{"id":1317958,"date":"2022-02-20T11:11:41","date_gmt":"2022-02-20T16:11:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1317958"},"modified":"2022-02-20T11:11:55","modified_gmt":"2022-02-20T16:11:55","slug":"how-a-trial-in-finland-could-have-worldwide-effects-on-government-persecution-of-religion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/how-a-trial-in-finland-could-have-worldwide-effects-on-government-persecution-of-religion\/","title":{"rendered":"How A Trial In Finland Could Have Worldwide Effects On Government Persecution Of Religion"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fhow-a-trial-in-finland-could-have-worldwide-effects-on-government-persecution-of-religion%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1317958&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/paiviinterviewonzoom.jpg\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\" alt=\"image\" \/><\/div>\n<p>The trial of two Finnish Christians for publicly stating mainstream religious teachings that reserve sex only for heterosexual marriage is heading towards a judgment scheduled for March 30. The case could end up hitting Finland\u2019s Supreme Court and even the European Court of Human Rights, which means its outcome could affect the rights of religious believers and political dissidents across the world.<\/p>\n<p>Member of Parliament Paivi Rasanen and Lutheran Bishop Juhana Pohjola have been prosecuted now for nearly three years after Rasanen tweeted a picture of Bible verses in June 2019. Complaints about this tweet led to her prosecution under Finland\u2019s \u201chate crimes\u201d laws. <\/p>\n<p>The government investigation of Rasanen\u2019s tweet uncovered a theological pamphlet she wrote and Pojhola published in 2004, for which they have both been charged. The booklet states classic Christian teachings about sex as reserved only for marriage, and defining marriage as comprising only one man and one woman for life.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe teachings concerning marriage and sexuality in the Bible arise from love to one\u2019s neighbor,\u201d Rasanen said in a Feb. 17 statement. \u201cThis case is about whether it is allowed in Finland to cite the Bible and to agree with it in topics that go against the tide and challenge the current ethos and thinking.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Oral arguments in the case wrapped up this week on Valentine\u2019s Day. On Feb. 17, a Finnish court also heard a related request from the prosecutor to force a Finnish radio show to take offline a two-minute audio clip of Rasanen speaking about marriage in 2019. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cBeing criminally charged for voicing my deeply held beliefs in a country that has such deep roots in freedom of speech and religion feels unreal,\u201d Rasanen <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/02\/14\/finnish-christian-on-trial-for-quoting-the-bible-on-twitter-god-is-working\/\">told The Federalist<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"prosecutor-seeks-to-ban-christian-speech-including-from-pastors\">Prosecutor Seeks to Ban Christian Speech, Including From Pastors<\/h2>\n<p>On Feb. 14, Pojhola\u2019s lawyer Jyrki Anttinen argued \u201cif the prosecution wins, the ability of pastors to preach the gospel is effectively over in Finland \u2014 without criminal sanction,\u201d said Lorcan Price, a lawyer assisting the case for Alliance Defending Freedom International who attended the Helsinki hearing. An Irishman, Price listened with the aid of a Finnish translator.<\/p>\n<p>The Finnish prosecutor who brought the case is seeking a fine of one-third of Rasanen\u2019s annual income, the public erasure of documents and audio she\u2019s made on the subject, and a financial penalty against the small religious organization Pohjola runs, the Luther Foundation. If the two Christians are convicted, the steepest possible penalty could be two years in prison.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been to his headquarters, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lhpk.fi\/en\/donate\/\">Mission Diocese of the Lutheran Evangelical Church<\/a>,\u201d Price noted. \u201cIt\u2019s fairly utilitarian. It\u2019s not luxurious \u2014 there\u2019s no marble foyer with a fountain and receptionist. There\u2019s a kitchen and a communal area and Bishop Juhana\u2019s office.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey\u2019re a breakaway from the main Lutheran church,\u201d Price continued. In fact, Pohjola was <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2021\/11\/23\/in-case-with-global-implications-finland-puts-christians-on-trial-for-their-faith\/\">expelled <\/a>from the state church in 2014, also for affirming classic Christian theology about differences between the two sexes. He was elected bishop by his growing missionary congregations last year. \u201cThe main church abandoned the teachings but got to keep all of the buildings. That\u2019s what we have here. He\u2019s in fairly basic accommodation, let\u2019s say. I think anything of their income is outrageous.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"attempt-to-expand-government-censorship\">Attempt to Expand Government Censorship<\/h2>\n<p>It\u2019s not clear Finland\u2019s hate crimes law even bans controversial speech, but Finland\u2019s top prosecutor is arguing that it does. If the prosecutor wins the case, it would mark an unprecedented expansion of identity laws that exist in most European countries, many U.S. cities and states, and that U.S. Democrats are trying to make a nationwide law in The Equality Act. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe prosecutor believes the law means you can\u2019t preach the gospel in public, but some believe it means you can\u2019t directly incite violence,\u201d Price noted.<\/p>\n<p>The charges against the two Christians include an attempt to criminalize statements they made years <em>before <\/em>the law being used to prosecute them passed. That\u2019s the only charge against Pohjola, and one of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/document\/554708737\/Rasanen-press-release#from_embed\">three charges against Rasanen<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe fact that Bishop Juhana is even in this trial is Kafkaesque, it\u2019s insane,\u201d Price said. \u201cHe\u2019s being charged with something he did as the head of a charitable foundation, the Luther Foundation, that publishes theological documents, for a document he didn\u2019t write that expresses mainstream, orthodox Christian teaching\u2026 Finding that Bishop Juhana as a publisher broke the law would damage the rights of publishers to publish things that are controversial and as a church leader [would] damage his ability to publish and evangelize and disseminate in public Christian teaching.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Federalist <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2021\/11\/23\/in-case-with-global-implications-finland-puts-christians-on-trial-for-their-faith\/\">interviewed Pohjola in person in November<\/a>, and Rasanen <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/02\/14\/finnish-christian-on-trial-for-quoting-the-bible-on-twitter-god-is-working\/\">via Zoom last week<\/a>. As their case concluded arguments this week, U.S. members of Congress reiterated their public concerns about its implications for human rights both worldwide and in the United States.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<span class=\"pck3lXSYyPAVsBtCMqWe5rHm78DRZxozE1bTdOG0IUha92Qi\"><\/p>\n[embedded content]\n<p><\/span>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<h2 id=\"case-likely-to-set-international-precedents\">Case Likely To Set International Precedents<\/h2>\n<p>It\u2019s likely their case won\u2019t be over even after the court decision likely out at the end of March, said Price. That\u2019s because both parties are likely to appeal if they lose. <\/p>\n<p>If the court convicts Rasanen or Pohjola, or both, their lawyers will \u201cdefinitely\u201d appeal, Price said. The Finnish prosecutor also seems likely to appeal if the two Christians are not convicted, as she has appealed similar cases attempting to criminalize politically incorrect views, he said. <\/p>\n<p>The Finnish legal system allows prosecutors to appeal if they don\u2019t win a conviction in their first round at court. In common law countries like England and the United States, usually only those convicted of crimes can appeal, not their prosecutors, except under unusual circumstances, Price said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think that\u2019s very burdensome for those accused,\u201d he noted. \u201cSo you can go through multiple levels of the court and be vindicated at each level and the prosecutor can keep dragging the accused through the courts.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>All this means Rasanen and Pohjola\u2019s cases could very well end up in Finland\u2019s Supreme Court, where if they lose they could appeal to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France, from where Price spoke to The Federalist by Zoom on Tuesday. That means their case could affect how all of Europe treats Christian doctrines and free speech more broadly. <\/p>\n<p>Like the United States, Europe has been increasingly restricting political and religious speech, especially in international courts against countries seen as unfashionably conservative, such as Hungary and Poland, Price said. This case therefore comes at a crucial time as speech rights are receiving less government support than has been long standard in the West.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"silencing-attempt-backfires\">Silencing Attempt Backfires<\/h2>\n<p>Before this case, Rasanen and Pohjola\u2019s theological booklet was printed years ago in a few hundred copies and mostly used within tiny Lutheran churches. Their prosecution has caused it to be distributed around the world and translated into several other languages, Price said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis obscure little pamphlet has made its way around the world thanks to the efforts of the prosecutor to shut it down,\u201d he noted. <\/p>\n<p>Being targeted for their faith has given Rasanen and Pohjola a global platform for preaching the Christian message of forgiveness for all sins and the deep importance to Christians of the Bible as the very Word of God. Rasanen told The Federalist that because of her case, European media are quoting Bible verses and people are debating their meaning. She says she\u2019s received emails from people saying her case has prompted them to start reading the Bible, which the pastor\u2019s wife and grandmother of nine says she\u2019s read repeatedly since age 16.<\/p>\n<p>Rasanen spoke to the huge worldwide audience of Fox News this week about her case. <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/01\/25\/finnish-government-puts-christianity-on-trial-calls-the-bible-hate-speech\/\">Political <\/a>and religious leaders around the world have also <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/01\/24\/christians-stand-trial-in-finland-today-for-affirming-men-and-women-are-different\/\">expressed support<\/a> for Rasanen and Pohjola\u2019s rights to free speech and religious exercise, which are legally recognized in European human rights agreements.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMany people and journalists around the world regularly ask me: \u2018What keeps you going, from where do you find the courage to speak up?&#8217;\u201d Rasanen told The Federalist. \u201cMy motivation comes from the Bible and from my will to have an impact on the society. A conviction based on the Christian faith is more than a [superficial] opinion. The early Christians did not renounce their faith in lions\u2019 caves, why should I then renounce my faith in a court room? I believe it is my calling and honor to defend the foundational rights and freedoms at this point of my life.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While some people have been scared into silence about their beliefs because of this prosecution, Rasanen said, it\u2019s also prompted 1,000 Finns to stand in front of Parliament holding their Bibles up to \u201ccollectively show strong support for the freedom of God\u2019s Word.\u201d The Finnish Association for Freedom of Speech and Religion was also founded last June to support the legal defense for this case and possibly others.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn one sense the prosecutor has frightened part of the population into being quiet and in another it has drawn huge attention to the issue,\u201d Price said. \u201cWe can\u2019t underestimate the chilling effect of these prosecutions. She [the prosecutor] cannot but regard this as at least a partial success that sending a tweet about the Bible could result in the police coming to your door. Not everyone has the grit and determination of Paivi.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s our concern with these hate speech laws. It denudes society of the opportunity to hear something that can be shocking and provocative but is also a different perspective and for Christians founded on a fundamental truth of scripture.\u201d<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\" \/>\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">\n  Joy Pullmann is executive editor of The Federalist, a happy wife, and the mother of six children. Her bestselling ebook is &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/payhip.com\/b\/R1JL\">Classic Books for Young Children<\/a>.&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/forms.gle\/DuLdAiwNAQqbw6RBA\">Sign up here<\/a> to get early access to her next book, &#8220;How To Control The Internet So It Doesn\u2019t Control You.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>Mrs. Pullmann identifies as native American and gender natural. She is also the author of &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Education-Invasion-Parents-Control-American\/dp\/1594038813\/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1486730068&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=education+invasion\">The Education Invasion: How Common Core Fights Parents for Control of American Kids<\/a>,&#8221; from Encounter Books. In 2013-14 she won a Robert Novak journalism fellowship for in-depth reporting on Common Core national education mandates. <\/p>\n<p>Joy is a grateful graduate of the Hillsdale College honors and journalism programs.<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The trial of two Finnish Christians for publicly stating mainstream religious teachings that reserve sex only for heterosexual marriage is heading towards a judgment scheduled for March 30. The case &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1317958","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1317958","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1317958"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1317958\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1317958"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1317958"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1317958"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}