by Julian Mann, Christian Today
Dr Martin Davie’s article ‘Understanding the reasons for the conviction of Päivi Räsänen’ sheds invaluable light on why Christian street preachers will continue to be arrested in the UK.
In his widely-read article on Christian Today, the Anglican theologian described how “victim centred authoritarianism is precisely what we see on display in the conviction of Räsänen”.
“Dissent is being criminalised by a liberal state to protect the alleged victims of conservative Christian teaching,” he writes.
Christian street preachers are almost invariably arrested for causing “harassment, alarm or distress” through “threatening words or behaviour” under Section 5 of the Public Order Act 1986.
The intention behind this legislation, passed by the Conservative government led by Margaret Thatcher, was to combat football hooliganism. But police officers are now using it against Christian street preachers when a bystander complains that something said about homosexuality or Islam or transgender ideology has offended them.