used to fundamentally change society and strip us of all our civil liberties. By the time the so-called ‘pandemic’ is over, Albertans will be completely dependent on the government, rather than free, prosperous and independent.
Related: ‘A Little Too Soviet’: Idaho pastor grandsons charged with 13 criminal charges for protesting against lockers with stickers
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