UK Drops Threat of Charges for Silent Prayer
Breakpoint
Colson Center
4.8 • 2.8K Ratings
🗓️ 31 July 2023
⏱️ 1 minutes
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Summary
Local authorities in a coastal English town are dropping the threat of legal charges against Adam Smith-Connor for praying silently outside of an abortion clinic.
In a video of the incident, a police officer, obviously uncomfortable, asked Smith-Connor to describe the "nature of [his] prayer," adding that she doesn't "want to probe." She suggested Smith-Connor might be violating the town's "buffer zone" rule, which outlaws "acts of disapproval" outside of the clinic. Ultimately, the officers say they believe he is allowed to pray silently, but they still fined him. Smith-Connor refused to pay it.
People have to stand up to government overreach. It's much easier to be a council member and pass an ordinance like this from safely inside City Hall than to be the police officer charged with enforcing it while their gut says, "No, this isn't right."
And Christians, who are called to "live not by lies," as Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn put it, may have to make tough choices about what or Whom they must serve.
For more resources to live like a Christian in this cultural moment, visit Colsoncenter.org
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | With a woman to look at culture from a Christian worldview, I'm John Stone Street with a point. |
| 0:04.9 | Local authorities of a coastal English town are dropping the threat of legal charges against |
| 0:08.7 | Adam Smith-Conner for praying silently outside an abortion clinic. |
| 0:12.1 | In a video of the incident, a police officer, obviously uncomfortable, asked Smith-Conner |
| 0:16.2 | to describe the nature of his prayer, adding that she doesn't want to probe. |
| 0:20.3 | She suggests Smith-Conner could be violating the town's buffer zone rule, which outlaws |
| 0:24.3 | quote-unquote acts of disapproval outside abortion clinics. |
| 0:27.7 | Ultimately, the officers say they believe he's allowed to pray silently, but then they |
| 0:31.2 | still find him. |
| 0:32.2 | He refused to pay it. |
| 0:33.2 | Look, people have to stand up to government overreach for all kinds of reasons. |
| 0:36.9 | This is one of them. |
| 0:37.9 | It's easier to be a council member and pass an ordinance from safely inside City Hall |
| 0:42.0 | than to be the police officer charged with enforcing it, even while their gut is saying |
| 0:46.0 | this isn't right. |
| 0:47.0 | Christians, who are called to live not by lies as Alexander Soltz and it's inputted, may |
| 0:51.0 | have to make the tough choices of whom they must serve. |
| 0:54.2 | For the Colson Center, I'm John Stone Street. |
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