John R. Houk, Blog Editor
© March 26, 2025
Religious Liberty has become so tarnished in once-upon-a-time Free Europe that public expression of Bible Verses can land a Christian in jail.
Clive Johnston with a small gathering of listeners delivered a sermon outside in Northern Ireland with the sermon text of John 3:16. His legal issue: Johnston was too close to a “Safe Access Zone” to an ABORTION CLINIC (aka unborn baby-killing factory). Keep in mind Johnston was NOT in the Safe Access Zone but close to it.
From what I read at WND’s news story, Johnston did not even sermonize against abortion. He just use the text John 3:16:
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
I guess Jesus the Son of God providing EVERLASTING LIFE was too much to bare at the Abortion Clinic and the UK legal system administered in Northern Ireland because 76 year old Clive Johnston was arrested and hauled off to a Northern Ireland jail.
Imagine that, the Word of God has become so offensive in Globalized Woke Europe, that Christians are persecuted for their faith. It is like the old pagan Roman Empire has revived and Christians are being hauled to a Coliseum for punishment for their faith.
Do you think this is just a European thing? Nay reader. American Dems have criminalized peaceful prayer vigils near American Abortion Clinics.
Consider these Headlines:
o FBI raids home of pro-life leader on questionable charges; By CNA Staff; Catholic News Agency; 9/23/22
o 4 pro-life protesters found guilty of FACE Act violations in Tennessee; By Jon Brown; The Christian Post; 4/3/24
o Judge Sentences 75-Year-Old Woman for Praying at Abortion Clinic, Taunts Horrified Husband for Christian Faith: Report; By Samuel Short; MSN.com (Western Journal); 6/4/24
Amazingly Mark Houck received a 2023 jury acquittal over the FBI arrest: “Acquitted pro-life activist Mark Houck reveals details of ‘reckless’ FBI raid; will press charges”.
AND President Trump has stepped in pardon some Christians politically persecuted with convictions:
o Trump pardons pro-life activists jailed for protesting at abortion clinics; By Michael Gryboski; The Christian Post; 1/23/25
What happens if or when deluded Dem voters install another Dem tyrant targeting Christian Liberty? The installed Biden regime does not install confidence for future Christian Liberty in America’s post-Trump future.
So look at the tyranny in once-upon-a-time Free Europe and understand persecution for our Christian faith is still knocking on America’s door.
JRH 3/26/25
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'Religiously illiterate': Pastor prosecuted after voicing the most famous verse in the Bible
By Joe Kovacs
March 25, 2025
John 3:16 Focus (WND Photo)
It's considered the most famous line in the Holy Bible.
John 3:16 states: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
Now, a retired pastor in Northern Ireland is facing prosecution for voicing the inspirational passage during an open-air sermon.
The charge is that Clive Johnston, 76, allegedly violated "abortion buffer zones laws," even though abortion was never mentioned in his message.
Clive Johnston (WND Photo)
Johnston, former president of the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland, is facing two charges under the Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) Act for holding an open-air Sunday service on the fringes of a buffer zone on the other side of a dual carriageway from Coleraine's Causeway Hospital on July 7, 2024.
He's accused of seeking to "influence" people accessing the hospital's abortion services and for not immediately leaving the area when asked to do so by police.
If convicted, the grandfather of seven, who has never been in trouble with the police, faces a criminal record and maximum fines totaling thousands of dollars.
Johnston told reporters: "I'd like to thank the media for the interest that they've taken in the case. And we have been overwhelmed by the amount of support that we've received."
ICYMI: Retired pastor Clive Johnston in court. #ChristianInfluence pic.twitter.com/Jeulc00HhZ
— The Christian Institute (@christianorguk) March 24, 2025
Simon Calvert, deputy director of The Christian Institute which is representing Johnston, said: "Should a law designed to stop abortion protests be used to criminalize Gospel preaching?
"We have amazing gospel freedom in this country and we encourage Christians to use those freedoms so that more people will hear about the love of God. That's why we've taken on this case. Prosecuting someone for preaching John 3:16 near a hospital on a quiet Sunday is an outrageous restriction on freedom of religion and freedom of speech.
"It's just not reasonable or rational to suggest that preaching the Gospel, with no reference to abortion, is a protest against abortion. The police and the Public Prosecution Service are over-stepping the mark. This is not what buffer zones were designed to do.
"As far as I can tell, the politicians who backed buffer zones never suggested they should be used to outlaw the Gospel. I hope some of them will come forward to confirm this. They could help to persuade prosecutors to drop this ridiculous case.
"Clive has campaigned in the past on abortion. If there had been anti-abortion placards on display, or if Clive had made side-swipes at abortion, I could understand why the police would take an interest. But abortion was not mentioned, not once, not even tangentially.
"For the record, this was an open-air service held on a Sunday, with about a dozen people in attendance, on a patch of grass, separated from Causeway Hospital by a dual carriageway. There was a wooden cross, and Clive leading the singing of well-known hymns on a ukelele. Yet the police summons says he 'conducted a protest' to try to 'influence' patients or staff attending the abortion clinic. This is religiously illiterate."
"Speech that has nothing to do with abortion should not be criminalized as if it is an anti-abortion protest. This is fundamentally unjust. If prosecutors succeed in getting a conviction against Clive for preaching about God's love, what will that mean for other forms of non-abortion-related speech in these zones? Could people outside a hospital protesting health service cutbacks or junior doctors' pay be prosecuted?"
"The Christian Institute is backing this case because there is a vital principle at stake. If the Gospel can be banned in this public place, where else can it be banned? The authorities do not seem to have thought through the human rights implications of their decision to prosecute."
Johnston had a preliminary hearing on March 21, and his trial is expected "in the next few months."
Follow Joe on X @JoeKovacsNews
Executive News Editor Joe Kovacs is the author of the new best-selling book, "Reaching God Speed: Unlocking the Secret Broadcast Revealing the Mystery of Everything." His previous books include "Shocked by the Bible 2: Connecting the Dots in Scripture to Reveal the Truth They Don't Want You to Know," a follow-up to his No. 1 best-seller "Shocked by the Bible: The Most Astonishing Facts You've Never Been Told" as well as "The Divine Secret: The Awesome and Untold Truth about Your Phenomenal Destiny." He is an award-winning journalist of more than 30 years in American TV, radio and the internet, and is also a former editor at the Budapest Business Journal in Europe. Read more of Joe Kovacs's articles here.
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