By Lloyd Mackey

A HAMILTON, Ontario church that has been accused of cult-like activity had its charitable status revoked by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) last month, but insists it did no wrong.

A message posted by the Dominion Christian Centre on its website states that they have "cooperated in good faith with the Canada Revenue Agency and are committed to continuing to do so as required of us."

There is no indication, at this point, as to whether Dominion plans to appeal the CRA ruling.

In its press release announcing the revocation, the CRA said its audit had "revealed serious issues of non-compliance. In particular, it was found that the charity's assets have been misused for the private benefit of members, directors, donors and employees, and that the Charity has issued official donation receipts containing incorrect or false information."

The CRA maintained that Dominion had given some of its members "improper personal benefits," including "numerous personal trips, payments for privately used vehicles, gym memberships, food, lodging, and other unsubstantiated payments."

The loss of charity status means Dominion can no longer issue donation receipts for income tax purposes and is no longer a "qualified donee" under the Income Tax Act, the CRA added.

Further, it is no longer exempt from income tax, unless it qualifies as a non-profit organization, and "it may be subject to a tax equal to the full value of its remaining assets."

For its part, the Dominion website said its online notice "refutes false allegations," though it did not go into details. The website invites readers to attend the church on Sunday morning "and worship with us."

It claims the church, which works out of a pre-war converted apartment and office building at 141 Park Street North, has been "improving the lives of its members and surrounding neighbourhood" since its founding in 2000, "following the example of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour."

Dominion is not a member of either the Canadian Council of Christian Charities CCCC or the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada -- both of which provide guidance to churches and Christian charities on fiscal, legal and government relations matters.

In its online statement, however, the Hamilton church referred to support from the Canadian Fellowship of Churches and Ministers (CFCM), which claims to link some 500 Canadian ministers and church leaders.

At press time, neither Dominion nor CFCM, which is headquartered in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, had responded to an interview request.

Heather Card, member services vice-president at CCCC, told CC.com her organization "has worked very hard to try to educate Christian charities about the many reporting requirements of the CRA."

The CRA requires funds to be used for charitable objectives and public benefit, she said, and not for personal benefits or personal trips. "A board cannot, for example, say to a director, 'We just appreciate you' and give them $20,000. That would be a private benefit."

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If a trip is necessary to the objectives of the ministry -- for example, because a member of the ministry needs to attend a denominational workshop or convention -- then that is seen by the CRA as a public benefit, said Card.

Dominion was the subject of a critical investigative report on CTV's W-Five program in October 2006. The CRA did not draw any link between its own allegations and the issues that were raised on that program; however, Karen Cooper of Carter and Associates, a law firm that majors in charity issues, said CRA audits "are often initiated as a result of adverse publicity."

In the W-Five profile, former Dominion adherents and their relatives claimed the church broke up families. The parents, some of whom had previously left or been barred from the church, maintained that Dominion's behaviour met the definition of a sociological cult.

Further, W-Five used quotes from lead pastor Peter Rigo's sermons, which condemned other churches for discouraging "purity" and encouraging their women to engage in provocative sexual behaviour.

Rigo told W-Five he had come to Hamilton from the United States "on a mission from God."

Among other things, the program focused on a Mississauga physician, Renato Brun del Re, his wife Lucie and their daughter Mirella.

The church, the parents maintained, had broken the relationship with their daughter, when she chose to stay in what they maintained was a cultic situation.

In 2005, they retained a de-programmer, took custody of Mirella and tried unsuccessfully to restore the relationship.

When Mirella returned to the church, the Dominion leadership pressed charges of kidnapping and forcible confinement. After many delays, the case will be heard beginning October 13 in Ontario provincial court. Four weeks have been set aside for the trial.

W-Five also featured a "town meeting" with 70 people whose lives, they claimed, had been negatively impacted by Dominion Christian Centre practices and teachings.

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An evangelical church that used donor money to pay for gym memberships, Gucci fashion accessories and trips to Hawaii and elsewhere for its directors has been stripped of its charitable licence by the federal government. The Dominion Christian Centre of Canada was set up in Hamilton by charismatic leader Peter Rigo, a former decorator who says a divine power summoned him in the year 2000 to "encourage believers to live effectively as Christians." Rigo has said Dominion is a great church praying for the revitalization of downtown Hamilton; at least one family claims it is a cult and faces criminal charges for trying to remove their daughter.
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Church denies misusing funds
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March 5/2009