Appended relevant human rights legislation for provinces and jurisdictions.....

The use of "while human rights legislation across the country expressly prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation..." [Discrimination Concerns in the United Church, Connex, issue 6 p.3] is misleading as all provinces and jurisdictions either specifically exempt religious organizations or provide exemption with "bona fide occupational requirement". Within the context of hiring ministry personnel reference to human rights legislation constitutes disinformation which both intimidates and distorts the issue for most people, as discrimination based on sexual practice is employment discrimination only where policy of the religious body forbids such discrimination.

The Manual [065(b)] provides "justice, which, as a measure of faithfulness, must not only be done but also be seen to be done" leaving question of the justice given the membership in considering this issue.

The United Church of Canada needs to explicitly own responsibility rather than displacing responsibility to the government.

Alberta Human Rights, Citizenship and Multiculturalism Act
Discrimination re employment practices
7(1) No employer shall
(a) refuse to employ or refuse to continue to employ any person, or
(b) discriminate against any person with regard to employment or any term or condition of employment,
because of the race, religious beliefs, colour, gender, physical disability, mental disability, age, ancestry, place of origin, marital status, source of income or family status of that person or of any other person.
(3) Subsection
(1) does not apply with respect to a refusal, limitation, specification or preference based on a bona fide occupational requirement.

Reasonable and justifiable contravention
11 A contravention of this Act shall be deemed not to have occurred if the person who is alleged to have contravened the Act shows that the alleged contravention was reasonable and justifiable in the circumstances.
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BC Human Rights Code

Discrimination in employment
13 (1) A person must not
(a) refuse to employ or refuse to continue to employ a person, or
(b) discriminate against a person regarding employment or any term or condition of employment
because of the race, colour, ancestry, place of origin, political belief, religion, marital status, family status, physical or mental disability, sex, sexual orientation or age of that person or because that person has been convicted of a criminal or summary conviction offence that is unrelated to the employment or to the intended employment of that person.
(4) Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply with respect to a refusal, limitation, specification or preference based on a bona fide occupational requirement.

Exemptions
41 If a charitable, philanthropic, educational, fraternal, religious or social organization or corporation that is not operated for profit has as a primary purpose the promotion of the interests and welfare of an identifiable group or class of persons characterized by a physical or mental disability or by a common race, religion, age, sex, marital status, political belief, colour, ancestry or place of origin, that organization or corporation must not be considered to be contravening this Code because it is granting a preference to members of the identifiable group or class of persons.
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Manitoba Human Rights Code

Discrimination in employment
14(1) No person shall discriminate with respect to any aspect of an employment or occupation, unless the discrimination is based upon bona fide and reasonable requirements or qualifications for the employment or occupation.
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New Brunswick Human Rights Act

3(1) No employer, employers' organization or other person acting on behalf of an employer shall
(a) refuse to employ or continue to employ any person, or
(b) discriminate against any person in respect of employment or any term or condition of employment,
because of race, colour, religion, national origin, ancestry, place of origin, age, physical disability, mental disability, marital status, sexual orientation, sex, social condition, political belief or activity.
3(4) No person shall
(a) use or circulate any form of application for employment,
(b) publish or cause to be published any advertisement in connection with employment, or
(c) make any oral or written inquiry in connection with employment,
that expresses either directly or indirectly any limitation, specification or preference, or requires an applicant to furnish any information as to race, colour, religion, national origin, ancestry, place of origin, age, physical disability, mental disability, marital status, sexual orientation, sex, social condition, political belief or activity.
3(5) Notwithstanding subsections (1), (2), (3) and (4), a limitation, specification or preference on the basis of race, colour, religion, national origin, ancestry, place of origin, age, physical disability, mental disability, marital status, sexual orientation, sex, social condition, political belief or activity shall be permitted if such limitation, specification or preference is based upon a bona fide occupational qualification as determined by the Commission.
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Newfoundland Human Rights Code
Discrimination in employment
9. (1) An employer, or a person acting on behalf of an employer, shall not refuse to employ or to continue to employ or otherwise discriminate against a person in regard to employment or a term or condition of employment because of
(a) that person's race, religion, religious creed, political opinion, colour or ethnic, national or social origin, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, physical disability or mental disability; or
but this subsection does not apply to the expression of a limitation, specification or preference based on a good faith occupational qualification.
(6) This section does not apply to an employer
(a) which is an exclusively religious, fraternal or sororal organization that is not operated for private profit; or
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Northwest Territories Human Rights Act

Employment
7. (1) No person shall, on the basis of a prohibited ground of discrimination,
(a)refuse to employ or refuse to continue to employ an individual or a class of individuals; or
(b)discriminate against any individual or class of individuals in regard to employment or any term or condition of employment.
(3)Subsections (1) does not apply with respect to a practice based on a bona fide occupational requirement.

Exception
(5)It is not a contravention of subsection
(1) for an organization, society or corporation to give preference in employment to an individual or class of individuals if the preference is solely related to the special objects in respect of which the organization, society or corporation was established and the organization, society or corporation
(a)is not operated for private profit; and
(b) is
(i) a charitable, educational, fraternal, religious, social or cultural organization, society or corporation, or
(ii) an organization, society or corporation operated primarily to foster the welfare of a religious or racial group.
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Nova Scotia Human Rights Act

Prohibition of discrimination
5 (1) No person shall in respect of
(d) employment;
discriminate against an individual or class of individuals on account of
(n) sexual orientation;

Exceptions
6 Subsection (1) of Section 5 does not apply
(c) in respect of employment, to
(iii) employees engaged by an exclusively religious organization to perform religious duties;
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Nunavut Human Rights Act

Employment
9. (1) No person shall, on the basis of a prohibited ground of discrimination,
(a) refuse to employ or refuse to continue to employ an individual or a class of individuals; or
(b) discriminate against any individual or class of individuals in regard to employment or any term or condition of employment, whether the term or condition was prior to or is subsequent to the employment.
(4) Subsection (1) does not apply with respect to a practice based on a justified occupational requirement.

Exception
(6) It is not a contravention of subsection
(1) for an organization, society or corporation to give preference in employment to an individual or class of individuals if the preference is solely related to the special objects in respect of which the organization, society or corporation was established and the organization, society or corporation
(a) is a not for profit organization, society or corporation; and
(b) is
(i) a charitable, educational, fraternal, religious, athletic, social or cultural organization, society or corporation, or
(ii) an organization, society or corporation operated primarily to foster the welfare of a religious or racial group.
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Ontario Human Rights Code

Employment
5. (1) Every person has a right to equal treatment with respect to employment without discrimination because of race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, citizenship, creed, sex, sexual orientation, age, record of offences, marital status, family status or disability. R.S.O. 1990, c. H.19, s. 5 (1); 1999, c. 6, s. 28 (5); 2001, c. 32, s. 27 (1); 2005, c. 5, s. 32 (5).

Special employment
24. (1) The right under section 5 to equal treatment with respect to employment is not infringed where,
(a) a religious, philanthropic, educational, fraternal or social institution or organization that is primarily engaged in serving the interests of persons identified by their race, ancestry, place of origin, colour, ethnic origin, creed, sex, age, marital status or disability employs only, or gives preference in employment to, persons similarly identified if the qualification is a reasonable and bona fide qualification because of the nature of the employment;
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Prince Edward Island Human Rights Act

Discrimination in employment prohibited
6. (1) No person shall refuse to employ or to continue to employ any individual
(a) on a discriminatory basis, including discrimination in any term or condition of employment; or

Application of section
(4) This section does not apply to
(a) a refusal, limitation, specification or preference based on a genuine occupational qualification;
(c) an exclusively religious or ethnic organization or an agency of such an organization that is not operated for private profit and that is operated primarily to foster the welfare of a religious or ethnic group with respect to persons of the same religion or ethnic origin as the case may be, if religion, creed, color, sex, marital status or ethnic or national origin is a reasonable occupational qualification. 1975,c.72,s.6; 1985,c.23,s.2; 1987,c.6,s.8; 1998,c.92,s.2.
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Québec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms

10 Every person has the right to full and equal recognition and exercise of his human rights and freedoms, without distinction, exclusion or preference based on race, color, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, civil status, age except as provided by law, religion, political convictions, language, ethnic or national origin, social condition, a handicap or the use of any means to palliate a handicap.
Discrimination exists where such a distinction, exclusion or preference has the effect of nullifying or impairing such right.

20. A distinction, exclusion or preference based on the aptitudes or qualifications required for employment, or justified by the charitable, philanthropic, religious, political or educational nature of a non-profit institution or of an institution devoted exclusively to the well-being of an ethnic group, is deemed non-discriminatory.
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Saskatchewan Human Rights Code

Discrimination prohibited in employment
16(1) No employer shall refuse to employ or continue to employ or otherwise discriminate against any person or class of persons with respect to employment, or any term of employment, on the basis of a prohibited ground.
(7) The provisions of this section relating to any discrimination, limitation, specification or preference for a position or employment based on sex, disability or age do not apply where sex, ability or age is a reasonable occupational qualification and requirement for the position or employment.
(10) This section does not prohibit an exclusively non-profit charitable, philanthropic, fraternal, religious, racial or social organization or corporation that is primarily engaged in serving the interests of persons identified by their race, creed, religion, colour, sex, sexual orientation, family status, marital status, disability, age, nationality, ancestry, place of origin or receipt of public assistance from employing only or giving preference in employment to persons similarly identified if the qualification is a reasonable and bona fide qualification because of the nature of the employment.
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Yukon Human Rights Code

Prohibited discrimination
9 No person shall discriminate
(b) in connection with any aspect of employment or application for employment;

Reasonable cause
10 It is not discrimination if treatment is based on
(a) reasonable requirements or qualifications for the employment;

Exemptions
11(1) It is not discrimination for a religious, charitable, educational, social, cultural, or athletic organization to give preference to its members or to people the organization exists to serve.