Four churches were torched in Alberta, Canada in recent weeks, with the latest immolation occurring just days before Christmas. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) are investigating the arson attacks.
The fires began in Barrhead, where St. Mary Abbots Anglican church and St. Aidan’s Church, both historic mainstays of the community, were destroyed on December 7th.
The spree continued with the burning of St. Gabriel Catholic Mission in Janvier on December 15th. This was followed by the suspected arson of a Seventh-Day Adventist Church in Beiseker on December 20th.
“My thoughts are with the Seventh Day Adventist community in Beiseker, AB mourning the loss of their church at the hands of an arsonist,” commented Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre. “This is the 4th church in 2 weeks to be targeted by acts of violent anti-Christian hatred.”
There have been 15 suspicious church fires in Alberta this year, 4 in the last few weeks.
87 churches in Canada have been burned or vandalized since 2021.
When’s the last time Trudeau said something about these crimes? How many Canadians know about them? https://t.co/r2AGScLgIa pic.twitter.com/Q2XrkANycY
— Steve McGuire (@sfmcguire79) December 24, 2023
Canada saw a spate of church burnings in 2021. These were sparked by claims “mass graves” of Native American children had been discovered at former residential schools. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appeared to give some tacit endorsement to the arson attacks.
“I understand the anger that’s out there against the federal government, against institutions like the Catholic church; it is real and it is fully understandable given the shameful history,” he said.
As of August of 2023, however, no human remains had been found at any of the supposed “mass graves”.
