Residents voice frustration with two-week field house closure for private religious event

The Canadian Revival Alliance describes itself on its website as a newly formed “coalition of leaders, ministries, and concerned citizens of Canada.”

It cites North Battleford as a “strategic” location of choice for the 10-day prayer and worship revival for a number of “historical, governmental and spiritual” reasons to “shift the nation back to God.” These include a vision from a key prophetic dreamer, the regions place in history relating to injustices against Indigenous people, and the Latter Rain revival, which broke out seventy years ago in the Battlefords when leaders of the small Pentecostal Sharon Orphanage fasted and prayed in search of a deeper dimension of Christianity.

“Since the inception of Canada, there has never been a greater need to sound the alarm regarding our perilous future. If we do not change course, the coming darkness will be profound,” the website for the event states.

“Governmental corruption, staggering debt, a lack of abortion laws, and a war for our children and their identity all point to a much-needed trumpet call,” it reads. “Can Canada prosper if we blindly pursue our current course, rejecting the historic foundations of marriage and family, allowing legal abortion for babies up to birth, legalizing gateway drugs and moving towards legalizing the purchase of sex?”

It is these and other values of the group being expressed in a public facility that has drawn the ire of residents. A post made on social media by an avid user of the facility has drawn hundreds of shares and comments skewed heavily in opposition to the event.

Joe Palmer, who was raised in North Battleford and has lived here for the past 19 years, didn’t think the closure was fair, given it is a public building “paid for by the taxpayers.” He said he often brings his two children to play and get some exercise at the facility and was disappointed this would be hampered over the next two weeks.

“North Battleford does not have a great deal for kids to do and this is one place we can count on coming to and the kids can play,” he said.

Palmer was especially taken aback by the event operating under the guides of a religious veil. He took issue with many of their beliefs which counter what he said residents have fought to bring to the forefront in the city on the LGBTQ+ and other fronts.

“We just got our first … rainbow crosswalk and these people are against that,” he said. “Everything I have seen on their website is against everything we have fought to gain.… Religion is a good thing but I don’t believe it should be pounded down people’s throats.”

Even if it was not a political or religious group renting the facility, Palmer doesn’t think the doors should be locked to users for 14 days.

“I can see it being closed for a day or something,” he said, adding that if the city is routinely renting out public facilities for long periods of time they should build a permanent, separate building.

Mayor Ryan Bater said the city rents out facilities on a regular basis to organizations of all strips — sports, cultural, political and religious — and does not and cannot discriminate against any organization, per sections of the Saskatchewan Human Rights Code.

In response to provincial budget cuts in 2017, he said the field house was scheduled to close for three weeks anyway as a cost-saving measure in 2018. That changed earlier this year and was reduced to just two weeks when administration was approached with a renter.

“The net effect is that there is an additional week the field house is available to users,” he said.

Due to the closure, he said plans were and remain in place to give individuals with memberships an additional three weeks of usage.

“This has all been advertised and communicated,” he added.

tyler.marr@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @JournoMarr

by Tyler Marr

Residents voice frustration with two-week field house closure for private religious event

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