The cancellation of American Christian worship leader Sean Feucht venues across Canada made international headlines. Unfortunately, it did not reflect well on our home and native land.
Unbeknownst to most Canadians, Sean Feucht has criss-crossed this country many times without incident.
Feucht’s musical ministry emerged from a little-known phenomenon of worship gatherings occurring on U.S. college campuses. He began to promote and participate in 24-hour worship services called “the burn.” The name was inspired by the Biblical commandment to priests in the Jewish temple to keep the candles of the Lamp of God (Menorah) burning day and night.
This author first met Feucht in Jerusalem in 2009 when he was leading worship at an annual gathering of Christians in the city. He was personable and approachable and quite positive. And of course, he was there to worship.
In later years, this author saw him speak at a Sunday morning service and do a worship concert one evening. There was no fanfare, nor visible opposition. It was all about Jesus.
During one of his stop, Feucht shared stories of “the burn” in Washington, D.C. It was in an open, public venue and was originally only slated to last a few weeks. Instead, the rally lasted for months by public demand.
The appreciation went beyond participants and into the community. Washington, D.C. is an overwhelmingly Democrat city, but even everyday residents started to tell Feucht about the positive impact they noticed. They wanted him to keep doing what he was doing because crime was down, and people were in a better mood.
Feucht had other stories. Ten years ago, he and his team went to worship in Iraq, embedded with the Kurdish Peshmerga Special Forces as they battled against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). The Kurds were Muslim too, but they noticed whenever a Christian sang before their battles, they won. So, Feucht was welcome.
Clear danger prompted Christian missionaries to leave the area, but not Feucht. He recalled being in a military vehicle along with the special forces on their way to engage ISIS. The Peshmerga handed Feucht an AK-47 and asked if he knew how to use it.
“Yes, I’m from Montana,” he said.
Feucht told us if you ever met civilian survivors of ISIS battles, it was tempting to use that AK too because of the awful things ISIS did. In the end, however, the only weapon Feucht used was his voice and his guitar.
Feucht recalled, “They could tell I was nervous, so one of them [special forces soldiers] said, ‘Just start to play. It will be alright.’” Their position was close enough to the ISIS encampment to see their black flag. I don’t recall details about the armed clash, except that the Peshmerga forces survived it. Feucht left them with Bibles, which they were happy to receive.
Eventually Feucht passion got him into politics. He unsuccessfully ran as a Republican in California’s 3rd congressional district primary in 2020. He also attracted controversy for holding public outdoor worship gatherings during the pandemic. So began the “Let Us Worship Tour,” which continues to this day.
Some cities in Canada cancelled his shows and while other cities are in jeopardy. The Montreal church where Feucht performed did not receive a permit for a concert and is being fined $2,500. Feucht openly wonders how it can be illegal for a Christian to sing in church.
A spokesperson for Montreal mayor Valérie Plante issued a statement saying, “This show runs counter to the values of inclusion, solidarity, and respect that are championed in Montreal. Freedom of expression is one of our fundamental values, but hateful and discriminatory speech is not acceptable in Montreal.”
In a rare sign of redemption for the country, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith told Feucht, he is welcome to worship on the front steps of the Alberta Legislature. There’s hope for Canada yet, but it seems like freedom won’t come without a fight.
