Arrested for Preaching the "Word of God"

reply to post by OtherSideOfTheCoin


Here's my take on this as a Christian.

Jesus or any of his Disciples didn't go round randomly shouting their mouths off in public places. They spoke at public meeting places, temples and places of worship, in homes, etc.

That is when St. Paul was spreading The Word he did not just blab it out anywhere and irritate everyone like a crazy lunatic. It is the wrong place to be doing that and will only bring about bad feeling. Jesus said about not casting your pearls before swine! Do I need to explain that to you guys? You don't go showing just ANYONE your treasure. You let The Mighty One guide you in Spirit to those He would have listen. That is the way I do it; with cunning and respect for the Subject.

All I know is that this guy to me is no offense, but it is not a clever way to spread faith and can achieve more harm than good if you are annoying the locals. Just do what Jesus said do brush off the dust and remove your blessing from the place! Hehehe!!!

I am all for freedom of speech, etc, etc but at the same time I get sick and tired of hearing preachers, whatever their religion maybe, in the high street and on public transport. In my local area we have a few men who get on buses, walk up to the top deck with their bible and start screaming their lungs out about Jesus. I'm not religious and I don't like people trying to convert others. Just as much as some people get tired of hearing news relating to homosexuality, I get sick of hearing "Jesus loves you".

reply to post by Revolution9

That is the way I do it; with cunning and respect for the Subject.

Cunning and respect are mutually exclusive.

As for the preacher - 'disturbing the peace' is a cause for arrest. It's that way in the US also.

What really bugged me about this man was that he said, "but talking isn't preaching."
Apparently browbeating is, though. Cunning. What a turn off.

There's a guy who uses a bullhorn outside in one of the nearby city's shopping and entertainment district. He carries a huge banner on a pole that says something about hell and sinners. Extremely annoying. Everyone just ignores him.

reply to post by ProfessorT


I understand what you are saying

but this is not about about what he is saying rather it is about the fact that its ok for two guys with guitars with amps to blast out music but its not ok for him to stand in the street preaching.

Its about the erosion of freedom of speech

LightningStrikesHere
reply to post by OtherSideOfTheCoin

 

Text Furthermore, and I really do not want this to be taken the wrong way, but I have to wonder, how different would the police have acted if that were a Iman preaching from the Qur'an with a camera?

I don't fully understand where your going with this comment ? Can you please be more specific?

Are you suggesting a "Muslim" would get more Leniency?

Humbly

LSH

Sorry please do not misinterpret what I am saying as me taking a shot at Muslims, I know for a fact that the Islamic community in that town is very peaceful and concentrates a great deal to the community.

Rather what I am getting at is more about perceptions, there has always been a huge effort in this country to abolish all forms of discrimination (something I totally agree with) however in the processes Christianity has taken a real beating. The perception of the police doing this to a white Christian and them doing it to say a Iman of Middle Eastern origin would be totally different, the police would really have to think about the "racism" card, especially with a camera. However when we have a white Christian that is not a issue, the idea that the police could be being "racist" (and yes under Scottish law "racist" covers discrimination against religious) groups) is never considered.

I personally would say that both the Islamic Iman and the Christian preacher have just as much right to stand in the street and tell people about their beliefs as each other. I just think that due to some perceptions in this country it would be much easier for the Iman.

reply to post by OtherSideOfTheCoin


Buddy this is Scotland to be honest the dude is lucky the Police went so easy on him. And if he keeps the crap up when he gets to the station chances are he will be sprayed with some CS gas, get a paper thin blue mattress thrown over the top of him and have the living crap kicked out of him for the best part of half an hour by whatever desk sergeant/turn keys are on duty.

Citizens in custody fall all the time here in Sunny Scotland!

Last time I heard a street preacher do his schtick I just stood there and curled a lip at the rubbish he was spouting. He kept at it and even redoubled the rubbish quotient, whereupon I started giggling, then chortling and then at one particular bit of lunacy (by this point he was telling all the women around him that God would punish them for abandoning their kitchens or something) I started to roar with laughter, as did my wife. At which point said preacher folded his tents and stole away.

reply to post by OtherSideOfTheCoin


his actins and statements indicate that he delibereatly engineered this encounter to play the " professional victim " card

ignorant_ape
reply to post by OtherSideOfTheCoin

 

his actins and statements indicate that he delibereatly engineered this encounter to play the " professional victim " card

Not really I have seen him a few times in that part of the town he always records his street sermons.

Most the time there are a few other people with how who are either recording or just watching.

even if it was engineered, this is not about what he is saying but rather that he was arrested for saying it.

to all those religious people out there...follow the religions that have been around the longest, and thus the wisest to the inner soul of man, those of the far east and India....they do not care if you join or not...in other words, "you will find them, they do not have to find you"

Christianity, Islam, Judaism are like 3-yr old petulant children....they are not wise enough, too loud and troublesome, irrational, and always demanding attention. knowing god and abiding by his wishes, requires no man or thing, it's what you internally feel, you either have it or you don't....that's it, everything else is to benefit others, not you.

my 2 cents

benrl

sheepslayer247

I don't know who is right on this one and will have to think on it for a bit.

edit on 29-3-2014 by sheepslayer247 because: (no reason given)

what If it was someone expounding anything other than religion?

or is it all forms of peaceful freedom of speech you are unsure of?

every concept might 'bother' someone, is that now our bar for censorship?

Those are good questions and I doubt I have the right answer.

In my opinion, there are limitations we place on free speech because it can be inappropriate or disruptive to the public and could have adverse effects on people and commerce.

For example: Is it ok for a man to stand on his soapbox in a town's shopping district and exercise his free speech by talking about graphic sexual content? What if he was talking about hating people of different races?

I believe we have to honor the right to free speech, but in exercising that right comes certain responsibilities. One of them knowing that there is a time and place to exercise free speech.

Nothing wrong in Preaching the word of God in any place,
if The Lord Leads you to do it.

LightningStrikesHere
I don't know how it is in the UK ,but here in the USA the majority of Muslims don't go put and "preach" as you put it ...

Europe and the U.S. are two totally different places. I suggest you take a trip to Europe and see for yourself. I've seen plenty of Muslims with MEGAPHONES preach Islam.

I've also seen Muslims get preferential treatment as the government pussyfoots around them in fear of sparking an outrage. (Plenty of cases where this has happened, Google is your friend.)

reply to post by Auricom


There's a 'gay pride' day in my town every year, and all the gay men and women celebrate in a carnival-like atmosphere. Last year there was this Muslim guy standing alone in a small square in the city centre screaming bloody murder for a couple of hours, he looked like he wanted to go on a killing spree! People just left the guy alone. I've seen Christian preachers who do similar things get heckled badly but nobody would say anything to the Muslim man, not even the cops.

I'm not anti-Muslim, but this is an issue here, the racist card gets played continually. We all have our beliefs and opinions, but why can one person expect special treatment when he/she screams hateful things in public when another person gets shut down.

I know there was the idea of a 'buskers permit' being kicked around here recently. A lot of musicians and buskers objected, and I tend to agree, people from all over the world visit my town and go onto some of the well known streets with a guitar and busk, it's a tourist thing, "here's a picture of me busking in Dublin", I like that. But religious nut cases from around the globe also come here to spout fire and brimstone at pedestrians too, that I do not like, I with they'd feck off back to wherever they came from.

People have a right to free speech .. but I don't want to go shopping where I'll get someone screeching their religious views at me. If a shopping place had people doing this .. I'd complain and not go back if the people weren't shut down.

Auricom

LightningStrikesHere
I don't know how it is in the UK ,but here in the USA the majority of Muslims don't go put and "preach" as you put it ...

Europe and the U.S. are two totally different places. I suggest you take a trip to Europe and see for yourself. I've seen plenty of Muslims with MEGAPHONES preach Islam.

I've also seen Muslims get preferential treatment as the government pussyfoots around them in fear of sparking an outrage. (Plenty of cases where this has happened, Google is your friend.)

I respect your opinion ,however i have to disagree with the "special treatment" part..

I would like to believe what your saying ,but i need evidence..proving what your saying

jimmyx
to all those religious people out there...follow the religions that have been around the longest, and thus the wisest to the inner soul of man, those of the far east and India....they do not care if you join or not...in other words, "you will find them, they do not have to find you"

Christianity, Islam, Judaism are like 3-yr old petulant children....they are not wise enough, too loud and troublesome, irrational, and always demanding attention. knowing god and abiding by his wishes, requires no man or thing, it's what you internally feel, you either have it or you don't....that's it, everything else is to benefit others, not you.

my 2 cents

I would have to completely disagree with you here. Its obvious by this bold statement that you know NOTHING or VERY LITTLE. Of these religion .

I am not concerned by this man being removed from a public place for preaching his religion. This country is littered with many places of worship - If people wanted to find the god he's bigging up, they would visit a church; They would read a bible; They would use the internet.

This man still maintains the freedom to practice his religion, but it is rather annoying that he cant just enjoy his faith without trying to convert/ "Save" everyone else.

The UK doesn't have, and never has had this so called "Freedom of Speech" in statute law.

What we have is known legally as "The negative right to the freedom of expression.", which basically means, you can do anything you wish, providing it doesn't breach an existing law.

What was the guy actually stopped for? The public record says he was "removed and cautioned", thats not the same as an arrest, although a police caution will go down on your permanent record. Why was he removed and cautioned? Seems it was for Breach of the Peace, which is, a criminal offence in the UK. Therefore contravening his "Negative right to the freedom of expression".

Breach of the peace is a nasty little law, no mistake about that. However as it also says from other sources, the police were not concerned about the noise level, nor about the subject matter, they acted because they had to, as a member of the public had made a formal complaint about it.

Thats correct, if a complaint is made, the police do have to act, otherwise they'd be remiss in their duties. In theory they could have arrested and charged him with breach of the peace. Instead they only removed and cautioned him. Sounds to me they did the absolute minimum they had to, to be seen fulfilling their duties.

Yes, there might have been noiser buskers in the mall, but nobody had complained about them, therefore the police could ignore them.

Sorry, but in this case, the police cannot be blamed, instead blame the small minded person who made the formal complaint about him.

damn I hate the sound of silence
officer..yes ..that man over there...yes
the one leaning against the bus stop sign

yes officer, arrest that man! he hasn't let out so much as a peep in an hour
i can't have people like that lurking about near my shop...passers by will think this door way leads to a morgue