Tag: fairview baptist church

Categories
Evangelical Stuff Featured In-person Church Righteous Defiance

Could They go Back to Jail? Alberta Pastors James Coates and Tim Stephens Face Renewed Persecution as they Defy Gov’t

With the news that the province of Alberta has reintroduced new restrictions on public gatherings, ones that previously had been lifted back in late July, Pastor James Coates of GraceLife Church and Pastor Tim Stephens of Fairview Baptist Church are likely to face renewed persecution from Alberta Health Services for their continued refusal to follow those terms, including disregarding the rules for their September 19th service.

Both pastors were arrested and jailed for their refusal to bend the knee and deny in word and in deed that Christ is head of the church, and He decides what worship will look like, not the government. When restrictions were lifted several months ago it was hoped that this would be the last of the persecution, but presently does not appear to be so.

Along with creating a two-tiered system in the province (fully vaccinated Albertans are limited to socializing indoors with one other household, whereas unvaccinated people are not allowed to attend any indoor social gatherings at all), the province has mandated three restrictions on churches, despite initially exempting them in early September.

Chuches are not allowed to gather indoors at more than 30% of their fire code capacity.

Masks are mandatory to be worn in church.

Mandatory physical distancing between households for both indoor and outdoor services.

Failing to adhere to these will result in fines and could even result in more jail time. During the Sunday service, GraceLife Church did not abide by any of the new restrictions, having a service of nearly 700 people, mostly unmasked and without social distancing.

The Church has grown by leaps and bounds since they refused to shut down during the lockdown, nearly doubling their size and having dozens upon dozens of people going through with completing membership classes. On account of their size, they are moving to a second service, particularly as the weather turns cold and winter sets in, and their overflow tents become unfeasible, with temperatures frequently dropping to -22 Fahrenheit (-30 Celsius) and colder.

Before the service began, several neighbors passersby stopped and took pictures of the gathered body, with the likely intention to report them to the authorities – an act that will certainly prompt a visit by AHS at their next service.

Pastor Coates elaborated on a bit of this uncertainty during the service, explaining:

Good morning everyone. I want to welcome you to GraceLife Church and invite you to come in and find a seat as we prepare to worship our Lord and Savior together. What a blessing it is to gather, to sing the praises of our great God and King.

As you know, we opted to remain with a single service this week. And we did that primarily for two reasons. One, with the uncertainty of what to expect this Sunday, we thought it might be just nice to keep things predictable for all of you and make it a little more comfortable as it were to be here today.

And also, we’ve got a number of ministries that just aren’t quite yet ready to do double duty as it relates to two services and so we wanted to give them a little more time to work that out. Now, by this point, you know, the drill that we’re going to be taking things one week at a time. And so you have to just bear with us as we give thought and consideration to how to navigate the future.

But you need to know that we are committed to moving to two services, we really think that is necessary and beneficial for the health of our body and even to just improve what happens on a Sunday and the fellowship that takes place, and maybe even facilitating more fellowship because we’re gonna be able to stagger the number of folks that are here at one time, so we’re still committed to that. But obviously, whether or not it comes to fruition, is in the Lord’s hands and we’ll keep you abreast of that as things grow and develop.

As for Fairview, they are in a very similar boat, having also grown so much so that they have outgrown their church building and are meeting at another church in order to accommodate all the people, which they also did unmasked and without social distancing.

Pray for these pastors, and others like them who have the courage to stand.

Categories
News

Alberta’s Underground Church Ends Today, but Pastor Tim Stephens Remains In Prison

Today of the province of Alberta will allow their churches to re-open full without any restrictions or capacity limits, putting an end to what has been a brutal and dictatorial policy of the reigning conservative government which saw multiple churches closed down, and their pastors arrested and thrown in jail.

Pastor James Coates and GraceLife Church will come out of hiding and will be allowed to gather. The fence was taken down a few days ago but guards remain posted on the church property, lest anyone try to come in before the allotted time. Other churches who have been meeting virtually will come back in full, with no restrictions on gathering, all the while churches across the country are still bound by hard capacity caps and huge fines for any transgressions.

For Fairview Baptist Church in Calgary, they are allowed to open after being chained shut by the government and Alberta Health Services, but their Shepherd, Pastor Tim Stephens, remained incarcerated at the Calgary Remand Center until at least July 12.

Stephens was arrested June 12 when his outdoor gathering was spotted by a police helicopter and he was promptly arrested in front of his wife and kids, an officer quoting scripture to him as justification of why he must be arrested. Rallies have been held outside the maximum-security prison, with hundreds of supporters coming out to tell the world that they will not abandon their brother or forget him in prison, and that they honor him for his sacrifice and faithfulness.

For now, he shares in the affliction of the Apostle Paul and many others who have been jailed on account of their faith and insisting, when few others would, that Christ is always and forever the head of the church.

Please keep Tim, Raquel, their children, and their congregation in prayer today.


Categories
Church Drive-In Church Featured In-person Church News Righteous Defiance

Hypocrites! Govt Shuts Down Canadian Church Days After Being Caught Breaking Their Own Rules

Fairview Baptist Church in Calgary, Alberta has been physically shut down by Alberta Health Services, locking the door to the church mere weeks after arresting and then releasing their incarcerated pastor, Tim Stephens.

This act of tyranny and religious persecution is particularly galling, in that it was only days ago that senior members of Alberta’s reigning political party were caught flouting the same rules they put in place, demonstrating the complete lack of consistency and hypocrisy that has ‘rules for thee but not for we.”

The picture he’s referring to is the one below, where multiple government leaders from more than one household were dining in close proximity, an act currently prohibited in Alberta and punishable by steep fines.

Premier Jason Kenney, Environment and Parks Minister Jason Nixon, Finance Minister Travis Toews, Health Minister Tyler Shandro and a staff member were photographed dining outdoors on the evening of June 1.

In a statement released to the public, AHS said they have received more than 57 complaints and therefore “physically closed Fairview Baptist Church and has prevented access to the building.”

They say that “this action was necessary as the Lead Pastor of the church has continued to disregard public health measures required by law under Order of the Chief Medical Officer of Health (CMOH) for the protection of the public” and that “This Closure Order will remain in place until the Pastor can demonstrate the ability to comply with these restrictions.”

There is no word yet on how the church leaders and elders will proceed. IN a Facebook post, Pastor Stephens reminded his followers “They can take the building but they cannot take the church.”

In the past Fairview Baptist Church has had underground services away from the public view, similar to what James Coates and GraceLife Church are doing now, or they may do an online service as a temporary stop-gap measure while they regroup and plan their next course of action.

Please keep this church and this pastor in your prayers.

Categories
Church Evangelical Stuff Featured In-person Church Righteous Defiance

Police Shut Down Pastor Tim Stephens’ Church, But He Hints at Going Underground

Alberta Health Service and Provincial law enforcement have announced that they are physically shutting down “arrested and now released” Pastor Tim Stephens’ Church*, barring their doors to get them to cease gathering. Despite these strongarm tactics, the defiant minister explained on social media that “the church must gather,” and that they had every intention of doing so, building be damned.

Fairview Baptist Church will be joining James Coates’ GraceLife Church, Jacob Reaume’s Trinity Bible Chapel, and two others in having their church shuttered and doors locked by power-tripping government officials, all for refusing to adhere to the provincial lockdown laws that limit church attendance to 15 people inside, or 5 people outside.

Taking to Twitter, Stephens says that he is grateful for everyone who prayed for his release from jail and that though the church building has been ordered closed, they are actively seeking a new place to gather together, implying out of sight and underground if need be. They would join several other churches currently hiding out from the government, some traveling over 80 miles to get to their hidden church location.

This is done with the hopes that if they meet in secret, they will be left alone and not subject to crushing monetary fines or even further arrests.

With pastor Stephens being released from prison after two days, it is still unclear exactly what restrictions and conditions were placed on him that enabled him to be released. AHS has been actively petitioning to keep him incarcerated or to lock him back up if he re-offends and continues to lead services, and it Is uncertain whether they will arrest him on sight if he attempts to lead church publicly.

As far as whether the province plans to relent from their harsh lockdowns, Premier Jason Kenny’s government is unlikely to relent soon, announcing that in his great benevolence, they have made an allowance for 12 whole frontline workers to attend a hockey playoff game, in a stadium that fits 18,500 people.

That’s the kind of fear and illogic ruling political decision-making. If he will not allow more than 12 to gather in a literal stadium, (who incidentally, are all sitting next to each other, so much for social distancing) he will not allow a couple of hundred saints in the house of God.

*We know it’s not their church, but the Lord’s Church.

Categories
News

Video: Another Canadian Pastor Arrested and Thrown In Jail (Updated)

Update #1: James Coates’ lawyer, James Kitchen, responding to Calgary Police Service Statement, says that Pastor Stephens was never served with a copy of the court order and that Alberta Health Services is straight-up lying.

A third Alberta Pastor has been arrested and thrown in jail on account of breaking pandemic gathering rules, which limit church services to 15 people inside, or 5 people outside. [Where is “the science” on that? -Ed.]

Pastor Tim Stephens of Fairview Baptist Church in Caglary, Alberta, follows Pastor James Coates and Pastor Artur Pawlowski in being arrested for violating a a Court of Queen’s Bench Order that requires organizers of events to comply with public health restrictions.

Tim Stephens, a reserved man with 8 children, was arrested following the church service Sunday. He hugged his family and friends before being led away and put into a police car, surrounded by a half-dozen officers and multiple police vehicles. There is no word yet on how long he is being incarcerated for or if he’s being allowed to post bail.

For weeks Stephens has indicated that he will not comply with these health orders, writing on the church website:

Restricting the church to 15 people — which essentially restricts the church from gathering — is against the will of Christ and against the conscience of many who desire to worship the Lord of glory according to his word. Our actions are borne out of theological commitments to the Lordship of Christ and his instruction to the church as revealed in Scripture…The consequences may be severe. But we stand before Christ rather than bend before consequences.

In a public statement, Calagry Police say that they have “received repeated calls from concerned citizens regarding church services held at Fairview Baptist Church over the past several weeks,” and that after being served an injunction and told to stop, “the Pastor acknowledged the injunction, but chose to move forward with today’s service, ignoring requirements for social distancing, mask-wearing and reduced capacity limits for attendees.”

When asked last week by Rebel News what happens next, Stephens was reflective but unbowed.

It’s not the civil magistrate’s job, the government’s job to regulate or restrict our worship and so we’re really coming together as peaceful citizens to worship Christ because he is worthy. In terms of what that means, now I don’t really know. The government has obviously turned up the heat on churches trying to discourage them from gathering together. I think they don’t understand that Christians are committed to follow the Lord Jesus Christ regardless of the consequence.

Pray for this man, his family, and the church.

Bonus content: These are the first minutes of last week’s sermon, where Pastor Tim explains why their gather for worship even when it is outlawed by the governing authorities. A primer for un-arrested pastors everywhere.