A new law in Quebec prohibits the wearing of religious symbols or clothing by some government employees, including public school teachers, state lawyers, judges and police officers.
In the survey conducted online in early May and just published by the British Columbia-based Angus Reid Institute, 78 percent of all Canadians (including non-Catholics) gave the church a poor grade.
“Will this ombudsperson really be able to provide justice for a community in Guatemala, who has really experienced crimes, including rape, the forced displacement of their community, and murder?”
According to the National Trust for Canada, close to 9,000 churches could be closed within the next decade, citing the fact that they are becoming “surplus to the needs of society.”
Five dioceses from the province of Quebec will allow an external audit of their files regarding sex abuse cases, the Archdiocese of Montreal announced March 27.