OTTAWA, Canada —  Some of Canada's religious leaders are worried about the recent passage of a national law that makes it illegal to advocate violence against gays and lesbians.

"We are afraid that ... priests might be taken to court," said Monsignor Mario Paquette of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (search).

Among the bill's supporters in the federal parliament was Libby Davies of Vancouver.

"Gay and lesbians ... or bi-sexual ... or trans-gendered people are targeted for hate crimes. This bill and the amendment of the Canadian Criminal Code will now help prevent that," Davies said.

But what does that mean for some biblical passages which some believe forbid homosexual sex?

Leviticus 20:13, for example, says: "If a man lies with a man ... as one lies with a woman ... both of them have done what is detestable."

"Pastors are afraid. They're afraid to preach on this subject," said Janet Epp of the Buckingham Evangelical Fellowship of Canada (search). "Nobody wants to have the police come to their door."

Many say the Canadian government assured them the definition of marriage would not be affected by the law, but that hasn't convinced the country's religious conservatives, who say the government made similar promises about same-sex marriage (search).

The definition of marriage — and whether to include same-sex couples — is exactly what Canada's Supreme Court will examine this fall.

Click here to watch a report by Fox News' Steve Brown.