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Street preacher hails victory after case over breaking ‘draconian’ COVID regulations is thrown out

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When coronavirus restrictions on outdoor gatherings during the pandemic were first implemented in March 2020, Christian preacher and lay minister Mike Overd didn’t let that stop him from preaching in the streets as part of his ministry.

The 56-year-old has spent well over a decade evangelizing as a street preacher, offering Bibles to passersby and praying with pedestrians. He continued his efforts even when gatherings were restricted by the U.K. government last year.

While in his usual spot preaching at Taunton town centre in Somerset, England, on April 2, 2020, Overd was confronted by police from Avon and Somerset and became the first Christian preacher to be prosecuted for violating COVID-19 regulations banning outdoor gatherings.

Officers instructed Overd to go home after a member of the public filed a complaint against him.

Overd, however, questioned the officers’ actions toward him and refused to go home.

The Christian Legal Centre, which represented Overd in his case, noted that he was carrying out his work as a minister by “offering pastoral support” for those who were struggling during the pandemic while also adhering to social distancing guidelines of standing just over 2 yards (2 meters) apart from others.

After being ordered to leave the premises and go home, Overd asked the officers whether authorities were “now banning Christian workers from coming to help people?”

The officers then proceeded to confiscate Overd’s Bibles and forced him to leave the area. Overd was also fined $83 (£60).

After contesting the fine, Overd waited 547 days in anticipation of his court hearing, only to learn that the Crown Prosecution Service had decided to drop his case.

Tom Allen of Christian Concern told The Christian Post that on Sept. 1, he was informed by the Crown Prosecution Service that “the prosecution is no longer proceeding in this matter and that the trial listed for Sept. 6 will be vacated at Weston Magistrates Court.”

“The fact that it has been quietly dropped … after dragging on for 18 months, shows that my case, and the laws in general, have been all about control and intimidation,” Overd said in a statement shared with CP, noting that he was ridiculed and even lost friends over his decision to “bring a message of hope to people struggling at the start of this crisis.”

He added: “A year-and-a-half on, with draconian measures still in place and more Christian preachers being arrested than ever before, I knew I was right to take a stand and I am glad to have been vindicated. It was always wrong for Christian ministries and churches to be shut down at such a moment of need. Never in our history have so many Christians that sought to support the most vulnerable in our communities been treated so badly by the authorities.”

The BBC reported in April that “more than 85,000 fixed penalty notices have been issued in England since the pandemic began, and 8,000 in Wales,” citing a report that was released at the time by members of Parliament.

A Joint Committee on Human Rights comprised of cross-party members of Parliament determined that fines of nearly $14,000 (£10,000) for breaking COVID-19 regulations “are muddled, discriminatory and unfair,” especially for the poor and those who are “unfairly targeted” by police.

“Looking back to the start of the pandemic, I knew that something was not right with the power the police had been given by the government,” Overd added. “It did not sit right with me sitting at home and not going out to preach when people were in need.”

In Overd’s case, which was originally scheduled for a court date last Friday, his lawyers argued that Overd had been out on the streets for the purposes of “voluntary or charitable services” while adhering to coronavirus regulations.

Lawyers further stated that the regulations, as interpreted by the police officers on that day, “were disproportionate and constituted an unreasonable interference with Overd’s rights under European law and English common law,” Christian Legal Centre said.

Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, added in a statement: “The coronavirus regulations required society to willingly surrender basic freedoms. Many courageous Christians, seeing the danger in the laws, simply refused to close down their outreach Christian ministries and stop helping people.”

“For that many have been disproportionately punished,” she added. “Mike is one of many Christian preachers and outreach workers who have been intimidated and fined during this crisis, but who have ultimately been vindicated and told they have not done anything wrong. Christian street preachers are now being arrested every month in the U.K. for preaching the Gospel. This is a phenomenon in our history unique only to the 21st century.”

Williams said she finds the powers given to the police during the pandemic to be setting a “dangerous precedent, which are continuing to have a ripple effect despite a return to relative normality.”

“We said at the time when this story happened that the coronavirus regulations would have far-reaching implications for Christian freedoms in the U.K., and this has proven to be so,” she added.

Overd’s case was also supported by Christian theologian Martin Parsons, who submitted his expert testimony to the Crown Prosecution Service in which he stressed: “street preaching is an important part of evangelical Christianity, even during epidemics.”

“A long and continuing practice of street preaching and other forms of open-air evangelism in the U.K., which is seen by evangelical Christians as being an essential part of fulfilling Christ’s command to preach the Gospel to all people, particularly those who are unlikely to ever enter a church,” Parsons said. “During times of epidemic this has been viewed as being particularly important as helping men and women to find ‘peace with God.’”

“From the perspective of Christian public theology and church history the use of coronavirus regulations to prohibit street preaching raises significant issues relating to the development of freedom of religion in British constitutional history,” the theologian concluded.
Sources:Christian Post

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‘God Still Heals’: Mike Signorelli on Fighting the Demonic, Seeing Miracles — and More

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A New York City pastor is on a mission to help people see that “God still heals.”

Mike Signorelli of V1 Church in New York City joined Billy Hallowell to explain how facets of the secular medical community are now “open to the spiritual realm.”

While some doctors and hospitals are looking for help in the wrong places, he said there is an opportunity for Christians to step into the fold and divert attention toward biblical truth.

“What we have to do is believe that God is going to do what only He can do and let me awaken people to the reality that He still heals,” Signorelli said.

In his own ministry, the popular preacher said he has to remind himself to “pray for even incurable things,” as he puts full trust in the Lord. He said he’s seen and experienced incredible miracles as a result of this trust. Signorelli even shared the example of a woman who was healed of Multiple sclerosis (MS).

“I received an email with all of these PDF attachments of a medical diagnosis of MS, and then as I begin to read the documents,” he said, noting he had prayed for the woman. “It was multiple confirmations that all the lesions were gone. It was completely undetectable and they cleared her and even said, ‘You’re done with medication and any medical intervention.’”

Signorelli continued, “And I wept knowing my own unbelief in that moment.”

These are the very issues CBN tackles in our new documentary “Investigating the Supernatural: Miracles,” as we travel the nation diving into claims of miraculous healing.

“Your film is so important,” Signorelli said of the project. “And I hope many people listening watch it right now because it’s like, listen, I don’t want to serve a God that never heals. … But we also don’t want to distract people from the fact that salvation is the greatest healing and we’re all going to die of something. So it’s like living in that both and is healthy doctrine, healthy theology.”

Signorelli is also on a mission to launch a new effort to inspire faith — the Mission 11:59.
Sources:faithwire

http://theendtimeradio.com

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Australian Defence Force releases new Bible edition for soldiers

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The Australian Defence Force (ADF) has released a new edition of the New International Version (NIV) Bible, two decades after the previous edition was released in 2005.

The launch ceremony took place on March 13 at Russell Offices, the ADF’s administrative headquarters in Canberra, according to an ADF press release. Tina King of Bible Society Australia presented the new Bible to Maj. Gen. Sue Graham, who represented the chief of the Defence Force at the event.

“We acknowledge in the Defence Force how we are continually supported by the public, and the sacrifice from Bible Society volunteers brought forward today is another embodiment of that,” Graham said. “It’s particularly important to have a Bible that is available and relevant to all our soldiers, sailors and aviators.”

The new edition includes content tailored specifically to ADF personnel, such as contextually relevant prayers for those serving in the Navy, Army and Air Force.

“This is not a book for a bookshelf, it is a book to be near. We hope it will be dog-eared, underlined, searched and cherished,” said King.

Bible Society Australia also hosted a historical display at the event, showcasing military Bibles dating back to the Boer War. Among them was a Bible that saved the life of LCpl. Phillip Davies during World War I. Davies was digging for telephone cables at Messines Ridge, near Ypres in Belgium, when two bomb shells exploded nearby. Shrapnel struck his arms and legs, killing one colleague and injuring two others.

The location is known to have seen fierce fighting between British and German soldiers vying to control the ridge, considered important at the time for military advancement as it allowed a strategic viewpoint over the Ypres Salient.

The next morning, Davies discovered a piece of shrapnel stuck in the back cover of his Soldier’s Bible, which he had kept in his breast pocket. The shrapnel had been stopped just inches from his heart. The Bible was one of a million donated at the time by Bible Society Australia.

Director General Chaplaincy—Army, Principal Chaplain Kerry Larwill, spoke at the ceremony, noting the continued relevance of spiritual resources in military life.

“About 44 percent of Australians identified as Christian, and more are interested in spirituality of different varieties,” Larwill said. “For people who serve in Defence, which we know has demands on individuals and their families, it’s a source of light and hope to those who derive their meaning from a Christian perspective or value its wisdom.”

Representatives from the Military Christian Fellowship of Australia (MCF-A) and other chaplaincy networks, such as the Forum of Christian Military Ministries, also attended the launch. The new Bible includes a foreword written by former MCF-A patron and former Gov.-Gen. of Australia, General (retired) David Hurley.
Sources:Christianpost

http://theendtimeradio.com

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Labour council withdraws injunction seeking to ban Christian street preachers

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A Labour-run council in the United Kingdom has withdrawn its attempt to impose an injunction banning Christian street preachers in two Hampshire towns. Rushmoor Borough Council reversed its legal action after sustained opposition from local faith leaders and Conservative councilors.

The council had sought a court order in March that would have prohibited street preachers from praying, singing, handing out Bibles or leaflets, or initiating religious conversations in the town centers of Farnborough and Aldershot, according to the U.K.-based group Christian Concern.

The proposed injunction included restrictions that would have made it a criminal offense to pray for someone without prior permission, offer Christian literature by hand, or engage in discussions deemed “hostile” based on protected characteristics under the Equality Act.

“The Gospel has never been silenced by opposition — in fact, challenges like these have historically refined, not weakened, the Church’s resolve,” said Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, in a statement provided to The Christian Post on Saturday.

“Thanks to the swift action of Christian Concern, the local preachers, councilors and supporters — and the public attention generated — the Council now recognizes the serious error of judgment it made. A meeting is now scheduled between the Council and the preachers to explore constructive and lasting solutions.

The council’s application, filed under provisions of the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 and the Local Government Act 1972, cited the need to prevent “alarm and distress” among the public. The draft injunction warned that breaching its terms could result in prosecution and up to two years in prison.

Preachers and local churches said they were not consulted and described the proposed restrictions as disproportionate and unprecedented.

Lawyers from the Christian Legal Centre, which supported the preachers, said the injunction risked criminalizing ordinary expressions of faith, including carol singing.

Street preacher Sally McGuinness, who has worked in the area for over 15 years, was quoted as saying that she made several attempts to contact the council after learning of the proposed injunction but received no response.

She told council officials at a meeting on April 23 that the threat of criminalization had weighed heavily on her and accused the council of failing to acknowledge the good done by local Christian outreach.

Several faith leaders, including ministers from Evangelical churches, an Army chaplain and a local vicar, also attended the meeting to raise their objections. During the session, council officers were told that the proposed measures would not only restrict constitutionally protected religious expression but would set a precedent for banning similar public acts of faith.

Preacher Jamie Broadey, supported by the Christian Legal Centre, an arm of Christian Concern, said he had been shocked to read that the draft injunction forbade activities like praying or singing unless the public first gave permission.

He called the restrictions incompatible with centuries of Christian tradition in Britain.

Following the meeting, the council announced it would withdraw the application and consider a voluntary code of conduct for street preaching.

Council leader Gareth Williams was quoted as saying that discussions with the local Christian community helped reach a solution that balanced freedom of worship with the interests of all town center users.

Councilor Gareth Lyon, the local Conservative group leader who had taken up the preachers’ case, welcomed the decision, saying it was the right outcome for both free speech and religious liberty.

Rushmoor’s draft injunction on prohibitions included a ban on placing a hand on someone while praying — even if they consented — as well as any sermon that could be perceived as hostile toward individuals based on characteristics such as sex, gender identity or religion.

The council defended its position by citing complaints from members of the public who claimed the preachers created a “non-inclusive” environment. In one instance, a person said their trans-identified child felt unsafe encountering street preaching. Other complaints referred to the use of a portable PA system, preaching that was deemed judgmental and daytime evangelism that disrupted residents’ sleep.

A meeting between council officials and faith leaders is expected to discuss alternatives to legal enforcement. The preachers are still seeking an apology and assurances that such measures will not be pursued again.
Sources:Christianpost

http://theendtimeradio.com

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