The left's Long War on Christianity and the Unborn grinds on in Northern Ireland. A retired Christian pastor faces trial in Coleraine Magistrate’s Court this week accused of breaching the province's controversial abortion buffer zone laws by preaching on John 3:16.
Clive Johnston, former President of the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland, faces two charges under the Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) Act for holding an open-air service on the fringes of a buffer zone opposite Coleraine’s Causeway Hospital last year.
Mr Johnston is expected to be a witness at the 17 December proceedings. 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.
In March, Mr Johnston, who is being supported by The Christian Institute, pleaded not guilty to charges 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.
He was preaching from John 3:16, one of the most famous ‘good news’ verses in the Bible. The issue of abortion was never mentioned.