Canadian bishops condemn government proposal to strip faith groups of charitable status
The 2023 Plenary Assembly of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) being held Sept 25-28 outside of Toronto. / Credit: CCCB/CECC Toronto, Canada, Mar 20, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).
Canada’s Finance Department has avoided providing a clear answer to a written appeal from the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) urging the federal government not to adopt budget recommendations that would strip charitable status from “anti-abortion” and “advancement of religion” nonprofit organizations.
A statement provided to The Catholic Register in Canada on March 13 by the department’s media relations officer, Marie-France Faucher, did not reference the CCCB or its specific concerns surrounding recommendations 429 and 430 of the pre-budget consultations in advance of the 2025 budget.
In her email response, Faucher said “the government of Canada recognizes the vital role charities play in delivering essential services to those in need” and provided general information about how an organization may apply for charitable registration under the Income Tax Act.
Her only comment about the next budget was that the Finance Department “continues to explore ways to ensure the tax system remains fair and effective in supporting Canadians and the organizations that serve them.”
The CCCB’s permanent council sent its March 10 letter to then-Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc and a follow-up letter on March 18 to François-Philippe Champagne, who was appointed finance minister on March 14 by newly minted Prime Minister Mark Carney.
The CCCB said a clearer stance on the concerns is required soon, highlighting in its letters that “40% of all charitable organizations in Canada are faith-based.”
The bishops said depriving these organizations of charitable status “would decrease donations, causing their revenue to dwindle, thus crippling their ability to inspire, operate, and maintain essential social services that benefit the wider community.”
Among the 14 signatories are conference president Bishop William McGrattan of Calgary, vice president Bishop Pierre Goudreault of Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pocatière, Cardinals Francis Leo of Toronto and Gerald Lacroix of Quebec, and Montreal Archbishop Christian Lépine.
Campaign Life Coalition (CLC) applauded the permanent council’s letter.
“Thank God the Canadian bishops have joined in this fight to save Christian Canada,” said CLC national president Jeff Gunnarson. “Canada, as our charter states, is founded upon principles that recognize the supremacy of God. The government is attacking the very foundation of our country with these proposals. United together we will stave off this governmental assault on our nation and our treasured faith.”
Chalice, a Canadian Catholic international child sponsorship charity headquartered in Bedford, Nova Scotia, is one of the nonprofits registered with the Canada Revenue Agency that would be targeted by recommendation 430.
Chalice founder and president Father Patrick Cosgrove said in an email the recommendation “reveals a negative bias against religion that is not supported by the evidence that active faith and the practice of religion have a measurably positive impact on society and the individual.”
Cosgrove, whose 29-year-old organization operates 52 sites in 14 different countries, said a 2018 study released by the Christian research organization Barna found Christians are more likely than others to donate clothing or furniture, provide food, and volunteer to serve in the community.
Pregnancy Care Canada executive director Dr. Laura Lewis sent a letter to LeBlanc on March 6 noting that recommendation 429 “does not define the scope of this proposal,” leaving it unclear how an organization will be classified as “anti-abortion.” She added that the mission of Pregnancy Care Canada and 81 affiliated centers is to offer alternatives to abortion.
“The free support available at local pregnancy care centers is crucial to providing a national safety net for women looking for support for an unexpected pregnancy,” Lewis said.
She also suggested that recommendation 429 is a way to implement a pledge in the Liberals’ 2021 election platform to “no longer provide charitable status to anti-abortion organizations that provide dishonest counseling to women about their rights and about the options provided to them at all stages of pregnancy.”
This story was first published by The Catholic Register and is reprinted with permission.
