The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF) has fired off a legal warning to the City of Abbotsford after it denied a permit for Let Us Worship: Revive in 25, a Christian worship event led by musician Sean Feucht and scheduled for August 24 at Mill Lake Park.

This marks the seventh Let Us Worship event cancelled by Canadian authorities in 2025 alone — a trend the JCCF calls “a grotesque violation” of constitutionally protected freedoms.

Go Ad Free

BREAKING NEWS

City of Abbotsford warned to reverse ban on Sean Feucht events

Lawyers provided by the Justice Centre have sent a warning letter to the City of Abbotsford (City), requesting an immediate reversal of its decision to deny a permit for the “Let Us Worship Revive in… pic.twitter.com/wvDW99JTgY

— Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (@JCCFCanada) August 6, 2025

Despite months of cooperation with city officials, event organizers were blindsided by a last-minute demand: written “safety assurance” letters from both the Abbotsford Police and Fire departments. The catch? The City then declared that its own police and fire chiefs would not be issuing those letters, citing vague and undefined risks “beyond their departments’ capacity to manage.”

The JCCF isn’t buying it. Its lawyers have issued a formal legal warning demanding the City reverse its decision and have instructed the mayor, council, and senior staff to preserve all documents, emails, and communications related to the cancellation — an unmistakable prelude to potential legal action.

“The repeated cancellation of worship events by government entities across Canada exposes a grotesque lack of appreciation for our fundamental freedoms — freedom of religion, expression, and peaceful assembly,” said JCCF constitutional lawyer Marty Moore. “Additional legal action is not off the table.”

The City of Abbotsford has not publicly explained the supposed safety risks, and organizers say previous events across Canada have required nothing more than a modest police presence — with no security incidents to speak of.

The JCCF also reminded Abbotsford officials that the Supreme Court has long upheld the right to religious expression in public spaces. In a 1985 ruling, Chief Justice Brian Dickson wrote:

“The essence of the concept of freedom of religion is the right to declare religious beliefs openly and without fear of hindrance or reprisal, and the right to manifest religious belief by worship and practice or by teaching and dissemination.”

JCCF President John Carpay issued a broader warning:

“Ultimately, the guarantor of freedom of expression and other Charter freedoms is not the Charter itself, nor even judges who interpret it, but the people. If Canadians cherish a free society, they must defend it — especially when government actors seek to suppress it.”

Let Us Worship events have been denied in cities across the country, including those held at venues in Halifax, Nova Scotia; Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island; Moncton, New Brunswick; Quebec City and Gatineau, Quebec; and Vaughan, Ontario.