Toronto’s ‘atheist minister’ to face church hearing
By Ron Csillag — August 6, 2015
TORONTO (RNS) The Rev. Gretta Vosper, known as the "atheist minister," is back in the news now that a church panel will soon begin a review process to determine whether she should be removed from the pulpit.
‘Blessing of the bikes’ helps churches make climate change a local issue
By Ron Csillag — June 9, 2015
(RNS) Trinity-St. Paul's United Church in Toronto this week held its sixth annual Blessing of the Bikes -- a type of local event that has become more common as a growing number of churches consider the idea that protecting the environment is not just a scientific or political debate, but a spiritual one.
Canadian Supreme Court rules against prayer at city council meeting
By Ron Csillag — April 15, 2015
TORONTO (RNS) Canada’s Supreme Court has ruled that a small town in Quebec may not open its council meetings with prayer. In a unanimous ruling Wednesday (April 15), Canada’s highest court ruled that the town of Saguenay can no longer publicly recite a Catholic prayer because it infringes on freedom of conscience and religion. The […]
For Ismaili Muslims, a Toronto milestone
By Ron Csillag — September 16, 2014
TORONTO (RNS) When the Aga Khan set out more than a decade ago to build a landmark museum to house his family's collection of Islamic art, he wanted to locate it in London. When those plans fell through, he chose Toronto.
Search warrants allege physical abuse in fringe Canadian Jewish sect
By Ron Csillag — February 21, 2014
(RNS) In the warrants, according to reports by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, a young woman in the sect said she was hit with a belt and a coat hanger. Another female, a pregnant 17-year-old, told nurses at a hospital she was beaten by her brother, sexually abused by her father and forced to marry a 30-year-old man when she was 15.
Judge orders foster care for children from Canadian sect
By Ron Csillag — February 3, 2014
TORONTO (RNS) An Ontario judge has ordered 13 children in an Orthodox Jewish sect into foster care in adjacent Quebec. But the judge stayed the order for 30 days to give the sect time to appeal.
Canadian authorities to rule on foster care for children in reclusive sect
By Ron Csillag — December 26, 2013
TORONTO (RNS) Last month, about 150 members of the group Lev Tahor ("Pure Heart") decamped from a village north of Montreal to Chatham, Ontario, about 200 miles southwest of Toronto. Comprising about 40 families, the sect fled just before a Quebec court ordered 14 children into foster care.
