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Homosexual Hate Crime Trial of Swedish Pastor Used as an Opportunity for Evangelization
LifeSite ^ | 11/16/2005 | John-Henry Westen and Terry Vanderheyden

Posted on 11/17/2005 9:50:56 AM PST by SirLinksalot

Homosexual Hate Crime Trial of Swedish Pastor Used as an Opportunity for Evangelization

By John-Henry Westen and Terry Vanderheyden

STOCKHOLM, November 15, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Swedish Pastor Ake Green, appearing before the Swedish Supreme Court Wednesday to answer to a “hate crimes” charge for preaching a sermon on homosexuality in 2003, capitalized on the occasion to evangelize the nation.

Focus on the Family’s representative to the United Nations, Thomas Jacobson, reported that the trial was providentially aired on national television thus providing Green the opportunity to have not only his original sermon but also his defence of it aired nationally. “This was unprecedented in Swedish history,” Jacobson said, “that a Supreme Court hearing would be aired nationwide in its entirety.”

“Everybody heard his original sermon first, then they heard him speak for 45 minutes later,” Jacobson said. “Just like with the Apostle Paul, when he was arrested and sometimes imprisoned, (Pastor Green) had the opportunity to declare truth and declare the Gospel of Jesus Christ — and the compassion and forgiveness that are available — in unprecedented ways.”

The country is in dire need of evangelization on the matter. Jared N. Leland, Spokesman and Legal Counsel for The Becket Fund - an international, interfaith, public interest law firm dedicated to protecting the free expression of all religious traditions – wrote an article in defence of the pastor which was widely published in Sweden last year. The Chalcedon Report quoted Leland on the reaction he received. “It got a very hostile response from Swedish newspaper columnists,” he said. “They all say, ‘You don’t understand our culture. This man should go to jail for two years — not six months!’”

On October 31, 2005, The Becket Fund filed its brief to educate the Court about Sweden’s obligation to respect religious exercise, religious expression, and equal protection of the laws -- rights that are secured by Articles 18, 19, and 26 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which Sweden is a signatory. See the brief here http://www.becketfund.org/files/e160b.pdf

Pastor Green was convicted of a hate crime and sentenced by a district court to one month in prison on June 20, 2004 for preaching a sermon in which he said, “What these people need, who live under the slavery of sexual immorality, is an abundant grace. It exists. Therefore we will encourage those who live in this manner to look at the grace of Jesus Christ. We cannot condemn these people. Jesus never belittled anyone. He offered them grace.” (read the full sermon here: http://www.akegreen.com/sermon_transcript.htm)

The Gota Court of Appeals overturned the conviction on February 11, 2005, but the prosecutor appealed the case to the Supreme Court. If found guilty, Pastor Green could face up to two years in prison.

Pastor Green said, “I think homosexuality and that lifestyle is abnormal and I want to be free to say that,” as part of his televised defence, according to BBC coverage. “My message is that men should live by the laws of creation, which means the normal family set-up with a woman, a man and children.” He also said he preferred jail to community service if convicted.

SEE THE ABOVE WEBSITE FOR A PICTURE OF THE PASTOR


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Extended News; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: europeanchristians; homosexual; homosexualagenda; pastor; sweden; swedishpastor
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In his defense Ake got to speak for 45 minutes about his original sermon. It certainly brings to mind Paul's efforts, that even when imprisoned, used the opportunity to preach to the guards.

In somewhat ironic fashion, Ake's original sermon called for grace and not condemnation for the homosexual community. Yet some considered it hate speech because he also said it was an immoral lifestyle. Just another example of where people confuse condemning an idea or action as opposed to the person.

1 posted on 11/17/2005 9:50:58 AM PST by SirLinksalot
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To: SirLinksalot
Sometimes I wonder why Jesus Christ is attacked with such viciousness. I don't know the answer.

He didn't come to be popular.

He also said He didn't come to bring peace, but that He would set father against son and mother against daughter.

Jesus, by His vary nature, is by far the most controversial person alive.

His contemporaries were hateful to Him.

It offends people when you tell them they need to be forgiven of their sins.... And that is simply to be expected.

Maybe it is because people know deep inside there maybe something right about Him but would rather attack than think about it or change.

Maybe it is because becoming a Christian is so against everything we now believe in our culture (being cool, materialism, it is all about me, PC politics, etc.).

Maybe it is because some live their entire lives in a set of beliefs and near the end of it look back and see it all mattered for nothing and are pissed.

Why is it so easy for people to accept hatred and malice but can't grasp forgiveness from our Savior?

Sometimes the concept of hell gets people worked up. The argument on "How can a good God cast people into hell when they have lived a pretty good life" is false logic. Hell is a place where God is absent. This is exactly what the people who rejected God all their lives wanted. The "pit" of hell maybe a very comfortable place where everyone who rejected God their entire lives must now reside knowing they had lived their lives in a lie. That they had wasted it all. That actually may be worse than a guy with pitchfork.

God has given us all the "free will" to chose. God has sent his only Son to die for us, to suffer for our sins and to show us the way. God could have easily made a bunch of robots that would do everything he said but instead loved us enough for us to make our own decisions. All of us must make their own decision after they have reviewed the evidence. After all, Jesus Christ's resurrection is either the supreme fact in the history of mankind or a gigantic hoax. If Christ's resurrection is true -- we ignore its implications at our own peril. If not -- Christianity is the biggest fraud in the history of the world and should be easy enough to disprove.

Regards,

2banana
2 posted on 11/17/2005 9:54:29 AM PST by 2banana (My common ground with terrorists - They want to die for Islam, and we want to kill them.)
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To: SirLinksalot

God Bless the good pastor. His peril reminds us all of our Christian duty to bear witness, and speak the truth with love.


3 posted on 11/17/2005 9:55:25 AM PST by karnage
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To: SirLinksalot

Good for him.


4 posted on 11/17/2005 9:55:42 AM PST by talleyman (Who would Osamma vote for?)
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To: talleyman

BTTT


5 posted on 11/17/2005 9:57:20 AM PST by sr4402
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To: SirLinksalot
What these people need, who live under the slavery of sexual immorality, is an abundant grace. It exists. Therefore we will encourage those who live in this manner to look at the grace of Jesus Christ. We cannot condemn these people. Jesus never belittled anyone. He offered them grace.

Very true.

6 posted on 11/17/2005 9:58:54 AM PST by h8in08
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To: karnage

<<<<
God Bless the good pastor. His peril reminds us all of our Christian duty to bear witness, and speak the truth with love.
>>>>>

Canada practically outlaws the same kind of sermon that this Pastor preaches.

Do you think it can't happen here under our anti-discrimination laws ?

How about laws against hate speech ?


7 posted on 11/17/2005 9:59:16 AM PST by SirLinksalot
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To: 2banana

Great post!

"Hate crimes." Seems to me all crime has some implicit hate.


8 posted on 11/17/2005 9:59:24 AM PST by RexBeach ("The rest of the world is three drinks behind." -Humphrey Bogart)
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To: SirLinksalot
This is why all this hate crimes nonsense leads to in regard to homosexuality -- a complete denial of free speech for anyone that dare criticize such behavior.

This is why the Republicans must not be allowed to get away expanding hate crimes laws to including homosexuality.

9 posted on 11/17/2005 10:00:08 AM PST by Ol' Sparky
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To: SirLinksalot

Is tough love a hate crime?


10 posted on 11/17/2005 10:00:11 AM PST by sageb1 (This is the Final Crusade. There are only 2 sides. Pick one.)
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To: 2banana

Good post. points we all need to remember.


11 posted on 11/17/2005 10:00:55 AM PST by joebuck
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To: SirLinksalot
The only people that I have disdain for as much as those French Surrender Monkeys are these Swedish PC Wimps.
12 posted on 11/17/2005 10:03:29 AM PST by wmileo
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To: RexBeach

Throwing this guy in jail for this sermon is a form of hate.


13 posted on 11/17/2005 10:05:10 AM PST by Brilliant
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To: SirLinksalot

My prayers go out to the guy. How pathetic European 'culture' has become.


14 posted on 11/17/2005 10:05:28 AM PST by jjm2111 (99.7 FM Radio Kuwait)
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To: SirLinksalot
How come Amnesty International isn't launching a vigorous defense of free speech for this man? Oh yea, I know why.
15 posted on 11/17/2005 10:07:40 AM PST by Mulch (tm)
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To: SirLinksalot

Bless his heart. Courage and zeal for the truth is a beautiful thing. It is also good to remember that sometimes these awful experiences are the best opportunity to speak the truth to those who might otherwise never hear it. He is a wonderful example to follow.


16 posted on 11/17/2005 10:08:35 AM PST by The Ghost of FReepers Past ("The President and I cannot prevent certain politicians from losing their memory, or their backbone)
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To: SirLinksalot

This is a wonderful opportunity to witness. It would be worth two years in jail to be able to speak truth like this to the whole nation.

I doubt whether they will jail him, however, because this kind of witness reveals the tyrannical nature of the state as well as its moral emptiness. I doubt if they are stupid enough to jail him.

If they do, I expect it will mark a turning point in Swedish society. And whether he is jailed or not, the affair will end by doing a lot more good than harm, because it exposes these statist engineers for what they are.


17 posted on 11/17/2005 10:09:09 AM PST by Cicero (Marcus Tullius)
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To: SirLinksalot

My opinion - and it is only that - is as follows:

There is no such thing as "hate speech" or a "hate crime." Speech (other than serious threats) is protected by the First Amendment, and emotion as such should not be a relevant modifier in prosecuting crime. Whether you kill a man for his shoes or his skin tone shouldn't make any difference.

Any law that says otherwise is un-American.

And Canada doesn't count.


18 posted on 11/17/2005 10:10:00 AM PST by karnage
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To: SirLinksalot

This is ridiculous. I hope he gets off. Else Sweden will have failed to protect its democratic right to free speech, and free expression of faith.


19 posted on 11/17/2005 10:10:24 AM PST by Alexander Rubin (Octavius - You make my heart glad building thus, as if Rome is to be eternal.)
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To: SirLinksalot

There is at least a bit of upside to the de-Christianization of
Western Europe and Canada...
it'll be a lot more pleasant to smuggle Bibles into the beauty of places like
British Columbia.

And Canadian jails should be a lot nicer than the one in the Soviet Bloc.


20 posted on 11/17/2005 10:12:18 AM PST by VOA
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