| Written by Michael Swan, The Catholic Register,
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 The Ontario Human Rights Tribunal has asserted jurisdiction in some internal church matters, according to a recent tribunal decision that could impact a pending complaint involving members of a Cobourg, Ont., Catholic parish and the Peterborough bishop.
In a decision earlier this year, the Anglican diocese of Toronto unsuccessfully argued that the tribunal had no jurisdiction to hear a complaint of racism brought by a Sri Lankan man who was denied ordination to the priesthood. Postulancy prior to ordination is not an employment relationship or commercial service, said the Anglicans, and therefore it is outside of the tribunal’s mandate. But tribunal vice chair Leslie Reaume ruled that postulancy constituted a “service relationship,” and that the tribunal could hear the complaint.
The ruling is likely to be used as a precedent in the complaint launched in June by Jim Corcoran against Peterborough’s Bishop Nicola De Angelis and 12 parishioners at St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Cobourg . Corcoran claims he has been unfairly excluded from serving at Sunday Masses because of his sexual orientation.
Canadian Catholic Civil Rights League executive director Joanne McGarry calls the precedent “troubling.”
“Matters of church governance are best worked out within the church. We have a very strong tradition where church and state don’t interfere with one another,” McGarry said.
The Anglican argument was that postulancy prior to ordination constitutes a relationship and not a transaction. That relationship, for the purpose of discerning a vocation to the priesthood, is not a service as defined by the Ontario Human Rights Code, according to the church. But Reaume said that definition of service is too narrow.
“The interactions between the parties provide a benefit, in this case to them both, and it is therefore not plain and obvious that the complaint must fail,” wrote Reaume in her decision.
The complaint has been through an unsuccessful mediation process and is awaiting a date for a tribunal hearing.
 Corcoran brought his complaint after he was dismissed as an altar server when 12 parishioners complained about him to De Angelis. Corcoran describes himself as a chaste homosexual who practices his faith. The 12 parishioners have denied they are discriminating against Corcoran and have said they will seek dismissal of the complaint.
“It’s of concern when a secular tribunal has the ability to nose in on matters of church governance,” said McGarry.
Rights commissions and tribunals generally have a legitimate role in matters of employment and housing, but should not try to determine how churches interpret matters of doctrine or venture into the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, said McGarry.
“There is a role for them. I just think that once you’re involved in a charter question, such as freedom of religion or freedom of speech, that’s where the tribunal probably shouldn’t be involved.”
There are currently just under 3,000 applications before the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal. Approximately 60 to 70 per cent of tribunal cases are resolved through mediation. For the remainder, some are resolved privately between the parties, or abandoned by the complainant, before coming to a hearing.
Normally, mediation occurs four to six months after a completed application is submitted. If mediation fails, hearings are usually eight to 10 months after the initial application.
While lawyers are often involved, the process is meant to be accessible to people without lawyers.
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Michael Swan, The Catholic Register |
| About the author: |
| Michael Swan is Associate Editor of The Catholic Register. He is an award-winning writer and photographer and holds a Master of Arts degree from New York University.
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