Master's Seminary Pastor Jailed
It was only a matter of time. The pastor of a Bible church has been imprisoned for going against covid restrictions by presiding over his church during corporate worship.
Pastor James Coates of Grace Life Church in Spruce Grove, Alberta was jailed this past Tuesday. As of February 17th, he remains imprisoned with a possible trial date to be set next week sometime. Currently, his wife and children are prohibited from visiting him. Coates is a graduate of the Master's Seminary, was a personal classmate of mine, and has faithfully pastored Grace Life since 2010.
Here is a brief summary of the situation.
Grace Life suspended corporate worship services in the spring of 2020 in response to an largely unknown covid situation. On June 21st, the church resumed meeting for corporate gathering. The lawyer representing the church stated, "Even in the summer of 2020, it had become apparent to congregants of Grace Life that government lockdowns cause far more self-imposed harm than the natural harm of covid." In early July, two people who attended Grace Life tested positive for covid, upon which the church shut down for two weeks. They then resumed meeting when it was discovered that no further spread occurred.
In December, the chief medical officer of Alberta issued a mandate restricting worship gatherings to 15% capacity, with masks and social distancing. Representing Grace Life, the Justice Centre wrote:
"[S]uch restrictions violate the constitutional rights to freedom of conscience and religion, expression, peaceful assembly and association as protected by section 2 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms."
In November, Canadian health officials began showing up at Grace Life worship gatherings, recording the number of attendees, those who were not wearing masks, and social distancing. This continued each Sunday for about three months. The church regarded "the weekly invasion of AHS inspectors to be a potential criminal offense, pursuant to section 176(2) of the Criminal Code of Canada, which prohibits the interrupting or disturbing of a religious worship service."
On December 17th, a health inspector posted a report against the church. On January 21st, a court order was filed to imprison Pastor Coates. Then the health department issued a closure order on January 29th. Grace Life continued to gather for corporate worship. On February 7th, Canadian police told Pastor Coates that he was under arrest for continuing to preside over worship gatherings, explaining that he must abide by the health order. He explained that he could not go against conscience and the need to shepherd God's people. Police left without arresting him. Health inspectors attended Grace Life again on February 14th. Pastor Coates was arrested and jailed Tuesday. In the meantime, as Canada jails Pastor Coates, the nation considers marijuana dispensaries and liquor stores essential services. Reportedly, authorities will release him from jail on the condition he does not preside over Grace Life services. So far, Pastor Coates seems to have declined the offer. Perhaps this reminds us of John Bunyan, who once said, "I will stay in jail to the end of my days before I make a butchery of my conscience."
Master’s Seminary Pastor Jailed | The Cripplegate