A retired Baptist pastor across the United Kingdom after being convicted under the country’s abortion buffer zone laws for preaching near a hospital facility.
The case involving 78-year-old Pastor Clive Johnston has quickly drawn attention from religious freedom groups, free speech advocates, and Christian communities across the UK and beyond.
Johnston was convicted after holding an outdoor Sunday service near Causeway Hospital in Coleraine, Northern Ireland, in July 2024.
According to reports, he preached from the Bible verse John 3:16 during the gathering, which took place close to an abortion facility covered by buffer zone restrictions.
Authorities argued that the service violated laws designed to limit certain activities near abortion clinics. Consequently, Johnston was fined the equivalent of about $613 after the court ruling on May 7.
Following the judgment, Johnston openly criticized the decision and warned about the wider impact on Christian freedom in the UK.
“This is a dark day for Christian freedom,” Johnston said after the ruling. “The buffer zones law is so broad that holding a Sunday service has been found to be a criminal offence.”
Johnston, who previously served as president of the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland, insisted that the outdoor service was peaceful and unrelated to abortion protests.
“We held a small, open air Sunday service near a hospital,” he said. “We made no reference whatsoever to the issue of abortion.”
Furthermore, he questioned whether public preaching could still exist freely in parts of Northern Ireland.
“I know it was an unusual place to hold an open-air service but that was the point,” Johnston added. “There shouldn’t be any public spaces in Northern Ireland where you can be prosecuted and convicted simply for preaching the Gospel.”
The controversial buffer zone laws were introduced across parts of the UK and Wales in October 2024. The rules generally create a 150-meter restricted area around abortion clinics.
Within those zones, activities seen as influencing abortion decisions are prohibited. In addition, silent prayers, demonstrations, and certain public gatherings can also lead to penalties.
Johnston’s legal team confirmed that an appeal is now being considered.
Christian Institute Director Ciarán Kelly said the case could create dangerous limits on public religious expression.
“Despite assurances to the contrary when this legislation was being considered, we now see that an already controversial and deeply unjust law has now been selectively applied to criminalize Gospel preaching,” Kelly stated.
“This is creeping censorship,” he added.
Last year, Army veteran Adam Smith-Conner was convicted after silently praying inside a restricted zone in Dorset County, England.
Meanwhile, religious liberty groups, including the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, have voiced concern over the growing number of cases involving Christians near abortion clinics.
Supporters of the laws, however, argue that the restrictions are necessary to protect women seeking medical services from harassment or pressure.
Nevertheless, Johnston’s conviction has reignited wider conversations about freedom of speech, public worship, and religious rights in modern Britain.
