Context: The Confederation Report
Host: Steven R. Martins
Language: English
This is The Confederation Report, a weekly analysis of Canadian news and culture from a Biblical worldview.
Excerpt: Religious liberty in Canada survives only when the faithful—and a few brave leaders—refuse to bow to intimidation or bureaucratic overreach. The church should take courage from this, but it should also take note: if we don’t fight to keep our freedom, others will gladly strip it away.
Part I: The Censorship of Sean Feucht (00:34–04:05)
American Christian singer and pastor Sean Feucht, while touring in Canada, faced protests and cancellations over his unapologetically pro-life, pro-family convictions and his open support for Donald Trump and the Republican Party—apparently enough to render him persona non grata in post-Trudeau Canada.
Part II: Freedom is Dying (04:05–07:06)
In Canada today, you can steal a car, break into a home, even commit violent crimes and receive lighter sentences than organizing a peaceful protest against government policy. That could earn you seven to eight years behind bars. That’s not justice—it’s punishment for wrongthink. Freedom in Canada is on trial.
Part III: Or Is It? (07:06–09:14)
Freedom isn’t dead—not while there are still those willing to fight for it. And this week brought a development that should encourage the church in Canada: a glimmer of hope in the battle for religious liberty, and a reminder that these rights are never preserved by silence.
Did You Know? (09:14-10:28)
Few Canadians know that Canada’s name came from a morning prayer. Sir Samuel Leonard Tilley, a Father of Confederation and devout Anglican, reportedly drew “Dominion” from Psalm 72:8—“He shall have dominion also from sea to sea”—during his devotions in 1866, leaving a biblical imprint later echoed in the national motto A Mari Usque ad Mare.
Recommended Reading (10:28-11:09)
This week’s recommended resource is A Celebration of Faith: Sir Oliver Mowat. The Celebration of Faith series highlights men and women transformed by God’s grace who have professed, defended, and advanced the Christian worldview throughout history. Its aim is to inspire believers to live out their faith in a way that displays the truth, beauty, and freedom of the gospel for the advancement of God’s kingdom.
Event Reminder (11:28–11:50)
Join us November 14–15, 2025, in Welland, Ontario, for All Hail the King: Christ and Government with Douglas Wilson, Scott Masson, and Michael Wagner. Register now at cantaroinstitute.org/niagara2025 for early bird rates!
Transcript:
It’s Week 31, and this is The Confederation Report—the flagship weekly podcast of the Cántaro Institute. My name is Steven Martins, and I’ll be your host, bringing you incisive analysis, cultural commentary, and thought-provoking interviews on the issues shaping Canadian life and beyond—all through the lens of a biblical worldview. Because Christ is Lord—over Canada, over culture, over all of life.
Part 1: The Censorship of Sean Feucht (00:34-04:05)
Welcome to another episode of tyranny in Canada. What? You thought I was exaggerating? No, not at all. If you’ve been watching or reading the news lately, you’ll know what I mean. American Christian singer and pastor Sean Feucht went on a worship tour throughout the US and into Canada. Now, normally, this would raise no eyebrows, no one would bat an eye—after all, Canadian cities host countless artists from across the border. But this time was different. This wasn’t just any Christian artist; this was a man unapologetically pro-life, pro-family, openly supportive of Trump and the Republicans—and that, apparently, is enough to make him persona non grata in post-Trudeau Canada.
At least six of his events were cancelled in recent weeks. And when one Hispanic evangelical church in Montreal—Ministerios Restauración—stepped up to open their doors for a night of worship, they were met with city threats, smoke bombs from Antifa-style protesters, and the promise of a $2,500 fine for holding a worship service without a “permit.” A permit to worship in a church—really? This is where we’re at now? A peaceful gathering to praise God treated like a public threat, while mobs in the streets get a free pass? Feucht put it well: “As far as I know, it’s a free country… maybe we’ll see tonight.” Well, Canada answered, and the answer wasn’t freedom.
Who is Sean Feucht? Not many know him. Sean is most commonly associated with the Bethel crowd—he’s theologically charismatic, and aside from the most basic doctrines of the Christian faith, and of course, our pro-life, pro-family conservative values, I find little in which I agree with him theologically. However, he is a Christian. And the way he was treated is appalling.
MP Andrew Lawton captured why this matters in a social media post. To summarize: Seventeen years ago, the arts community and political left in Canada erupted over a Harper government proposal that would have denied tax credits to films deemed against “public policy.” They cried censorship, even though the government wasn’t banning the films, just refusing to fund them. Punishing people for what they create, however—that’s another story.
Fast forward to today, and we have the City of Montreal doing exactly that. They admitted Sean’s concert was targeted because it “ran counter to the values of inclusion, solidarity, and respect” that they champion. To think that a Hispanic evangelical church is now facing a $2,500 fine—not because of zoning laws or technicalities, but simply because the city didn’t like the message being proclaimed. The state said no, the church said yes, and the church had every right to host its own night of worship. I, for one, hope they challenge this fine in the courts. I hope they remind Caesar—especially in Quebec—that Christ, not man, is King.
Think about it: This is government deciding what kind of art, music, and even worship is permissible. That is censorship in its purest form. And whether or not you like Sean Feucht, every Canadian should be outraged, because once politicians claim the power to dictate which views may be expressed, no one’s freedom is safe.
Part II: Freedom is Dying (04:05-07:06)
Since we’re talking about “freedom,” let’s talk about the Freedom Convoy, because the story isn’t over—and what’s happening right now should alarm your everyday Canadian. Despite what the media and the political class want you to believe, these weren’t extremists or insurrectionists; they were everyday Canadians who’d had enough of government overreach. They rolled into Ottawa to peacefully protest mandates and lockdowns. Agree or disagree on the pandemic, that’s what free citizens are supposed to be allowed to do. The state overstepped then—and now it’s doubling down.
Tamara Lich and Chris Barber, two of the convoy’s main organizers, are staring down the barrel of unprecedented sentences. What was once a Crown demand for two years behind bars has ballooned to seven years for Lich and eight for Barber. Seven and eight years—for honking horns and parking trucks in Ottawa. No violence, no riots, no arson, no looting. Yet the government treats them as if they were hardened criminals who threatened the very foundation of the nation.
Let’s not forget what went down in 2022. The federal government invoked the Emergencies Act for the first time in Canadian history, freezing bank accounts, arresting peaceful demonstrators, and seizing private property—all to crush lawful dissent. The convoy lasted three weeks, drew support from coast to coast, and exposed just how far the government would go to silence opposition. The trial dragged on for over a year, with multiple charges thrown out for lack of evidence, but that didn’t matter. The guilty verdicts on “mischief” have been enough for prosecutors to push for near-decade-long prison terms. They’re even after Barber’s truck, “Big Red,” hoping to confiscate it as punishment for daring to lead the convoy.
The defence has pointed out that police approved where the trucks were parked and that Barber acted on legal advice saying the protest was permitted as long as it remained peaceful. None of it mattered. The courts refused to acknowledge the state’s own mixed signals and denied a stay of proceedings. Translation? The full weight of the law is being used to make an example of two citizens who challenged government authority in a way Ottawa didn’t like.
And here’s the bottom line: in Canada today, you can steal a car, break into a home, even commit violent crimes and walk with lighter sentences than what’s being sought here. But organize a peaceful protest against government policy? That’ll earn you seven to eight years in prison. That’s not justice—that’s punishment for wrongthink. This isn’t about COVID anymore; it’s about whether Canadians are free to dissent without fear of political retribution. If the state can do this to Lich and Barber, it can do it to anyone. Freedom in Canada is on trial—and right now, it’s not just losing, it’s dying.
Part III: Or is it? (07:06-09:14)
Okay, maybe freedom isn’t exactly dying—not while there are still people willing to fight for it. And this week, there’s a development that should encourage the church in Canada: a glimmer of hope in the fight for religious liberty, and a reminder that these rights aren’t preserved by silence.
Conservative MP Jamil Jivani has tabled a motion in Parliament calling on Ottawa to take action after the aforementioned Montreal church came under attack simply for hosting the American Christian musician, Sean Feucht.
Jivani’s motion urges the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage to recognize that freedom to worship without violence or intimidation is a fundamental part of Canada’s heritage. He’s asking Parliament to study ways to increase protections for religious communities—whether Christian, Jewish, Muslim, or Hindu—as attacks on houses of worship have skyrocketed in recent years. Over 100 churches have been burned or desecrated since 2021, while Jewish schools and synagogues have been sprayed with bullets, mosques have been vandalized, and Hindu temples threatened by mobs. Yet somehow, the response from authorities has been weak and sporadic.
What happened in Montreal lays the problem bare: the state was quicker to fine a church than to defend its right to offer sanctuary to believers. Politicians and bureaucrats stood by while mobs tried to intimidate Christians, and the “solution” was more red tape, not justice. As Jivani rightly says, freedom of worship should not be subject to fear, violence, or government penalty.
So no, freedom isn’t dead yet. But moments like this show you just how fragile it’s become. Religious liberty in Canada survives only when the faithful—and a few brave leaders—refuse to bow to intimidation or bureaucratic overreach. The church should take courage from this, but it should also take note: if we don’t fight to keep our freedom, others will gladly strip it away.
Did You Know? (09:14-10:28)
Did you know that the very name Dominion of Canada came from a morning prayer? Sir Samuel Leonard Tilley, one of the Fathers of Confederation and a devout evangelical Anglican, reportedly drew the term “Dominion” from Psalm 72:8 during his daily devotions: “He shall have dominion also from sea to sea.” As chief delegate from New Brunswick in 1866, he proposed “Dominion” over other options like Union, Kingdom, or Republic, leaving a biblical imprint on Canada’s founding identity that would later be echoed in the national motto A Mari Usque ad Mare adopted in 1921.
Born in 1818 and raised among Loyalist descendants, Tilley built his fortune in a St. John drugstore before entering politics. Twice a finance minister under Sir John A. Macdonald and twice lieutenant governor of New Brunswick, he became a key architect of Confederation. Despite early political blunders—including a failed attempt at province-wide prohibition—Tilley’s legacy is enshrined in Canada’s name itself, a reminder that scripture once shaped the nation’s highest political ideals.
Recommended Resource (10:28-11:28)
This week’s recommended resource is A Celebration of Faith: Sir Oliver Mowat.
Mowat served as a Christian lawyer, politician, premier of Ontario, and was one of the Fathers of Canadian Confederation. He was known by all his contemporaries as being a godly man who sought to do what was right in the sight of God, and who believed passionately in the proclamation and defense of the gospel, and the administration of its graces. Near the end of his life, he published two works on Christianity & its Evidences and Christianity & its Influence as his contributions to the development of a holistic Christian apologetic.
The Celebration of Faith Series reflects on the lives and contributions of those who have been touched by the grace of God, those who have professed, defended, and advanced the Christian religious worldview throughout history. The objective of this series is to inspire and encourage believers towards living out their faith in such a way that demonstrates the truth, beauty and liberty of the gospel and its comprehensive nature for the furtherance of God’s kingdom.
Event Reminder (11:28-11:50)
Join us November 14–15, 2025, in Welland, Ontario, for All Hail the King: Christ and Government with Rev. Doug Wilson, Dr. Scott Masson, Dr. Michael Wagner, and myself. Register now at cantaroinstitute.org/niagara2025 for early bird rates!
Closing Words (11:50-12:30)
Thanks for listening to The Confederation Report, this podcast is brought to you by the Cántaro Institute. Visit our website at cantaroinstitute.org for more information. For books to read on worldview, philosophy, and theology, visit our store at cantaroinstitute.store
We’ll meet again next week.
Documentation & Additional Reading:
Rebel News (Alexander Lavoie)
Sean Feucht defies smoke bombs, chaotic protesters to worship in Montreal
The Epoch Times (Isaac Teo)
Freedom Convoy: Crown Seeks Seven-Year Sentence for Lich, Eight Years for Barber
The Epoch Times (Jennifer Cowan)
MP Tables Motion on Religious Freedom After Montreal Church Hosting Christian Musician Targeted by Smoke Bombs