Toronto pastor declares innocence amidst sex-assault charges

For the first time since Rev. Brent Hawkes was charged with a decades-old sexual assault, the pastor stood at the pulpit and announced he will fight the allegations with all his might. The congregation greeted him with hugs and cheers as he declared his innocence.

The Toronto senior pastor and well known gay-rights activist admitted that it has been very difficult for him and his husband. On Sunday morning, he clarified in his sermon that he has nothing to do with the allegations against him. The church then applauded the pastor at the Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto, The Star reported.

Meanwhile, the pastor's lawyer, Clayton Ruby, released a statement earlier this week stating that Rev. Hawkes and the legal team is confident that he will be vindicated.

"I believe him, completely, when he tells me these accusations are false and these events did not happen," Ruby claimed.

In 2001, Rev. Hawkes officiated the first same-sex marriage in Ontario. Known as a prominent gay rights activist, he also officiated NPD leader Jack Layton's funeral back in 2011.

Among those who attended the Sunday service at Metropolitan Community Church in Toronto was Layton's widow and ex-MP Olivia Chow, MPP Peter Tabuns, and former Police Chief Bill Blair. Olivia Chow said that she went to the Sunday service to show support for Hawkes, and raised questions about the recent charges, which according to her, no longer exists under the criminal code. Peter Tabuns made no comment on the charges against the pastor but described Hawkes as a man of integrity who actively promotes social justice.

Tabuns added that Rev. Hawkes was innocent until a judge decides otherwise and underlined the risk he took in the community to protect human rights. Rev. Brent Hawkes is due in court April 13.