When Quebec passed a law barring street prayers in April, Emanuel Linhares read through it closely to ensure it didn\u2019t jeopardize Montreal\u2019s annual Senhor Santo Cristo dos Milagres procession.<\/p>\n
Since the Portuguese procession doesn\u2019t involve any collective praying, Linhares believed he was in the clear. But the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough still denied the event\u2019s permit last week, citing the new law.\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"Emanuel](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/0515-city-procession_303128264.jpg\")
Emanuel Linhares, one of the organizers of the annual Portuguese Senhor Santo Cristo dos Milagres procession, outside the Mission Sant Cruz in Montreal on Thursday, May 14, 2026. The City of Montreal has denied the community\u2019s request for a parade permit, citing a new provincial law governing public prayer. John Mahoney \/ Montreal Gazette<\/p>\n
Linhares is now calling on the city of Montreal to clarify how the law is applied across its territory, arguing it shouldn\u2019t be left to individual boroughs to decide. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think there\u2019s confusion, and it\u2019s something the centre city should have a position on\u200a \u2014 \u200ainstead of leaving the possibility for each borough to interpret it their own way,\u201d Linhares said Thursday.<\/p>\n
After meeting with the local police station, Linhares\u200a \u2014 \u200awho organizes the procession with the Mission Santa Cruz Catholic Church\u200a \u2014 \u200asaid the event will go ahead this Sunday as scheduled, despite not having a permit.<\/p>\n
Though he\u2019s glad police are allowing it to proceed, Linhares wants the borough to reverse its decision, in part to ensure the issue doesn\u2019t recur.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe would like to do things properly,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
A Portuguese Catholic tradition, the procession is expected to attract upward of 2,000 people, departing from the church on Rachel St. and marching to St-Urbain St.<\/p>\n
Linhares said the church spoke with both the city and the borough for the permit, but was told it is ultimately a borough decision. <\/p>\n
The church first requested the permit in mid-February, before the law passed, but only received the borough\u2019s response on May 8.<\/p>\n
The request covered this Sunday\u2019s procession \u2014 \u200awhich marks the event\u2019s 60th anniversary in Montreal\u200a \u2014 \u200aas well as a smaller event on May 12 that the church cancelled after being denied the permit.<\/p>\n
In an email response explaining its decision, a borough employee told the church the borough must adhere to the provincial law.<\/p>\n
\u201cCollective religious practices, including processions, are no longer permitted on public property,\u201d the employee wrote. \u201cConsequently, the procession scheduled for May 12, as well as any subsequent dates, cannot be authorized on public property.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bill 9, passed in early April, expands Quebec\u2019s secularism law<\/a>, which the government says aims to strengthen religious neutrality in institutions and certain public spaces.<\/p>\n In addition to extending the province\u2019s ban on religious symbols, it prohibits \u201ccollective religious practice,\u201d such as praying in a group, in public roadways or parks unless a municipality specifically authorizes it.<\/p>\n