By Deborah Gyapong, Canadian Catholic News

[OTTAWA – CCN] — The Canada Summer Jobs (CSJ) grants announced for 2019 reveal many Catholic and evangelical parishes and charities have been successful in obtaining funding.

“We’re certainly pleased that most of the groups that were expecting funds have received them,” said Neil MacCarthy, the director of communications for the Archdiocese of Toronto. “It’s certainly great news for those that want to move forward with their summer program.”

Groups receiving summer jobs grants included parishes, various charities including some pregnancy help centres, the refugee office and groups running summer camps, MacCarthy said.

None received funding last year because the 2018 CSJ program required applicants to attest that the organizations’ core mandate supported abortion.

“We haven’t gotten any complaints yet,” said Barry Bussey, director of legal affairs for the Canadian Council of Christian Charities (CCCC). “Some contacted to say they had received grants.”

“Lots of time people put in what they would love to have, knowing full well they are not going to receive everything they ask for,” Bussey said.

The Canadian Council of Christian Charities is going to ask its members if any have been rejected CSJ funding, and whether they received any indication why, Bussey said. “Otherwise, there is nothing as of yet that would give us reason for concern.”

But Bussey, McCarthy and others are keeping a watchful eye.

“Over the last two years the government of Canada has come under criticism for its requirement that all applicants must sign an attestation that they agree with government ideology on abortion and its view of ‘Charter values,’” Bussey wrote on Facebook Apr. 29. “Over 1500 charities refused to sign and did not receive CSJ money in 2018.”

“In 2019 the government removed the offending language of 2018 from the attestation. However, in the 2019 process, many groups such as church camps and churches were required to file further information as their application was deemed ‘incomplete.’” Bussey wrote. “Now that the government has released its list of 2019 recipients, church groups will see whether their applications were accepted.”

“If not, it is expected that government will be called upon to explain whether the denial was because of the religious views and practices of the organizations affected.”

Employment Canada modified the attestation for the 2019 summer jobs program by shifting the emphasis from the organization’s core mandate to the project being funded. This year the applicant had to attest the program funded would not “be used to undermine or restrict the exercise of rights legally protected in Canada.”

The program guide included ‘access to reproductive services’ including abortion among those rights. This means groups engaged in anti-abortion advocacy would be ineligible for grants, but charities that run summer camps or help the poor would be eligible.

A number of pregnancy care charities aimed at helping women keep their babies were among those groups that received communication this year from employment Canada that their applications were incomplete or needed clarification.

MacCarthy pointed out some pregnancy help centres in the Toronto archdiocese did receive funding this year.

Religious leaders have reason to be concerned about last year’s attestation “values test” because the federal government is fighting the organizations and businesses that sued the Employment Minister last year on charter grounds of religious freedom and freedom of expression. Those legal challenges continue, raising concerns the Liberal government may re-impose the values test if they win the federal election in October. Last year, some leaders expressed concern the government could the expand the values test for eligibility for other government grants and programs.

About 40,000 groups applied for this year’s CSJ grants, requesting funding for approximately 150,000 jobs, for funding of $890 million in requests, according to a news release from Employment and Social Development Canada April 23. In 2019, more than 85,000 summer jobs will be available to youth aged 15 to 30 under the CSJ program.

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