Canadian church destroyed by arson to break ground for new building
An Orthodox Christian church in Canada that was destroyed five years ago in an arson attack that took place amid a wave of similar attacks on church buildings will soon be rebuilt.
St. George Coptic Orthodox Church of Surrey, British Columbia, is scheduled to hold a groundbreaking ceremony for their new church building next Sunday at 1 p.m.
The groundbreaking is expected to include members of Surrey’s city council, members of Parliament and clergy representing other churches that supported St. George Coptic Orthodox after the fire, according to a press advisory shared with The Christian Post.
“The new church will serve as a spiritual home for the St. George Coptic Orthodox community and future generations, while continuing the parish’s tradition of faith, service, and community contribution,” stated the church press release.
“With God’s grace, we believe that St. George Church will rise again — restored, renewed, and strengthened for generations to come.”
On July 19, 2021, an individual set fire to the church building, effectively destroying the sanctuary and compelling the congregation to worship at another church.
Earlier that year, two apparent mass graves were discovered at former residential schools, which were established to assimilate the Indigenous population and were run by the government and the Catholic Church.
Shortly after the reports of the discoveries broke, a wave of church arsons occurred in Canada, primarily in the western provinces and Indigenous territory. St. George Coptic Orthodox did not participate in the residential schools program.
In 2022, multiple researchers began to express doubt over the initial mass graves claims.
Steven Faltas, a church spokesperson, told The Christian Post in an interview at the time that he saw the attack as showing that “no place of worship is currently safe in Canada.”
“Places of worship are currently under attack nationally and will continue to be until there is a political solution to the narrative,” he added. “We urge the Canadian Government to invest the money and effort required to ensure places of worship and their congregants [are] safe and to assist in the rebuilding process.”
In August 2021, a month after the St. George arson, a woman named Kathleen Panek was arrested and later charged with setting fire to both St. George and a townhouse months earlier.
Panek was found guilty of both arsons and was sentenced in April 2022 to four years in prison. Authorities later concluded that her actions were not motivated by hate, reported CTV News.
After hearing claims that Panek had a drug addiction and mental health issues, the court concluded that the motivations for the arsons were not clear, according to CTV.
“It is a senseless act that she did that doesn’t benefit her and doesn’t benefit us. It’s just a lot of destruction for nothing,” said Medhat Elmasry, a member of the church board, reported CTV. “I wanted to be here today to understand why. Why did she do this? And I leave the court not really understanding why.”
