Church Burnings In Canada & Throughout The World

Like any structural fire, sometimes the reasons are related to faulty wiring, or lightening strikes, so not every single church fire is arson.

However the surge in the number of church fires, along with the fact many of the fires have been suspicious or attributed to arson, does indicate this is an intentional pattern, not only in Canada, but in many countries throughout the world.

In Canada it is believed the upsurge in church fire arson, is due to the discovery of unmarked graves of Aboriginal children who were subjected to abuses in church run residential schools.

The first residential schools in Canada were started in 1831 and by the 1880’s the federal government was funding these schools, in conjunction with a multitude of churches. Most, but not all of the churches involved in this destructive cruelty, were of the Catholic faith. It is not to suggest any church is all bad, because they all have a mix of both good and bad. 

It was the bad attitude that developed, and was cultivated in certain situations, as a result of the abuse of power. In all cases where there is supreme arrogance, and abuse of power, there will be a corresponding lack of empathy towards the downtrodden, or those who are viewed as “lesser human beings”. They are dehumanized to the degree they do not have the power of veto, or any control over their own lives. 

The circumstances that developed in the residential schools, stemmed from an intent to separate the children from their identity, their families, and their culture. It was a terrible burden of shame inflicted upon them. They had no way of protecting themselves. They were overpowered, and given no avenue of escape. The kids were taught and cared for by nuns. Some of those nuns were meaner than a honey badger. Once clamped into their jaws, as a child, they were doomed, and had no choice but to obey. 

On top of the cruelty inflicted by some of the nuns, numerous Catholic priests used their authority and proximity to defenceless children, to sexually molest and abuse them in the vilest ways. This happened equally to boys and girls. Worse yet, those crimes against children were covered up for many years, which re-victimized the children over and over, because they were not protected or believed. 

Even though it was well known by the early 1960’s that these schools were often steeped in emotional, psychological, sexual, and spiritual abuse, they continued until the 1990’s.

As a result the damage was astronomical. Many of the survivors of such schools recount deep-rooted and irreparable damages. In addition to what they were forced to endure physically, they were also shamed for who they were.

The constant and relentless indoctrination, telling children their parents are evil, and wicked, is just as destructive psychologically and spiritually as sexual abuse. It is a molestation of the mind and spirit.

The perpetrator wants to make sure the child can never overcome what they have inflicted on them. They go after the mind and emotions, probably more than anything else. That way they can abuse without fear of reprisal.

It is one of the most disgusting, and appalling methods of trickery and cruelty toward a vulnerable child. In such cases, there are no outward signs of the deep rooted maltreatment meted out by those who abuse authority. It is a clever way to disguise their sadistic tendencies, without ever getting caught.

They get a thrill out of watching their victim squirm. They relish in the satisfaction of assailing a kid with an onslaught of psychological and emotional abuse. They have the all encompassing power and control, while their victim has none, not even the power to be who they are. They take away your right to exist. 

For these reasons, it is believed the spark of outrage, has led to some raging fires. Church burning has powerful political undertones, often with hidden agendas, where clarity of motives are not the least bit transparent. 

Let’s face it, there could be any number of reasons for the fires, from accidental to intentional, and even for the purpose of collecting insurance. Some, but not all are secondary to the long term mistreatment of people by certain religious authorities. Others are based on attention seeking extremist organizations, or simply vandalism.

If a church is targeted when there is no one there, such as on a stat holiday, or in the middle of the night, the vandals can be reasonably sure they are not going to cause death. However, it is an extremely reckless act, because there could be someone sleeping in a church. 

In addition the fire could spread to adjacent homes and structures in the community. An act of vandalism involving arson could easily lead to murder. It just depends on which way the wind blows. 

Clearly, anytime a religious authority tries to separate children, foster children, or people in general from their families, their identity, and their history, they are not really Christian, but rather soul destroying cults. They often use sophisticated, deceptive and sadistic tactics while in the process of robbing children of who they are.

A quote attributed to George Orwell defines this quite succinctly: “The most effective way to destroy people is to deny and obliterate their own understanding of their history.” Some say George Orwell did not write this quote, however it is accurate and true, no matter where it came from. 

In all of this combined religious and political strife, we end up with a somewhat puzzling contradiction. Arson and vandalism is a crime, and places people, and the surrounding communities in peril. Yet if it is truly revenge for years and years of mistreatment, there are some people who see it as a justifiable act.

It is almost like taking one highly symbolic construct, igniting it, then stoking it into a more fanatical extreme. The fiery revenge, billowing smoke, and the brightness of its light, is far reaching, and fills us with fear. It leaves us wallowing in the wreckage of a pile of rubble, with some serious reflection, and contemplation to be done. It is natural to wonder why there is so much destruction. 

Churches are illustrative and iconic. Some of them have steeples, depicting man’s attempt to reach skyward to the heavens, and get closer to the divine. Another reason steeples were built, was so the church bells were higher than all other buildings, and thus could be heard far and wide. Other theories claim they were built to keep evil spirits out.

As far as warding off evil spirits, they did not work very well in that regard. The zealous builders of such pointed structures, probably did not increase their own divinity by building a tower into the heavens either. 

For some people, churches represent the heart and soul of Christian faith. A high percentage of Christians are Sunday only Christians. They dress up, and put on a good show on a weekly basis, but do not apply it to their daily lives.

Many Christians listen to sermons, and let a preacher interpret what the Bible says, without ever reading a word of it themselves. Is it any wonder there are so many false teachers with a devout coterie of followers? 

Churches are also social constructs where people gather, make friends, and create shared activities. In many cases, churches have adhered to the gospel, and showed charitable sincerity by supporting and uplifting the poor, the frail, and the downtrodden. Some churches are good, and others are not so good. 

But even so, how can there be such a massive dichotomy in the symbolic representation of the church?

To help us understand what the heck is going on with the recent church burnings, it is worth looking at what is, and what has been happening throughout the rest of the world. Canada is currently experiencing this frightening trend, but we are not the only ones.

Moving to some different locations and time frames where religious arson became prevalent, it happened during the US civil rights movement in the 1960’s, often targeting black churches, in the heat of racial upheaval. This trend continued with increasing intensity into the 1990’s.

In 1996 the US Congress passed the Church Arson Prevention Act. Clinton established the National Church Arson Task Force due to the sharp increase in church arson.

In Australia church burnings followed the conviction of child sex predators within the churches. St. James church, and St. Mary’s Catholic church were intentionally burned as a result.

In Canada, there are well over eighty churches that have been burned in recent years. It has escalated since the announcement of unmarked graves at the sites of residential schools. It has also generated anti-religious political extremists who are part of the mix. Not all of the church burnings are because of residential schools. In some cases, it has been a front for those with a different agenda.

In Chile, a visit by Pope Francis in 2018, resulted in a number of church burnings. In those cases they were less discreet, and churches in Santiago were fire bombed in conjunction with the spraying of accelerants.

In India when there was religious conflict, a number of churches were burned. During the 2008 Kandhamai clashes, hundreds of churches were set on fire and burned down.

Niger also had a wave of church burnings following the Charlie Hebdo shooting in 2015, when a satirical newspaper in Paris was stormed by Islamic terrorists killing twelve people, and injuring eleven others. After this crisis forty-eight churches were burned down in Niger by Islamists.

One of the oldest and most historic churches of all was burned down in Norway in 1992. The Fantoft Stave church was built in 1150 when the Vikings converted to Christianity. The burning of the longstanding church was eventually attributed to the “black metal scene” tied to all kinds of extremist ideologies, white supremacy, Nazi ideologies, and Satan worship.

Pakistan has also had a recent surge in church arson. In 2023 at least twenty one churches were burned, which were attributed to Muslim uprisings.

In the United Kingdom between 1973 and 2008, there were a number of arson attacks on churches. Several of these were said to be the result of anti-Catholic sentiments.

The fact these fires are occurring in various countries throughout the world, for a variety of reasons, suggests this is a global issue with a strong undercurrent of revenge. There is a formidable message they are trying to convey, yet the smoke gets in our eyes. It is a prime example of an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth mentality. Whatever the origins, such a belief is not the mindset of a Christ centred person at all. 

Without a doubt Christianity is at enmity with a Satanic counter force, coming from the outside, as well as the inside of the church. It carries many disguises, often as an angel of light, or a deceptive good will. Caution and discernment are needed now probably more than ever before. We are steeped in deception, and yet we have a responsibility to love and seek the truth.

Some would automatically claim the attacks are based on Christian persecution, and a growing intolerance for Christian principles and gathering places.

In some cases, this may be true. However as Christians, we do have to acknowledge that many religions who are disguising themselves as Christians, have committed countless atrocities, and human rights violations.

If you watch or follow true crime stories, you soon discover some of the most heinous crimes are committed by church goers. The BTK killer Dennis Radar was active in his church. Child killer Clifford Olsen was a church goer and recruited many of his victims by placing ads on church bulletin boards offering jobs to young people. More recently in the news, Lucy Letby was also a church goer. The list of church villains is a very long list. There are many wolves in sheep’s clothing sitting in those pews. 

Nothing justifies acts of violence. The true Christian gospel is a gospel of peace. It does not rob people of their identity, lie and deceive, separate people from their families, molest children, or any of the horrible things done by not only the Catholic church, but many others as well.

We are living in a time where polarizations are common, and those who are angry, misled, or steeped in anti-Christian, anti-religion, against certain groups of people, revenge seeking, subterfuge, political extremism etc. need to examine where they are getting these beliefs from.

Our belief systems are not contained in a building. No one can wipe out or destroy any belief system by eliminating their symbolic representations or gathering places.

We cannot paint the churches as the good guys, and nor can we claim they are all bad. True Christians need to be peacemakers, and seek avenues for healing and forgiveness. This cannot be achieved through denial.

These days, it just seems like fire and brimstone is raining down upon us. We don’t know the depths or scope of the real reasons for this. If anything, we all need to examine our own hearts, and for those who are Christians, we need to know that deception, denial, harm, and pseudo-Christianity, is not truth, and is not based on the truth of the gospel.

Why is this billowing revolt against the structures of Christianity seething and searing the world? It is wrong, and is not justifiable no matter what the reasons are. But truthfully, the only place we can begin to understand this, is to examine our own conscience.

For some Christians, perhaps their own conscience would be seared with a hot iron. Like fire needs water, Christians need living water.

Living water is the metaphor used in the Bible to depict the spiritual sustenance and salvation we get through Jesus Christ. The apostasy that has developed in many churches, will bring a much greater fire upon themselves, if they don’t turn away from all the deceptive and harmful practices.

Perhaps we are being warned. Every single one of us should examine our own hearts. The Bible does tell us we can expect to be persecuted. But it does not tell us that we are supposed to be the ones  doing the persecuting.

Hiding true motives behind a church pew once a week, is becoming increasingly difficult to do. Soon there will be day of reckoning, and any deception or cruelty will be sorted out. It’s no longer a matter of “us against them”, because those who are attacking the true church, and the true gospel, are sitting in those pews, and standing at those pulpits. 

Ultimately we do reap what we sow.

Copyright Valerie J. Hayes and Quiet West (2023). Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author/owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Valerie J. Hayes and Quiet West with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.