Minister arrested for praying, reading Bible in front of DC abortion clinic!

Conservative Press International ^ | June 21, 2002 | Daniel S. McClintock

[CPI News]

Minister arrested for praying, reading in front of DC abortion clinic
By Daniel S. McClintock

Reverend Patrick Mahoney, director of the Christian Defense Coalition, has been arrested in Washington D.C. after praying and reading the Bible to close to an abortion clinic, despite a 1998 court order. The order made it illegal for pro-life protestors to protest abortion within 20 feet of an abortion clinic.

"If Mister Ashcroft wants to incarcerate an American citizen for simply reading scripture on a public sidewalk, I would find that most troubling, particularly in today's climate, where America is facing terrorist attack," he said Tuesday.

Rev. Mahoney faces a possible six month jail sentence for violating the court order.

CPI News reporters were unable to contact Mahoney for an interview.

Developing... http://www.cpinews.net/archives/2002-q2/mahoney.arrested.washingtondc/
http://www.cpinews.net

[CPI News]

This is outrageous! We're trying to get ahold of them...no success as of yet.

[Anamensis]

If he was actually on a sidewalk, which is public property (isn't it??) then he should not be arrested even if the sidewalk is less than 20 feet from the building. This could otherwise turn into a civil rights issue. I mean, if you are walking past the clinic, on the sidewalk, and you say aloud to your friend "I think abortion could be illegal" then... could you be arrested? This is not a good precedent to set. The only justification they should be able to come up with is if he was blocking people's entrance.

[kinsman redeemer]

Birth:
You're Lucky to Get Out ALIVE!

[Bigoleelephant]

Good thing the guy wasn't a 20-40 year old Arab. There might be some backlash then.

[B Knotts]

Did he have a Bible permit? :-P

[My2Cents]

Sad, sad commentary that it is illegal to read your Bible in front of an abortion clinic, but what's going on inside the clinic isn't illegal.

[Catspaw]

From the previous posts on this subject, it sounded as though Rev. Mahoney wanted to get arrested so he could challenge the law. This is his hook to get into court for the court battle that's to come.

[Russell Scott]

Sing "God Bless America" all you want America, He ain't listening as long as homosexuals get special rights, and people who read the Bible in public get arrested. Count on more 9/11's coming to a city near you soon.

[RonF]

"If Mister Ashcroft wants to incarcerate an American citizen for simply reading scripture on a public sidewalk, ..."

Well, of course the Reverend is doing no such thing. He's not simply reading scripture on a public sidewalk, he's deliberatly defying a court order designed to allow other people to use that public sidewalk, without harassment, to access a legal service.

Civil disobedience is all well and good, but you don't get the work of the Lord done by lying about it.

[drypowder]

I'd hate to be the cop that got that coller.

[CPI News]

Although it was defying a court order, the Bible says to obey God rather than man. And the Constitution gives us the freedom of religion, and the freedom of free speech. But heck, we all knew the government has trashed the Constitution by now....so it really isn't all that surprising. :-(

[Robert A Cook PE]

Not surprised ....

What?

Did you think that "freedom of expression" bit applied to conservatives or something?

Nah.

You can only apply freedom of speech to things like urinating on a cruxifix or throwing sh*t on a painting of the Virgin Mary.

[taxcontrol]

The sad truth is that each year more babies die in abortion clinics that died in the WTC.

[Robert A Cook PE]

I assume you also oppose all those who fought against the "legal" institutes of slavery and Jim Crow laws and "separate-but-equal schools" ......

[Almondjoy]

Are you serious? That law is there for a reason.. laws are indiscrimate for a reason.. for example(if you really need one). The law doesn't discriminate between a man who robs a liquor store to feed his children and a man who robs a liquor store to feed his drug habit.. don't you want blind justice? Wow you amaze me that you would actually want laws to take in consideration the circumstances of the incident.

[Paul Atreides]

Notice how the free speech crowd become so quiet when conservatives' rights of free speech are taken away.

[BibChr]

The sad truth is that each year more babies die in abortion clinics that died in the WTC.

Oh, my friend, it is MUCH WORSE, and more shameful than that!

Sitting down?

The truth is that EACH DAY more people are poisoned, burned, and/or butchered alive in abortuaries than died in the WTC. The figure is a horrifying FOUR THOUSAND A DAY average.

Dan
The Bible and the Bull's-Eye on the Baby

[El Sordo]

Now just hold on a minute.

He WAS NOT arrested for either reading the Bible or praying. He was arrested for violating a court order. If we disagree witht he order, so be it. But let's not get our collective knickers in a twist because he was praying and reading scripture while violating a court order.

[mil-vet]

[God] ain't listening as long as....

I heard a respected Christian minister say that he thought God had removed his protective hand from our country of late. Reason is the hollocaust of abortion, rampant homosexuality, licivious living so romanticisized and glorified by liberals, the liberal mouthpiece known as "the media", hollywood, et.al.!

Notice that almost all state capitals have become over-run by gays who are trying to further their agenda at the state gov't level. Notice that perversion of all sorts is being pushed by hollywood (and Nickelodian TV, et.al.) as "normal". To tolerate this is paramount to saying God made an error in destroying Sodom and Gemorah!

OK, so my statements are a tad simplistic, but I'm not Hemingway, and this is a "short entry" mode. Fact is that if you look around, there is a lot in this nation which would anger ANYONE (especially God), and it's not only being tolerated, in some cases it's being touted as good and proper.

There's bad and good everywhere, but the real problem here is that we, as a nation, aren't doing enough about the bad!

[LibertyGirl77]

God is absolutely listening. He will answer His children, too, when they call His name. You could be right--more terrorist attacks could happen any day. But that doesn't mean God stopped listening to His kids. He never promises that no adversity will befall our nation . . . only that His hand will be with us in life and death. There are many Biblical accounts of holy men and women who suffered through the tribulations of nations that, as a whole, turned their back on the Lord and His commandments. Yet even in the midst of their pain and anguish, God was there.

Please re-read the Old Testament books--Lamentations is a good one, along with any story you can find about Israel's wars and troubles . . . even the Psalms are full of prayers and praise to our God even in times of great sorrow. Our God loves and judges with the same hand--because loving and judging are one and the same to Him.