A retired pastor in Northern Ireland was convicted last week of breaching a “safe access zone” outside a hospital in 2024 while sharing a gospel message.
Clive Johnston told Fox News he was “deeply saddened by the verdict” handed down Thursday by District Judge Peter King at Coleraine Magistrates’ Court.
“At 78 years old, I never imagined I would leave a courtroom with a criminal conviction for preaching the Christian gospel. But beyond the personal impact, my overriding concern is what this says about the state of fundamental freedoms in our nation,” he added.
Following the incident that was caught on camera, Johnston was found guilty of “influencing” inside the zone and fined 450 pounds as a result.
In the clip, Johnston used a microphone to sing worship music and later repeated the Bible verse, John 3:16.
“Jesus said: For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but should have everlasting life,” he stated:
In December, Breitbart News reported:
Clive delivered the message on July 7, 2024 and, according to the Christian Institute – the religious liberty nonprofit supporting him – he “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 the Causeway Hospital, Coleraine on 7 July 2024.”
More specifically, the safe zone includes what is described as a “‘protected premises’ where the services are provided, as well the public areas around the protected premises at a distance of at least 100 metres from each entry and exit point.”
The Christian Institute said Johnston might be the first individual prosecuted under the law for a sermon that did not mention abortion. The organization also said the grandfather of seven who has pastored several churches and had no prior criminal history, is expected to appeal.
Johnston told Fox he believes such a conviction sets a troubling precedent.
“It effectively redefines peaceful Christian witness as a form of unlawful ‘influence.’ If simply reading the Bible, praying, and preaching on God’s love can now be considered harmful because someone might overhear it within a certain area, then we have crossed a very serious line.”
He added that “John 3:16 is one of the most well-known and hope-filled verses in the Bible – a message about God’s love and salvation. If even that can be criminalized because of where it is spoken, then how can any public expression of Christian belief be truly safe from restriction?”
Ciaran Kelly, the Institute’s director, told reporters there were assurances when the legislation was being discussed that it would not criminalize people for preaching the gospel message:
“And we find today that this already deeply controversial unjust buffer zones law has been selectively applied to do just that, to criminalize gospel preaching. This is creeping censorship, quite clearly,” he stated.
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