A hearing will be held into the actions of a retired pastor who held an open-air sermon on the fringes of an abortion clinic buffer zone.
Clive Johnston, 76, has been accused of intentionally influencing a protected person, and for not immediately leaving the area when asked to do so by police. The service took place on a Sunday near the Causeway Hospital, Coleraine, Londonderry.
Johnston preached about the love of God, taking John 3:16 as his primary verse, an action which could lead to him being fined thousands of pounds. His sermon made no mention of abortion, nor were there any banners or placards during the service mentioning the subject.
The hearing could result in the immediate acquittal or conviction of Johnston, or may see his case referred to a higher court.
Johnston is the former President of the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland.
He said ahead of the hearing, “I am grateful for the kind messages of support I have received from members of the public both here and abroad, and for the prayers being offered up to God about this case by many Christians.
“My legal representatives have made clear that the allegations against me will be contested and I look forward to defending myself in court.”
Johnston is being supported by The Christian Institute, which is asking people to pray for his acquittal.
The organisation said he plans to plead not guilty to the "vague charge" of “influencing” people accessing abortion services.
Simon Calvert, deputy director of the organisation, said the case raised the important question of whether preaching the gospel can effectively be banned in certain situations.
“Should a law designed to stop abortion protests be used to criminalise gospel preaching? John 3:16 is a wonderful, famous verse and everyone knows it says nothing about abortion," he said.
He added, “Christians are pro-life. But preaching the good news about Christ is not the same thing as protesting against abortion.
"The police and the Public Prosecution Service are overstepping the mark. Yes, Clive has campaigned in the past on abortion. But at this service abortion was not mentioned in any way."
Ciarán Kelly, director of The Christian Institute, said, "The already unjust buffer zones laws should not be used to outlaw acts of worship and criminalise gospel preaching."
