A statement by the U.K.’s main prosecution service says it is “no longer appropriate” to read parts of the Bible aloud in public. Christian groups have called the statement “ill-judged” and “concerning”. The Belfast Newsletter has more.
The story all stems from a confrontation between a man called John Dunn, a soldier-turned-evangelist, and two lesbians.
It took place on the streets of Swindon two years ago.
Mr. Dunn was charged with using “threatening or abusive words or behaviour, or disorderly behaviour within the hearing or sight of a person likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress thereby”.
It was alleged he shouted that the women would “burn in hell” and called one of them a “devil woman”.
Mr Dunn denied this, though his lawyers at the Christian Legal Centre said he acknowledged telling them: “It says in the Bible that homosexuals will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
According to Mr Dunn’s lawyers, the case against him was discontinued during this week because the complainants could not be reached.
While pressing their case against him though, the CPS said the following in writing to the court:
“Whether a statement of Christian belief or not, the court is being asked to consider whether the language has the potential to cause harassment, alarm or distress.
“This document is not the forum for religious debate, but the bible contains other material recognising slavery (Exodus 21:7), the death sentence (Exodus 35:2 and Leviticus 24:16) and cannibalism (Deuteronomy 28:27).
“There are references in the bible which are simply no longer appropriate in modern society and which would be deemed offensive if stated in public.”
The group Christian Concern, which works in tandem with the Christian Legal Centre, has issued statements about this case to the press in the past week, but there has been virtually no media coverage of it, despite its potentially far-reaching implications.
Worth reading in full.
Needless to say, the criminalisation of certain passages in the Bible has yet to illicit a whisper of criticism from the Church of England.
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Will the CPS take the same line with the sacred texts of other beliefs? There is either free speech or there is not.
1600 verses of anti christian hate speech in Mein Koran. Out of scope for this of course. Lots of Atheist hate speech about other religions – out of scope for this of course. Lots of hate speech from the Queer-Trans propaganda gospel – out of scope for this of course…etc etc.
I don’t have strong views one way or the other regarding lesbians, but I don’t think the CPS will inherit the Kingdom of God.
Lord save us from civil servants trying to do exegesis. In fact, it’s eisegesis. Deuteronomy does not “recognise… cannibalism”, that’s absurd. The verse is actually Deuteronomy 28:26, which says (ESV):
In this verse, the Hebrew word for “beasts” (which is our word “behemoth”) does not mean humans. Good job, CPS!
As for the death penalty, is it now illegal to argue for the death penalty? That’s a political matter, not for the CPS to prosecute. Take a look at this poll. Were the people responding to that poll committing a crime? Obviously not.
Again with slavery, while abhorrent, I fail to see why anyone stupid enough to argue for slavery should be prosecuted. Nonsense.
A spectacular display of religious illiteracy by the Crown Persecution Service
Mein Koran demands the enslavement of others.
Don’t Black and Muslims own Black slaves right now today in East Africa?
If you say that in public is that also a hate crime?
Well I never. I was totally unaware that part of the CPS remit was policing the Bible.
I’m looking forward to the CPS applying its theological wisdom to the Quran. Or, for that matter, to Hollywood movies glorifying crime and mass slaughter, ie, most of them.
Koran 9.29?
Yes, I wonder how they go on stoning adulterers and cutting hands off thieves…surely a big much to stomach if one hears someone shouting for it as one wanders down Acacia Avenue in Middling Netherwallop…
The institutions are all captured. I am fortunate enough to know a man, now in his eighties, who made a massive contribution to this country during his business career, saving thousands of jobs and encouraging substantial inward investment. I have long felt he deserved recognition for such achievements, and duly looked up the application process for honours – MBE for example. Very simply, there are several forms to complete and a good deal of guidance on what would make for a successful application. Retired people are excluded. You have to be active and delivering service in some community based organisation. You will not be given an award for something you were paid for doing.
Given the influence the honours system has on people, is it any wonder that there is no longer aspiration to contribute economically to the success of our country, and that there is no recognition of the benefits of private sector enterprise to society as a whole?
Sadly, I am not disappointed by this discovery – I must have unconsciously expected to find the situation so.
He will be honoured by the appreciation and recognition of people like you and now us. The honours system is a bunch of crap. It’s like getting a Gold Star for being a good student.
Surely it’s time for the cops to arrest God. Good luck with that one boys!
Given the levels of intelligence and competence they usually display I would expect they have already issued a warrant for his / her (whoops) arrest.
I believe God’s pronoun is ‘They’.
God, the Father. God, the son. And Casper the friendly Ghost, if my recollection serves me.
And since we are all manifestations of god in some form or another it would be like god arresting god…
“I arrest myself in case I utter something later that I might regret”
“Oh no I won’t!”
“Oh yes I will!”
Considering how well-informed the CPS would like us to think it is about what the Bible contains, it’s surprising that they should be so ignorant about what it actually is. The Bible is the story, told over thousands of years, of the realisation of God in man, and the promise of salvation which stems from that.
The Old Testament undoubtedly contains material which is out of line with contemporary ethics (not that that in itself should be grounds for prohibition), but the same material is actually out of line with the New Testament, which is, of course, the cornerstone of Christian teaching. The jealous God of the Old Testament is different from the merciful human God of the New. It is not necessarily easy for us to understand how and why this transformation occurs, but the point is that it does occur, and a fundamental part of Christianity is a rejection of the more ethically ambiguous practices which were earlier espoused.
“Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” And so on and so forth, all in the general vein of “Love thy neighbour as thyself.”
Who today would ‘Love thy neighbour’ when they can #BeKind?
It’s a long time since I last read the Bible, but I’m sure that Jesus also said “think not that I have come to change the law, for I have come to uphold it”, “until heaven and earth pass away not one jot or tittle of the law shall pass away”, and “he who breaks the least part of the law shall be considered least in the kingdom of heaven”. St. Paul also wrote in one of his epistles, I think it was to Timothy, that all of scripture is inspired by God and is therefore useful for teaching. This all seems to suggest that everything in the Old Testament should be adhered to, and talk of love and forgiveness just shows how many internal contradictions the Bible contains. This is only to be expected in a book written by imperfect men, and not inspired by a perfect deity.
My personal view is that between the Old Testament and New Testament times there was an evolution in man’s understanding of God. The law of God is enshrined in the Ten Commandments. There was also a proliferation of intricate laws as seen in Leviticus for example. These other laws were most likely human constructs based on the commandments and sometimes a reflection of contemporary culture. The NT exposes the weaknesses of living merely by laws. For example, “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone” when the adulterous woman was facing a lynch mob. Of course, Jesus was not making light of her sin or saying she would not be held to account, just it was not the job of her peers to do that. So I don’t think God had changed his mind about anything but man’s understanding of God was evolving.
Don’t worry lads. The CPS will unleash the full force of the Keystone Cops aka our police force.
It would be quite ironic if someone was prosecuted and taken to court for quoting from the bible and then in court took the oath by swearing on the bible!
What can you say….?
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/11/26/jesus-could-have-transgender-claims-cambridge-dean/
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11462983/Westminster-council-start-using-phrase-global-majority-dropping-term-BAME.html
The CPS does not make law, nor adjudicate it.
All places of worship are public.
it will be interesting to see what happens when quotations from the Bible are used in public ceremonies like weddings and funeral of Royalty for example.