Pastor back in court over John 3:16 sermon in buffer zone

Pastor Clive Johnston, who is being prosecuted for preaching the Gospel in an abortion censorship zone, will be in court next week for his final scheduled hearing.

The retired pastor, 77, held an open-air Sunday service on the fringes of a ‘Safe Access Zone’ opposite the Causeway Hospital, Coleraine, on 7 July 2024. He preached on John 3:16, but was charged for seeking to “influence” people accessing the hospital’s abortion services and for not immediately leaving the area when asked to do so by police.

At this hearing, Pastor Clive could be acquitted or convicted, the judge could defer his decision, or the judge could also refer the case to a higher court – a signal there are issues around the human rights compatibility of using the legislation against Mr Johnston in this way.

Criminal record

Mr Johnston’s case has been brought under 2023 NI legislation which created eight 100–150m buffer zones around hospitals and other centres which provide abortions, in order to prevent protests.

It is a criminal offence to act within these areas with the intent of (or being reckless about) causing people to be “impeded, recorded, influenced or to be caused harassment, alarm or distress” in connection with their attendance at protected premises.

If convicted, the grandfather of seven – who has never been in trouble with the police – faces a criminal record and potential fines totalling thousands of pounds.

‘Kind messages’

At the last hearing in December, the judge heard arguments and agreed there is little dispute regarding the facts of the case, including that the service was not a protest about abortion, did not mention abortion, nor did it include any placards or banners.

Ahead of Tuesday’s hearing, Mr Johnston, the former President of the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland, said: “I am grateful for the kind messages of support I have received from members of the public both here and abroad, and for the prayers being offered up to God about this case by many Christians.

“My legal representatives have strongly contested the allegations against me and I pray the wider public will understand the implications of this case.”

Preaching is not protesting

The pastor is being supported in the action by The Christian Institute, which successfully assisted Ashers Baking Company in its landmark Supreme Court win against the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland in the ‘Gay Cake Case’.

Simon Calvert, The Institute’s Deputy Director, said: “Should a law designed to stop abortion protests be used to criminalise gospel preaching? John 3:16 is a wonderful, famous verse and everyone knows it says nothing about abortion.”

He continued: “We have amazing freedom in this country to share the Christian message. That’s why we’ve taken on this case. Prosecuting Pastor Johnston for preaching ‘God so loved the world’ near a hospital on a quiet Sunday is a shocking new attempt to restrict freedom of religion and freedom of speech in a part of the world where open air gospel services are a part of the culture.

“Christians are pro-life. But preaching the good news about Christ is not the same thing as protesting against abortion. The Police and the Public Prosecution Service are overstepping the mark.”