We appreciate your support – without it we can’t do our research and help inform your prayers. So click below to join Christian Voice and stand up for the King of kings
Or fill in the form below if you would rather just keep in touch:
Click on the social media links below to share this post:
We appreciate your support – without it we can’t do our research and help inform your prayers.
So click below to join Christian Voice and stand up for the King of kings
Or fill in the form below if you would rather just keep in touch:
Click on the social media links below to share this post:
We appreciate your support – without it we can’t do our research and help inform your prayers. So click below to join Christian Voice and stand up for the King of kings
Or fill in the form below if you would rather just keep in touch:
Click on the social media links below to share this post:
Police forces have been told not to arrest preachers under the new guidance from their governing body. All officers in England and Wales will be trained to the new standard from the College of Policing from April 2023 according to a statement published on the College of Policing website.
The College of Policing CEO, chief constable Andy Marsh, said ‘Like so many areas of life, crime and the demands policing faces have changed radically. The training we provide officers needs to reflect this. We have listened to policing and the public to make sure the training helps officers tackle the core issues faced on the street. One of the issues includes traditional crimes such as burglary. But will deal with more emerging crime types like fraud and online crime’.
New guidelines
The guidelines now state that:
1 Non-crime hate incidents should not be recorded where they are trivial, irrational, or if there is no basis to conclude that an incident was motivated by hostility,
2 Individuals who are commenting in a legitimate debate. For example, political or social issues should not be stigmatised because someone is offended,
3 If a record is made, it must be done in the least intrusive way possible. For example, it may not be necessary to record the name of an individual or the location of an incident.
The updates seek to redress the balance between freedom of speech and ‘protecting vulnerable members of the public’, according to the statement.
Preaching the Gospel is commanded
The European Convention on Human Rights guarantees the rights to freedom of religious belief which is seen in (Article 9) freedom of expression. This includes freedom of speech (Article 10).
However, these rights only attest to Biblical command to Christians to preach the gospel. We find this all through the Gospels and Epistles. In the words of the Lord Jesus himself: Mark 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
The example of the early church shows how seriously the Apostles took their duty to preach: Acts 4:20 For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard. (More Bible Read Points below.)
The exercise of their God-given right by Christians and the persecution they have faced from officers of the law is a clear threat to our freedom of speech.
Arrested during Lockdown
On April 10, 2020, Metropolitan Police arrested pastor Joshua Sutcliffe for preaching the gospel during ‘Lockdown’. The police charged Pastor Sutcliffe, but London Magistrates Court cleared him of all charges. Pastor Joshua was preaching the Gospel and handing out leaflets in Camden, North London. According to CBN News, ‘Officers told him that being outdoors was a violation of the lockdown orders’.
The court judgment stated, ‘We find that the defendant was outside and that he had a reasonable excuse as he was travelling to his place of work, as a worship leader. Their gathering was limited in duration, and they were entitled to gather for street evangelising.’ The court found that the law permitted gathering and street evangelism during the lockdown, limited only in time duration.
After Pastor Sutcliffe’s release, He said ‘At one point, I was surrounded by four police officers. It was very intimidating. They treated me like a second-class citizen. I am a Christian minister of the Gospel, which not so long ago was a treasured and respected vocation in the UK’. His statement buttresses the age-long tradition of street preaching in the UK.
Preaching in the Open Air
Police violently arrest Pastor John Sherwood
On 23rd April 2021, CBN News reported that Pastor John Sherwood was arrested while preaching in an open air in Uxbridge, West London. He was accused of a criminal act for preaching what the word of God teaches about marriage.
Pastor John cited Genesis 1:27. He said: ‘God’s design in creating mankind was to set human beings in families’. He added that these families should be headed by a father and a mother, not by two fathers or by two mothers. ‘The distinction within mankind of just two genders, male and female, made in the image of God, constitutes the essence of God’s created order’, he added. It appears some bystanders called the police because they felt the preacher’s sermon was ‘offensive’. Under the new guidelines, the police should explain to those complaining that they will not arrest such a preacher but protect his freedom of speech.
Pastor Sherwood was acquitted by Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court on 7th April 2022. He was cleared of all charges of making ‘homophobic statements termed as offensive and discriminatory’ according to News Week.
Pastor’s arrest and ill-treatment were carried out as if he was a violent criminal as this YouTube clip reveals.
While Pastor Sherwood was being dragged away, a lady in the crowd can be heard heard saying, ‘it’s a Christian country, let him speak.’ Pastor Peter Simpson, who was preaching alongside pastor Sherwood, noted that others in the crowd had accused him of ‘hate speech’ as well. Christian Post report.
Michael Overd
Michael Overd (l) and Michael Stockwell were acquitted at Bristol Crown Court
Similarly, in July 2016 we reported that Michael Overd was arrested in Broadmead Shopping Center in Bristol. He and his fellow preacher, Mike Stockwell, were accused of ‘religious aggravated public order offence’ in February 2017. The pair were convicted in what we described as a biased magistrates court, and were duly acquitted on appeal to the Crown Court.
Mr. Overd was also arrested for preaching the gospel in Taunton, Somerset. The BBC reported that during his preaching he stated, ‘Even these dear men caught in homosexuality, if they ask God for forgiveness of sin, they will be forgiven. God loves them that much.’ The two men concerned subsequently made an official complaint to the police. Mr. Overd was charged under Section 5 of the Public Order Act 1986 for words which allegedly caused harassment, alarm or distress.
Defended by barrister Paul Diamond, Michael Overd was acquitted. The magistrates found that he did not intend to cause harassment, alarm or distress contrary to Section 5 of the Public Order Act 1986.
Arrest at Cardiff Mardi Gras
Stephen Green outside Cardiff Magistrates Court after the case against him was dropped.
Stephen Green, National Director of Christian Voice, was arrested by South Wales Police for distributing gospel leaflets at a homosexual event in Cardiff in 2006. He was giving out the leaflets out side the ‘Mardi Gras’ event when a police Inspector from the ‘Minorities Support Unit’ demanded he stop. The policeman arrested Mr Green when he immediately handed a leaflet to the next passer-by. Here is our report.
Mr. Green was held in a cell in Cardiff Police for four hours before being charged under the Public Order Act 1986. He was released after a brief pre-trial hearing. The Public Prosecutor admitted there were human rights issues but arrest, detention and charge were a violation of his right to freedom of expression.
The leaflet Stephen Green was giving out maintained that marriage could only exist between a man and woman. It cited Biblical passages condemning the act of homosexuality but also spoke of forgiveness and healing from ungodly desires. That was too much for the Mardi Gras organisers and the Police Minorities Support Unit. Mr Green afterwards sued South Wales Police for unlawful arrest, wrongful detentiuon and malicious prosecution and won. Even the homosexual Pink News website reported that he said: “I thank God for the honour of being locked up for sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”
Let Preachers Preach!
On 17th July 2022, a Nigerian preacher was arrested and detained in London for preaching the gospel. In a video which went viral on Instagram, he can be heard telling the police that they were harassing him and that he had done nothing wrong. He declined to provide his name and address when prompted, stating that he would report the incident because they had only arrested him for speaking about Jesus.
Charges, arrests for breaching public order and allegations of hate speech leveled against Christian preachers have arisen because the Bible’s standards of holiness and its statement of God’s institution of marriage are so challenging. Complaining homosexuals consider such standards so offensive no-one should voice them.
Furthermore, the Bible states that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the only way to find salvation. Muslims contend that ‘Allah’ is God and that it is blasphemous to say that Jesus is the Son of God. So Muslims have also called for preachers to be arrested, although not as frequently as have homosexuals.
The UK’s elite is of course firmly in favour of same-sex sexual rights. We see that as at odds with the foundation of our nation, which was established on the principles and values of Christianity.
Redmond-Bate case
Sir Stephen Sedley – ‘Freedom of speech to say the inoffensive is not worth having
Christian Voice has constantly defended the right of Christian preachers to preach. We were greatly encouraged by the case of Redmond-Bate vs the Director of Public Prosecutions. One PC Tennant arrested Alison Redmond-Bate when she refused to stop preaching on the steps of Wakefield Cathedral in October 1997.
Alison Redmond-Bate was convicted by magistrates of obstructing the police officer in the execution of his duty. Her conviction was upheld by the Crown Court. The landmark case eventually reached Lord Justice Sedley and Mr. Justice Collins in the Court of Appeal in June 1999. Sedley LJ wrote the judgement in which he set aside the conviction. The summary is HERE on Swarb. The whole judgment is well worth a read here on the Oxford University Press website.
In his judgment, Lord Justice Sedley said: ‘Freedom of speech means nothing unless it includes the freedom to be irritating, contentious, heretical, and provocative provided it did not tend to provoke violence. Freedom only to speak inoffensively is not worth having.’
He went on: ‘There was no reasonable inference available in this case to the police officer that the preacher, preaching about morality, was about to cause a breach of public peace. … The constable was not acting in the execution of his duty when he required the women to stop preaching, and the appellant was therefore not guilty of obstructing him in the execution of his duty when she refused to comply.’
The law of the land
That acquittal established the law of the land in England and Wales. As a result, every Christian preacher arrested and charged under the Public Order Act 1986, properly represented in Court, has been either acquitted or the charges have been dropped. But that has not stopped the police continuing to harass preachers. It has taken over twenty years for the police to catch up.
Just a day ago, the Daily Telegraph reported on Stephen Watson, Greater Manchester chief constable, telling his officers to told to stop wasting time on Twitter disputes ‘simply because someone is offended.’ They had been ‘overzealous’ in recording trivial online spats, he said.
Donna Jones, Hampshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner
And from the Evening Standard we learnt that Hampshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones criticised her own force for sending police officers on two occasions to question and then arrest a man for an alleged offensive social media post.
The new guidance from the College of Policing aiming to put an end to arresting preachers is a welcome development. However, how much time will it take to filter down through Chief Constables to the rank and file? Will the new policy make any changes to the arrest mentality of police on patrol?
We need to pray that the Police will observe legal precedents and protect, not abuse, preachers who exercise their freedom of speech according to the newly revised Policing Policy codes.
Prayer Points
Read: Isa 52:7; Mark 1:14-15, 16:15; Matt 10:7; Matt 28:18-19; Luke 9:2, 10:1; John 3:16-18; Acts 4:18-20, 5:29, 10:42; Rom 1:16, 10:14-15; 2Tim 4:2. Pray:
* Thank God for the victory to freely preach the word of God in the UK.
* Pray for lost souls in the United Kingdom.
* Pray for Christians in the UK and all over the world who are persecuted.
* Pray for the love and peace of God in our country. Jer 29:7 And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the LORD for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.
We appreciate your support – without it we can’t do our research and help inform your prayers.
So click below to support or join Christian Voice and stand up for the King of kings
Or fill in the form below to keep in touch:
Click on the social media links below to share this post:
When is a vaccine passport not a vaccine passport? When it’s a Covid Certificate, of course.
The Government have a quick-fire consultation out on Covid-status certification, with a closing time of 11:45pm on Monday 29th March 2021. Everyone concerned about religious, social and economic normality, civil liberties and God-given freedoms should pray into this and respond.
Even today (Monday 29th) Wetherspoons chief Tim Martin has robustly denounced it as a non-starter and ‘the final straw’ for the hospitality tradein the Daily Telegraph. You need to respond because just being a stupid idea does not mean it will not take a miracle to stop.
Acts 22:28 And the chief captain answered, With a great sum obtained I this freedom. And Paul said, But I was free born.
Consultation webpage
On their ‘consultation’ webpage the Government say: ‘The government is reviewing whether COVID-status certification could play a role in reopening our economy, reducing restrictions on social contact and improving safety.’
We say: Just reopen the economy and remove all the restrictions. People have a God-given right to work:
Psalm 104:23 Man goeth forth unto his work and to his labour until the evening.
They go on: ‘COVID-status certification refers to the use of testing or vaccination data to confirm in different settings that individuals have a lower risk of getting sick with or transmitting COVID-19 to others. Such certification would be available both to vaccinated people and to unvaccinated people who have been tested.’
We say: That is an unwarranted intrusion into people’s medical records. Did they do that last winter for flu? In fact, this author, in company with millions of other ‘refuseniks’, has just refused the Covid vaccine. Nor has he ever had a flu jab.
Psalm 94:22 But the LORD is my defence; and my God is the rock of my refuge.
‘Covid-secure mitigations’
They say: ‘The government will assess to what extent certification would be effective in reducing risk, and its potential uses in enabling access to settings or relaxing COVID-secure mitigations.’
Canute demonstrates how Royal Decree cannot stop the tide – or Covid.
We say: There was never any justification for putting millions out of work in any case.
The idea that any of their ‘COVID-secure mitigations’ made the slightest difference to the course of the Covid-19 disease is on a par with King Canute’s courtiers believing he could turn back the incoming tide by royal decree.
They have now vaccinated, or at least offered the vaccine to, all vulnerable groups and if their vaccines are as good as they say, they have no excuse not to open up all hospitality, events, sports and the arts right now. Why are they dragging their feet? Set the people free!
Isa 58:6 Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?
Call for evidence
Finally, they say: ‘We are issuing this call for evidence to inform this review into COVID-status certification, to ensure that the recommendations reflect a broad range of interests and concerns. We welcome views from all respondents.’
Isa 16:5 And in mercy shall the throne be established: and he shall sit upon it in truth in the tabernacle of David, judging, and seeking judgment, and hasting righteousness.
This is your opportunity to be a point of witness to tell them not to bring in any form of Covid passport or certificate.
Gillian Joseph interviews Culture Secretary Oliver Downden MP
Remember the government have repeatedly pledged not to introduce vaccine passports.
Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden struggled to explain how “Covid-19 certification” for people visiting mass events would differ from “Covid-19 passports.”
RT reports that Mr Dowden told Gillian Joseph of Sky News on Friday his office was ‘working on measures that would allow football games and theatre performances to happen again with as much of an audience as possible’.
However, he spoiled it by saying it needs to be done ‘safely’. The very use of that word instills a false sense of insecurity in people. It’s just more Project Fear.
Mr Dowden reassured Ms Joseph that the certificate “won’t be a vaccine passport” and described it as “a way to facilitate proving” that a person has had a vaccine or a negative Covid test, thus helping “more people get into stadiums.” And into churches?
RT goes on: ‘He wouldn’t offer any details as to how long a certificate would last, or how the system would be policed, simply saying that “those are certainly legitimate questions” and referring to the review. He stressed that having packed venues again “is vital not just for our sense of national well-being, but to the whole national economy”.’
Well of course it is. So just do it.
No Rights in Israel – Bonkers in Brussels
Here is where it will end up: Lockdown Sceptics reports ‘an Israeli court sided with a school over its decision to dismiss a teaching assistant who declined to give proof of vaccination or negative Covid test’. Citing her right to privacy and freedom of conscience availed not. The story is here
Meanwhile, Brussels Times reports on ‘a Belgian Professor’s call for “a new lockdown, a real one, where no one goes to work, including workers or construction workers, and where schools close”. After two to four weeks, restrictions could be “relaxed a bit, if the figures have fallen sufficiently”.’ And king Canute turned the tide with a word.
Ezek 45:9 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Let it suffice you, O princes of Israel: remove violence and spoil, and execute judgment and justice, take away your exactions from my people, saith the Lord GOD.
PRAYER
Continue to pray for our leaders to seek the Lord in humility for his wisdom.
James 4:6 But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.
We appreciate your support – without it we can’t do our research and help inform your prayers.
So click below to join Christian Voice and stand up for the King of kings Click on the social media links below to share this post:
But now ask your MP to ask the Government to recommend Good Friday to Her Majesty as a day of prayer for release from Covid-19.
DIY abortions
Psalm 106:37 Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils,
The Government has announced the biggest change to abortion provision since 1967. They have introduced ‘telemedicine abortions’. A woman can just ring or Skype a doctor for for ‘DIY’ abortion pills, mifepristone and misoprostol.
She will then perform her own abortion at home, by taking both abortion pills, meaning she will be left to deliver her dead unborn child at home without a doctor or any other medical professional present. This is a backstreet abortion, the type abortionists say they are against.
Safety and safeguarding issues
Only last week, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care said “there are no proposals to change abortion rules.” The Department of Health stated the proposal carried ‘significant safety and safeguarding issues’ for women and young girls. Indeed, who might be standing over her as she makes the call?
Under the Abortion Act 1967, abortions could only take place in hospitals or abortion clinics approved by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. That brought judgment on us all:
Deut 19:10 That innocent blood be not shed in thy land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and so blood be upon thee.
But this change will leave even more mothers bereaved and without the opportunity to consider the gravity of what they are doing. It has been made without any public consultation, parliamentary scrutiny or debate whatsoever.
The approval will expire “on the day on which the temporary provisions of the Coronavirus Act 2020 expire, or the end of the period of 2 years beginning with the day on which it is made, whichever is earlier.”
MPs must call government to account
We demand the Government rescind this decision and we urge MPs to call them to account.
Psalm 139:13 For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother’s womb.
We appreciate your support – without it we can’t do our research and help inform your prayers.
So click below to join Christian Voice and stand up for the King of kings Click on the social media
Ambassadors of eleven nations held a press conference to condemn the ICPD25 Nairobi Summit and UNFPA
Ambassadors of eleven nations held a press conference to condemn the ICPD25 Nairobi Summit and UNFPA
A joint statement by eleven nations on the last day of the UNFPA Summit in Nairobi condemned UNFPA without mentioning the UN population agency by name.
The UN’s Fund for Population activities had hoped the jamboree would pass off without controversy. They wanted to counter ‘the push-back’ against homosexuality and abortion in the developing world. They would be disappointed.
(All our links open automatically in a new tab, on desktops & laptops, anyway.)
Press conference
Firstly, the United States, flanked by ambassadors from Brazil, Belarus, Egypt, Haiti, Hungary, Libya, Poland, Senegal, St. Lucia, and Uganda, held a press conference on 14th November 2019.
The US Special Representative for Global Women’s Health, Valerie Huber read a Statement. This reminded ‘both those gathered and those watching’ of the original aims of ICPD. The International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) was held in Cairo in 1994. Its stated objectives and actions seem dated now. They saw ‘critical challenges and interrelationships between population and sustained economic growth’. They placed it ‘in the context of sustainable development.’
Before the Statement, the Press Conference heard from Kenyan MPs Hon Chris Wamalwa, and Hon Jennifer Shamalla. Although Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and Deputy William Rutu steered clear of abortion and homosexuality when opening and closing the Summit respectively, these two MPs gave the press corps both barrels.
Parallel Conference
Secondly, Kenya Christian Professionals organised their own conference and also issued a statement. International ambassadors also addressed one session.
According to C-Fam, ‘The parallel conference included a high-level intergovernmental event with government representatives of the United States, Hungary, Poland, Brazil, Kenya and the Holy See Nuncio. They affirmed their governments commitment to policy that foster strong families and protects unborn life and criticized UNFPA for going beyond the mandate established at the ICPD 25 years ago.
The concern of the Eleven was that UNFPA and the Scandinavian nations behind the 2019 Nairobi Summit were taking the 1994 Cairo Declaration too far.
A pre-summit document from UNFPA spoke of an ‘ambition’. This was ‘how countries can move towards universal access to sexual and reproductive health and rights’. That would be ‘an essential part of universal health coverage’.
‘Sexual rights’ is shorthand for liberalising laws against homosexuality, while ‘reproductive rights’ refers to abortion.
1994 Cairo Declaration
Helpfully, UNFPA itself carries the original 1994 Cairo Declaration on its website. There are three mentions of ‘reproductive health’. All are in the context of family planning. But national governments must respect ‘their own national and cultural identity, values and tradition’.
There is no mention of ‘reproductive rights’, ‘sexual health’ or ‘sexual rights’ in the Cairo Declaration at all. Consequently there is no ‘reproductive right’ to abortion’. However the Declaration was not explicitly pro-life. It called upon national Governments ‘to reduce the need for abortion by providing universal access to family planning information and services.’
Contraception increases abortion
The Declaration blithely assumes that ‘access to family planning information and services’ reduces ‘the need for abortion’. However, that is simply not true.
Eighteen years before Cairo, British abortionist Dr Judith Bury, of Brook Advisory Centres, let the cat out of the bag. In 1981 she said “…women…have come to request [abortions] when contraception fails. There is overwhelming evidence that, contrary to what you might expect, the provision of contraception leads to an increase in the abortion rate.”
Comprehensive Sexuality Education
The Nairobi Summit was also promoting what is termed ‘Comprehensive Sexuality Education’ or CSE. This assault on the innocence of children figures nowhere in the Cairo Declaration.
Indeed, education in the Declaration had one single purpose. It was set solely in the context of increasing the wellbeing of women and girls. It would do that by bettering their health-care and developing their opportunities. Yes, it spoke of the feminist mantra of ‘women’s empowerment’. But ‘sex education’ of any kind was not there.
ICPD Program of Action
The UNFPA draw heavily on the ICPD Program of Action. This document, parallel to the Cairo Declaration, runs to 296 pages. It does contain references to ‘reproductive rights’ but these are nowhere defined, let alone to include a supposed ‘right’ to abortion. Indeed, the Government of Honduras entered a reservation in the document to clarify matters. It said the terms “‘reproductive rights’ and ‘sexual rights'” … “do not include ‘abortion’ or ‘termination of pregnancy’.”
There is no reference to ‘legalisation of abortion’ or ‘legal abortion’. Indeed, the Programme states:
‘7.24 Governments should take appropriate steps to help women avoid abortion, which in no case should be promoted as a method of family planning, and in all cases provide for the humane treatment and counselling of women who have had recourse to abortion.’
Consensus
The Program of Action was passed by consensus. It was then ‘endorsed by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in its resolution 49/128 of December 19, 1994.’ ‘Consensus’ is important in interantional law. If enough nations agree on something it begins to have a certain standing.
Therefore the 2019 Statement of the Eleven nations clarifies this point. ‘UN Member States were able to join consensus because the ICPD Program of Action preamble paragraph 1.15 made clear that the conference did not create any new international human rights, and that “the implementation of the recommendations contained in the Programme of Action is the sovereign right of each country, consistent with national laws and development priorities, with full respect for the various religious and ethical values and cultural backgrounds of its people, and in conformity with universally recognized international human rights”.’
Ambiguous terms
When it came to the ‘rights’ element in the context of ‘consensus’ the Eleven did not hold back. ‘We are also concerned about the content of some of the key priorities of this Summit. We do not support references in international documents to ambiguous terms and expressions, such as sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), which do not enjoy international consensus, nor contemplates the reservations and caveats incorporated into the Cairo outcome.
‘In addition, the use of the term SRHR may be used to actively promote practices like abortion. There is no international right to abortion; in fact, international law clearly states that “[e]veryone has the right to life” (e.g. Article 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights). ‘
No transparency
The 2019 Statement also condemned the Nairobi Summit for lack of transparency and inclusiveness. Cairo ‘was negotiated and implemented with and by the entire UN General Assembly membership’. In contrast, ‘only a small handful of governments were consulted on the planning and modalities of the 2019 Nairobi Summit’. (Mostly it was the Scandinavians.)
It follows, ‘outcomes from this summit are not intergovernmentally negotiated, nor are they the result of a consensus process. As a result, they should not be considered normative, nor should they appear in future documents as intergovernmentally-agreed language.’
Pro-family and pro-life nations will no doubt be on the alert for any sign of UNFPA language creeping in international documents. UNFPA will never bring its works to the light of the full UN. The Statement of the Eleven is clear. Without such universal acceptance, ‘no ICPD follow-on document has consensual weight or standing amongst governments.’
The value of Trump
It is worth saying that such a statement would never have been possible if Hilary Clinton had been elected President of the United States in 2016, the Statement of the Eleven would never have happened. It is only because of the staunch pro-life stand of the Trump administration that the 2019 Nairobi Summit was so roundly condemned.
So Almighty God plays a long game, and we should praise his name for all he did during the Summit. We were able to give out around 2,000 pro-life leaflets peacefully to delegates queuing for the Summit. Most were distributed on the opening day, Tuesday. And when we do the little things, we can leave it to the Lord to work miracles. The Statement of the Eleven is one of those things only God can organise.
Just remember, there is all to pray for as the US elections 2020 come ever closer.
Dan 2:21 And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:
What does this Trump / Kim handshake mean for the Christians of North Korea?
What does this Trump / Kim handshake mean for the Christians of North Korea?
What does the Trump / Kim Summit mean for North Korea’s Christians?
Firstly, we thank God the summit has happened. It has advanced peace and lessened the prospect of war. Naturally, the mainstream media are asking who ‘won’ or who ‘gained the most from it’?
It appears the Democratic Peoples’ Republic of Korea, to give North Korea its preferred name, will cease all nuclear tests. Meanwhile, the United States will stop what President Trump conceded are ‘provocative’ military exercises in South Korea. Neither of those undertakings appeared in the agreed communique, which is here.
That saw the DPRK committed to ‘work toward complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula’. But of course Kim Jung-Un does not want to end up like Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi. So the undertaking does not amount to much. But asking who won and who lost is typical MSM playground talk. A more mature look is probably this one at RT.
Prov 22:10 Cast out the scorner, and contention shall go out; yea, strife and reproach shall cease.
Peace and prosperity
Firstly, we need to thank God the two men met at all. In addition, after last week’s G7 debacle, we thank God they agreed a statement. When President Trump met the G7 leaders last week, they could not agree a form of words. That was at least partly because the President wants Russia readmitted to a new G8, says the Guardian. This time, there is a stated intention of the US and the DPRK ‘to establish new US-DPRK relations’. These were: ‘in accordance with the desire of the peoples of the two countries for peace and prosperity.’
In addition, ‘the United States and DPRK will join their efforts to build a lasting and stable peace regime on the Korean Peninsula’.
As we keep saying, peace and prosperity are good things. God’s heart is for people to live in peace.
Eccl 2:24 There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labour. This also I saw, that it was from the hand of God.
But make no mistake, there are those who will dislike such words. They will be working to undermine the declaration. As Iran is telling the North Koreans, you can never be sure which Donald Trump is going to show up. Above all, the US is constantly trying to defend and enhance its economic interests worldwide. That’s not a reprehensible thing. All countries do it. We just need to be aware it happens and pray the more for peace.
Kim-Moon summit paved the way
Much prayer has gone into this process already. The historic meeting in April between Kim Jong-un and South Korea’s Moon Jae-in paved the way for the Trump-Kim summit.
Christianheadlines says: ‘The meeting of the two leaders signalled a major change in North Korea’s relations with the rest of the world and sparked hope that conditions for North Korean citizens–and particularly Christians–can begin to improve.’
Following the meeting, Kim Jong-un and Moon Jae-in issued a joint statement: ‘There will be no mo
re war on the Korean peninsula, and a new age of peace has begun.’
Christians in South Korea, says the website, were fasting and praying for the Kim-Moon summit. ‘In Paju, a city just south of the North Korean border, pastors held an all-night vigil and South Korean Christian politicians also fasted and prayed.’
Isa 2:4 And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
Worst place to be a Christian
Open Doors says North Korea is simply the worst place in the world to be a Christian. Their website carries three terrible stories which illustrate the plight of North Korea’s Christian under Kim Jong-Un.
Open Doors’ Robert Kenna says: ‘It’s hard to fathom that people are not free to attend and be part of a church, or even express their religious beliefs to their children, out of fear they will say something to the wrong person.’
Christianheadlines quotes Ryan Morgan, an analyst with International Christian Concern Asia: ‘The regime still has up to 70,000 Christians locked away in virtual concentration camps.’ Mr Morgan added that a Christian believer and three generations of his or her family can still go to prison for life just for owning a Bible. Open Doors suggests over 50,000 Christians are imprisoned. Either way, it is outrageous and counter-productive. The Lord wants his people to live in peace, free from persecution. He sets his heart against a nation which oppresses. And just imagine the benefit to North Korea of all that liberated prayer:
Jer 29:7 And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the LORD for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.
Prospects for North Korea’s Christians
Kim Dong-chul, Kim Sang-duk and Kim Hak-song
So does all the diplomatic activity mean things are opening up for North Korea’s Christians? Is religious freedom high on the Trump agenda? Well, the three US nationals released by North Korea prior to the summit were all Christians. Professors Kim Dong Chul, Kim Hak Song, and Kim Sang Duk are evangelical academics who were working at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology, according to Christianity Today.
Meanwhile, Fox News reports on Christians praying for the Kim-Trump Summit on ‘the Korean peninsula and in Singapore, where the monumental summit is taking place.’
It went on to say: ‘On Sunday, several churches just miles away from the Trump-Kim meeting location on Santosa Island, prayed for the two world leaders before their one-on-one discussion in hopes of North Korean denuclearization and a possible peace treaty to end the Korean War.’
1Tim 2:2 (Pray) For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.
‘Foley says, “From a Christian perspective there are four words we should be praying we hear at the summit. The four words we have been hearing are words like, ‘It’s a new day’. But as Christians, we should be praying that the words we hear are, ‘We need to repent, or we need to change.’”
‘Foley continues, “Those kinds of phrases like, ‘We need security guarantees’, or ‘Please give us money’, or ‘Let’s end this war’, all of those sound promising. But what we know as Christians is that unless there is a fundamental heart change on the part of the leaders of North Korea than all of the promises we hear at the summit will amount to nothing.”’
Foley says prayer should not be conditioned by a step-by-step approach. The idea that economic incentives are followed by nuclear disarmament and then followed by religious freedom is not biblical, he says.
Instead, ‘What’s known in the Scriptures and what North Korean believers follow is that in order for there to be change between nations, the heart of the leader of the nation must be transformed. Pray that God would radically step into this unusual situation and change the heart of North Korean leaders. Pray that they would seek God and find Him and begin to follow Him alone as Lord.’
Dan 4:37 Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase.
Open Doors prayer points
Open Doors estimates there are 300,000 Christians in North Korea. Chairman Kim could remember that Christians were at the forefront in opposing the Japanese occupation of the peninsular from 1910 to 1945.
President Trump and Kim Jong-un’s historic meeting on June 12 will be the first in a series of actions that sets Korea on a new course of religious freedom.
Kim will be convinced to release the more than 50,000-plus Christians unjustly held in detention centers and prison camps throughout the country.
Kim will allow for the creation of new churches where North Koreans can freely worship outside of the one “show church” that currently exists.
Existing believers within North Korea would take courage to lead a new revival of the Christian faith in North Korea.
We shall go even further. We urge that ‘big prayer’ for Kim to be convicted of how much more authority he would have under Christ Jesus, repent and believe in the saving power of the King of kings.
And that, in a way, is what Premier Radio says Christians in North Korea are praying for. It’s not regime change they want, because someone else would take Kim’s place. It’s a change of heart in the regime. We could also pray that US negotiators will keep raising this point. It’s one we can pray our UK MP’s press HM Government to raise with both North Korea and the US. And with South Korea, for that matter.
1Tim 6:15 Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;
We’ll really appreciate your support
Click below to join Christian Voice and stand up for the King of kings
Click on the social media links below to share this post:
Germaine Greer has told an audience at the Hay Literary Festival that ‘most rape’ is not violent but ‘lazy, careless and insensitive.’
Her intervention prompts us to look at what the word of God says. We shall find it is at odds with both contemporary views and Miss Greer’s revisionism. But first, what did she actually say?
She suggested offenders could have an ‘r’ tattooed on their hand, arm or cheek. They should also, she proposed, do 200 hours’ community service.
Neither will happen, but her intention was both to irritate and trivialise the crime. As an exercise in provocation, some commentators said, it worked. The audience, said one, was ‘stunned’.
The academic argued that rape is rampant in society and ‘the legal system cannot cope with it’. She said it always ‘comes down to the issue of consent’. In her view, the alleged victims become little more than ‘bits of evidence’.
No communication
‘Most rapes don’t involve any injury whatsoever,’ Miss Greer said. ‘We are told that it is a sexually violent crime. An expert like Quentin Tarantino will tell us that when you use the word rape you’re talking about violence, a throwing them down. It is one of the most violent crimes in the world.’
Dr Greer said she firmly disagreed with that.
‘Most rape is just lazy, just careless, insensitive. Every time a man rolls over on his exhausted wife and insists on enjoying his conjugal rights he is raping her. It will never end up in a court of law.
‘Instead of thinking of rape as a spectacularly violent crime, and some rapes are, think about it as non-consensual … that is bad sex. Sex where there is no communication, no tenderness, no mention of love.’
Germaine Greer is controversial!
Dr Greer acknowledged her thesis would be controversial. “It is moments like these, I can hear the feminists screaming at me, ‘you’re trivialising rape!’
“Well I’ll tell you what … You might want to believe that the penis is a lethal weapon and that all women live in fear of that lethal weapon, well that’s bull****. It’s not true. We don’t live in terror of the penis … A man can’t kill you with his penis.”
She questioned a statistic which said that 70% of rape victims had suffered post-traumatic stress disorder compared with 20% of conflict veterans.
‘What the hell are you saying? Something that leaves no sign, no injury, no nothing is more damaging to a woman than seeing your best friend blown up by an IED is to a veteran?’
Society wanted women to believe that rape destroyed them, she said. ‘We haven’t been destroyed, we’ve been bl***y annoyed is what we’ve been.’
Changed minds
Such a view is supported by the evidence in some recently collapsed rape trials. The accusers were happy to engage in sexual relations with a man. They even sent texts afterwards saying how much they enjoyed it. Then they changed their minds. And rather than put it down to experience, they went to the police and accused the man of rape. It is such an easy accusation to make. And in such a sex-obsessed society as ours, as Miss Greer points out, some will see rape everywhere.
Dr Greer referenced Tarantino, but his view of rape as inherently violent is not new. Seeing rape as less a sexual act and more ‘an act of violence, with sex as the weapon,’ was coined by Professors Burgess and Holmstrom in 1974. Feminists took it up with gusto. However, plainly, Germaine Greer disagrees with that view. But she flies to the other extreme and trivialises sexual congress. She is right at a human level to call for more intimacy and gentleness. But she is wrong to suggest unwanted sexual intercourse is only seriously wrong if actual physical violence is involved.
The Biblical view
The Bible views rape as an act not of violence but one of sexual violation. And that is simply because the Almighty designated marriage as the only place for sexual relations.
Dinah’s brothers Simeon and Levi were outraged their sister had engaged in what she and her boyfriend Shechem intended as pre-marital sex:
Gen 34:1 And Dinah the daughter of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land. 2 And when Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite, prince of the country, saw her, he took her, and lay with her, and defiled her.
This was not rape. There is no hint of force, as when Amnon raped his half-sister Tamar in 2Sam 13. Nor was it a drunken pick-up in a town-centre pub. It was not a one-night stand. Dinah and Shechem seriously wanted to get married. But the word ‘defiled’ shows the seriousness of doing what they did the wrong side of the wedding feast.
A grammatical dictum explains the correct usage of the word ‘anticipate’. ‘When we say Shechem and Dinah “anticipated” their marriage we do not mean they were looking forward to it.’ Instead, they had jumped the gun. Shechem was a wealthy prince. He was even willing to be circumcised and accept the God of Israel. But to no avail. Simeon and Levi pulled a trick and massacred all the men of his city. When their father Jacob remonstrated with them, they furiously replied:
Gen 34:31 … Should he deal with our sister as with an harlot?
The grace of God in the law
They were hasty, cruel and violent, said their father. Nevertheless, theirs would have been the prevailing view. It is indeed a Biblical view. But all the same, there was another Biblical way, the way Shechem pleaded for. The law, codified on Mount Sinai but in existence in their day, made gracious provision for such an occurrence:
Exodus 22:16 And if a man entice a maid that is not betrothed, and lie with her, he shall surely endow her to be his wife. 17 If her father utterly refuse to give her unto him, he shall pay money according to the dowry of virgins.
The dowry of virgins was higher than that of non-virgins, for a mixture of spiritual and practical reasons. Despite what Dr Greer said and what much of our society believes, the loss of her virginity outside marriage was – and is – a devastating thing to happen to a girl. Moreover, the Lord expected families to safeguard their daughters:
Lev 19:29 Do not prostitute thy daughter, to cause her to be a whore; lest the land fall to whoredom, and the land become full of wickedness.
Despite what Germaine Greer says, consent is not remotely the issue. The Bible commends grace, love, tenderness, respect and patience within marriage, but neither is that the issue. The only consideration is, ‘Are they married?’ Only within marriage is consent to sexual intercourse valid. Going further, within marriage, consent to sexual intercourse is assumed.
Death penalty for adultery and rape
Seen in this context, we can understand the death penalty for adultery in Deuteronomy 22:22. It is a violation of the sacred bond of marriage. We can see why a man who really does rape a betrothed woman faces the death penalty a few verses on:
Deut 22:25 But if a man find a betrothed damsel in the field, and the man force her, and lie with her: then the man only that lay with her shall die:
We can see why, if the laying together is consensual, the verses that follow lay the death penalty on both. In all these cases, as Deut 24:1-4 and Numb 35:31 make clear, the death penalty could be commuted to a payment of money. But it remains a serious violation of God’s created order, given for our good.
Stability of marriage
God’s design for society is far away from our own, and a world away from the one Germaine Greer proposes. God takes sex seriously because he takes marriage seriously. And he takes marriage seriously because he takes the stability of society seriously.
On the issue of sentencing, Prof Greer is wrong again. There can never be two classes of convictions. There cannot be a serious, proper, proven rape which leads to prison, and a sort of second class, barely-proven, semi-rape which merely requires community service.
The Bible, all the way through, in both Old and New Testaments, demands a case be proven by witnesses:
Deut 19:15 One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established.
Matt 18:16 But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.
Our current practice is to grant anonymity to accusers but not to the accused. Such different treatment is what the Bile calls ‘respect of persons.’ It too flies in the face of the Biblical witness:
2Chron 19:7 Wherefore now let the fear of the LORD be upon you; take heed and do it: for there is no iniquity with the LORD our God, nor respect of persons, nor taking of gifts.
Germaine Greer as ‘TERF’
Germaine Greer wrote the book ‘The Female Eunuch’ in 1970. It probably did as much as anything to set the feminist ball rolling. It played a part in the so-called sexual revolution. But maybe its author now sees what she set in motion has become the monster it always would be.
Certainly she is not now afraid to annoy the chattering classes. To take another example, Prof Greer has infuriated what we these days call ‘snowflakes’ with her views on transsexuals. Students at both Cardiff and Bristol have tried to ‘no-platform’ her. Why? She maintains male-female transsexuals are ‘not women’. That makes her a ‘TERF’, a ‘Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminist’ and a holder of ‘transphobic’ views.
Thank you, Dr Greer
So we thank her for raising this issue, which has allowed us to seek the Lord. We pray to have done that faithfully. No doubt our many contributors will correct and clarify in the comments.
We’ll really appreciate your support
Click below to join Christian Voice and stand up for the King of kings
Click on the social media links below to share this post:
Sky News reports, ‘The former leader of the English Defence League, Tommy Robinson, has been jailed for 13 months after flouting court orders for a second time.’
It goes on, ‘The EDL founder – whose real name Stephen Christopher Yaxley-Lennon was listed on court documents – was sentenced to 10 months for contempt of court. He was given a further three months for breaching the terms of a previous suspended sentence.’
Mr Robinson was arrested on Friday outside Leeds Crown Court. Apparently, he and his cameraman Caolan Robertson were broadcasting details of a current trial live on Facebook. A number of mainly Muslim men stand accused of grooming under-age girls for sexual purposes.
‘Swift injustice’
The trial itself is subject for some reason to blanket reporting restrictions. Astonishingly, Judge Geoffrey Marson QC also placed reporting restrictions on details of Mr Robinson’s sentence. Only when these were lifted yesterday ((Tuesday) could the mainstream media report it. But the details were already all over social media and on news outlets worldwide. On Zerohedge, Tyler Durden described the events as ‘Swift Injustice’. Fox News reported on the case on Friday. The same outlet reported later on political leaders across Europe calling the jailing politically motivated. Even Donald Trump Jr was expressing himself shocked at the UK’s apparent clampdown on freedom of expression.
The judge told Mr Robinson his actions could cause the ongoing trial to be re-run, costing “hundreds and hundreds of thousands of pounds”. But apparently, to date, the trial is still proceeding.
The hour-long footage had been watched 250,000 times within hours of being posted on Facebook, the court heard. The judge viewed some of it, we understand.
Of course Sky News, like most of the media, could not resist referring to ‘the right-wing activist, 35, of Wilstead, Bedfordshire’. All ‘right-wing’ means is that Mr Robinson has taken against Islam. And that stems from his experience of Muslims on council estates in Luton,
Tommy Robinson on Muslim gangs
When Judy and I met Tommy Robinson in 2010 on one such estate, he expressed no ‘right-wing’ opinions. He was not for big money, or opposed to trades unions, or an anti-society individualist. Instead, he told us of drug dealing and prostitution rings all run by local Muslims. He and his friends had become appalled by the Muslim rackets and the racketeers. Moreover, they wanted to call attention to it at a time when politicians were denying any problems existed with Islam. This was even before the Rotherham grooming trial.
At that time I even observed a rally of the English Defence League. It too is always described to this day as ‘right-wing’ or ‘far-right’. It was not much more than a bunch of football supporters concerned about encroaching Islam and Islamification. They were bothered about halal meat in supermarkets, schools and prisons. They were worried about Islamic violence from murderous Al Qaeda. Islamic State was not even on the radar at this time. But for all their chants of ‘E – E – EDL’, the marchers were hardly from the ‘right’. I gained the impression a distinct majority were working-class Labour Party voters.
As for the Muslims Mr Robinson spoke about, it appeared criminality sat easily with their Muslim faith. These Muslims went to the mosque and did their prayer. That alone made them ‘good Muslims.’ Our elite will never admit it, but repentance of sin is not big in Islam. It is not like Christianity at all. It is a religion of works. By that we mean it is built around doing faith activities, the ‘pillars of Islam’.. It is not framed around forgiveness and gentleness. There is no fruit of the Spirit in Islam. And no Saviour.
Restrictions Political?
Going back to the court, I am puzzled as to why Tommy Robinson pleaded ‘guilty’. Such a plea removes a major plank of an appeal. He can only appeal the sentence, not his conviction. But these things happen when you are under duress and have an inexperienced duty lawyer. Maybe he can appeal his conviction on the grounds of being wrongly advised.
Alex Jones on InfoWars is not known for restraint. But while interviewing Tommy’s cameraman Caolan Robertson (Twitter account here), he described Tommy Robinson as a ‘political prisoner of the West.’ That provocative statement actually seems difficult to argue against.
What tells us that charging and sentencing Tommy Robinson was a political act? For this writer, above all it was Judge Geoffrey Marson QC imposing reporting restrictions on his jailing. The Independent newspaper and Leeds Live went back to court to challenge Judge Marson’s order. The Washington Post says this was ‘in part by arguing that their competitors were already violating it.’
Either the judge himself or another judge lifted the restrictions. That means they were wrong in the first place. And that makes their imposition a political act.
In an editorial, the Indy itself said: ‘Like him or loathe him, the jailing of Tommy Robinson for contempt of court was an event of legitimate press and public interest. It cannot be right, whatever else, that a British citizen can be deprived of their liberty “in the dark”, the very fact of their whereabouts made a secret. It feels wrong, and, in spirit at least, partly in breach of the ancient principle of habeas corpus.’
Impact on the trial
So the reporting restriction on Tommy’s imprisonment was a political act. Now, where does that leave the restriction on reporting on the actual trial itself?
The Daily Mirror tries to show in this article why jailing Tommy Robinson was the right thing to do. It says of his Facebook live stream: ‘The video included comments that could have caused the collapse of a long-running trial, costing hundreds of thousands of pounds.’
That’s ‘could have’. Did the trial collapse? It does not appear to have done.
The Mirror goes on, ‘As well as breaching this order, Robinson also made comments that impacted on the defendants’ right to a fair hearing before a jury.’
Tommy of all people ought to know that being charged is not the same as being guilty. It really is not right to shoot footage assuming defendants’ guilt before the jury have reached a verdict.
Nor is it right to go up to defendants in the street during a trial and ask if they have their prison bag packed. And that is what Tommy Robinson was doing on some occasions.
The jury – the weak link
The jury is considered a weak link. Judges tell jurers not to pay any attention to social media. In some cases they advise jurers not even to look at it. It is hard these days to avoid social media. But it is do-able. Moreover, jurers are obliged to do their job fairly. They are essential to the system. We cannot trust judges alone.
The Mirror asserts, ‘His arrest and conviction were to protect our justice system – under legislation that ensure trials don’t collapse’.
Fair enough, except there appears to be scant evidence that what he did actually prejudiced the trial. So could there be a political motive behind reporting restrictions on the Leeds case and the earlier one in Canterbury?
It is a fact that those charged were predominantly Muslim. It is a loathing of Islam that motivated Tommy Robinson to make his broadcasts. And the establishment have a corresponding defensive attitude towards Islam. Tony Blair may have been the first politician to say ‘Islam is a religion of peace’. Even today our leaders do not want to upset the multi-faith applecart. Muslims are rising to positions of power and influence. Many are councillors, some are MPs. And of course a Muslim is now Home Secretary. Another is the Mayor of London.
Muslim grooming gangs
The backdrop is this. A malaise has affected Rochdale, Rotherham, Telford, Newcastle, Oxford, and, says the Spectator, eleven other English towns. In all cases, gangs of Muslim men have been convicted of grooming young non-Muslim girls for sex. Adherents of the Mohammedan religion see those outside it as inferior. They would not do it to Muslim girls. They are seen as ‘haram’. Their whole community would be outraged.
But other young women hanging around parks or city centres, perhaps involved in the care system, are easy and permitted prey. They are ‘halal’. The problem is inherent in the religion. It is a national scandal. And apart from a few brave mainstream politicians like gutsy Anne Cryer in Rochdale, no-one wants to admit it. No-one from the police, to social services, to local councillors, right up to the Prime Minister, will talk about it.
The subsequent vacuum was always going to be filled. And Tommy Robinson has taken it upon himself to fill it. Well, someone had to. It seems prophets, not just angels, can come in strange guises.
We’ll really appreciate your support
Click below to join Christian Voice and stand up for the King of kings
Click on the social media links below to share this post:
Ex-MI6 man Christopher Steele compiled the Trump Russian Dossier
Ex-MI6 man Christopher Steele compiled the Trump Russian Dossier
Revelations are popping out about links between poisoned double-agent Sergei Skripal and the Russian Dossier on Donald Trump compiled by a British spy.
D-Notice on editors
Colourful ex-ambassador Craig Murray reports on something called a ‘D-Notice’. More properly it’s a DSMA-Notice (Defence and Security Media Advisory Notice). Nevertheless, people still refer to the old name, in use from the 1920s to the 1990s.
MI6 slapped this D-Notice on the mainstream media the minute Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia were found slumped on a bench in Salisbury in early March this year. It prevented editors from investigating any links between Sergei Skripal and an intelligence outfit called ‘Orbis’. Orbis Business Intelligence was being run by ex-MI6 man Christopher Steele. More about Orbis and Steele below.
But why should there be any link between Mr Skripal and Orbis in the first place? Why should MI6 be worried enough to tell journalists not to look there? The missing piece in the puzzle is another MI6 operative. His name is Pablo Miller.
Pablo Miller
Pablo Miller recruited Sergei Skripal and worked for Christopher Steele at Orbis
According to Wikispooks, and it seems common knowledge, Pablo Miller recruited Sergei Skripal In the early 1990s. Miller was directly under Christopher Steele. Once relocated to the UK, in fact to not far from Salisbury, Miller became Sergei Skripal’s minder and friend.
Christopher Steele (born June 1964) was our top spy with diplomatic immunity in Moscow in the 1990s. His friend and business colleague Christopher Burrows worked for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office from 1990 to 2009, according to his LinkedIn page.
The Daily Mail, in the link below, claims Mr Burrows was also actually working for MI6 during that time. It is not surprising the Scottish Daily Mail, archived here at Pressreader, describes their enterprises as ‘spies-for-hire firms’.
Orbis Business Intelligence
Chris Burrows, Mr Steele’s partner in Orbis and its successors.
In fact, its own website (worth a look) says: ‘Orbis Business Intelligence Ltd. was founded in 2009 by former British intelligence professionals’. It gives an address of ‘9-11 Grosvenor Gardens, London SW1W 0BD.’
According to Companies House, Steele and Burrows formed Orbis Business Intelligence Limited in July 2009, They set up Orbis Business International Limited in July 2010. Next up was Walsingham Partners Limited in April 2015. Finally, they formed Chawton Holdings Limited in June 2017
Reporting on the latter enterprise, International Business Times says: ‘Steele, 53, and Burrows, 59, are also directors of Walsingham Partners and Orbis Business Intelligence, the Belgravia-based consultancy the duo founded in London in 2009 and which made more than £1m in profits between 2015 and 2016.
‘Steele, who quit the UK’s Security Intelligence Service (Mi6) the same year he set up Orbis, was forced to go into hiding when he was outed as the dossier author in January and returned to work in March.’
Christopher Steele’s home in Farnham bristles with CCTV
‘Christopher Steele’s British-based company, Orbis Business Intelligence, uncovered corruption at international soccer’s governing body, leading to the resignation of top officials, including president Sepp Blatter.
‘It was this work which gave credence to his reporting on Trump’s entanglements in Russia, officials in the US have said.’
Referring to the Trump Dossier, according to inews, ‘Andrew Wordsworth, co-founder of another London intelligence firm, Raedas, cast doubt on Mr Steele’s findings, saying it wouldn’t make sense for people high up in the Russian security establishment to leak information to a former British spy. “Russians believe once you are an agent, you’re an agent forever,” he told the Wall Street Journal.
LinkedIn profile disappeared
But what if Sergei Skripal was able to draw on his Russian contacts? Could he find out, or invent, material on Donald Trump with a Russian angle? And having done so, he could easily pass it to Pablo Miller. And the latter had links to Orbis.
The Daily Telegraph ran a story about an un-named ‘security consultant’ in early March. It said he was linked to Sergei Skripal and to Orbis. MI6 briefed their tame journalists that was ‘wrong’. But it wasn’t. The security consultant was none other that Pablo Miller. Miller boasted of his connections to Orbis on his LinkedIn page.
So we have demonstrable links between Sergei Skripal, Pablo Miller and Christopher Steele up to March this year.
Supposing Sergei Skripal was hankering to return to Russia. Some papers have suggested he was already in touch with the Russian Embassy or that he written to Vladimir Putin. He would want to show himself as bringing something of value. What if that was everything he knew about Steele’s Trump Dossier?
In such a case, who would want to either get rid of him or teach him a lesson? In the murky world of the spooks, anything is possible. One cannot rule out Russia’s FSB completely. Sergei Skripal did betray Russia. A Russian court convicted him in 2006. Nevertheless, Russia allowed him to go to the UK in a spy-swap in 2010. There is a convention that when spies are swapped they are left in peace. Otherwise, the system will not work in future. And Sergei had been here unmolested and in no fear for eight years.
Did the Russian Dossier change the game?
So what changed? What if we look elsewhere, to the UK or to the US, for example? The New Yorker says an intermediary called Fusion GPS paid Orbis for Steele’s work. Fusion GPS was paid by the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton’s Presidential campaign. Barrister and commentator James O’Neill suggests elements of the US ‘Deep State’, the CIA and MI6 were all involved. We know MI6 was.
Any of them, he says, had a better motive than the Russian state for wanting to be rid of Sergei Skripal. Which makes Mrs May’s allegations of Russian culpability look rather shaky. But what if Mr Skripal were just a convenient pawn in a game of demonising Russia? Surely that is too dark and would require too many politicians and officials to be in on it. It would have to leak. Orbis appears the best lead.
Craig Murray concludes: ‘Steele, MI6 and the elements of the CIA which are out to get Trump, all would have a powerful motive to have the Skripal loose end tied.’
Look where they tell you not to
As Mr Murray says, the first rule of journalism is to look where they tell you not to look. And he is annoyed none of the supposed ‘journalists’ of the mainstream media is doing that in this case.
A Guardian article says: ‘The D-notice system is a peculiarly British arrangement’. It goes on to describe it as ‘a sort of not quite public yet not quite secret arrangement between government and media’. the D-Notice mechanism is there ‘in order to ensure that journalists do not endanger national security.’ But there is no national security angle in the Trump Dossier. It was just dirt-digging. When such a mechanism is used to spare ex-MI6 agents embarrassment the D-Notice becomes a devalued currency. (The more so if one really were used to shore up a pre-arranged Government political line to sour relations with Russia.)
Scripture says the Lord expects us all to deal with each other honestly:
Lev 19:15 Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honour the person of the mighty: but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbour.
Points for Prayer
Pray the truth comes out in this matter. Remind the Lord of his word:
Proverbs 10:9 He that walketh uprightly walketh surely: but he that perverteth his ways shall be known.
Luke 12:2 For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known.
And do pray for peace between the nations. This may be a millennial prophecy, but it shows that the Almighty regards peace between nations as a good thing:
Isaiah 2:4 And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people. And they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. (Also at Micah 4:3)
We’ll really appreciate your support
Click below to join Christian Voice and stand up for the King of kings
Click on the social media links below to share this post:
Chief Prosecutor for England & Wales Alsion Saunders
Chief Prosecutor for England & Wales Alison Saunders
According to reports, Chief Prosecutor for England and Wales Alison Saunders has said she does not think anyone is in jail after being wrongly convicted because of failures to disclose crucial evidence.
Her remarks follow a string of cases which have collapsed after police and prosecutors failed to disclose important evidence to the defence team exonerating the defendants.
God loves to see earthly justice
The Bible says Almighty God appointed human justice, so this is a serious matter (KJV):
Psalm 33:5 He loveth righteousness and judgment: the earth is full of the goodness of the LORD.
Further scriptures show how seriously God takes the administration of justice in a realm:
Exod 20:16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. Prov 21:3 To do justice and judgment is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.
The prophet Isaiah leaves us in no doubt about the requirements of earthly justice:
Isa 56:1 Thus saith the LORD, Keep ye judgment, and do justice: for my salvation is near to come, and my righteousness to be revealed.
And Isaiah even says the Messiah, Jesus Christ himself, demands and brings justice:
Isa 9:7 Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
‘Do that which is good’
In the New Testament we read that rulers and judges are ministers of God to execute his judgement.
Romans 13:3 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: 4 For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.
Towards the end of last year two rape cases collapsed because the prosecution failed to disclose crucial evidence. This was mainly from text messages. Crucially, it exonerated the defendant. We reported on these cases in our January newsletter. (We send a copy free to paid-up members of Christian Voice. Click here to join) Each time, the case began with a false accusation of rape.
False accusations
In August last year, a woman was jailed for inventing rape claims to get attention from her lesbian lover. The judge sent Jemma Beale down for ten years. We reported on an earlier case where a woman received 18 months. Louise Johnson accused Andrew Tutty of rape, attempted rape, assault and harassment after he ended their brief affair.
It is not just women who make false accusations. Disturbed young men can make homosexual allegations. One of the more shocking was that of David Bryant, a retired fireman who spent four years in jail after a false allegation. Mr Bryant was convicted on his accuser’s word alone. As we report here, he was released in 2016 only after new evidence came to light and a sustained campaign by his wife Lynn.
False accusations of rape are easy to make and have been around from the earliest days. Here is what Potiphar’s wife did after she failed to seduce Joseph, grabbing hold of his cloak and seeing him run from the room:
Gen 39:14 That she called unto the men of her house, and spake unto them, saying, See, he hath brought in an Hebrew unto us to mock us; he came in unto me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice: 15 And it came to pass, when he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled, and got him out.
Potiphar believed his wife on her word alone and sent Joseph to prison. This righteous man did well there, but that’s another story.
Given the scope for false allegations, police and prosecutors should be all the more careful. Nevertheless, they have adopted a ‘believe the accuser’ mindset.
The situation is worse in England, Wales and Northern Ireland than Scotland. South of the Border, prosecutors need no corroborating evidence before a case may be brought. Accordingly, they can – and do – proceed on the basis of ‘her word against his’.
Chief Prosecutor ‘complacent’
The Chief Prosecutor told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘The problem we have found recently is around the ever-increasing use of social media, all the digital material we obtain.’
Asked if it was possible there were people in prison today because of disclosure failures, Ms Saunders astonishingly replied: ‘I don’t think so because what these cases show is that when we take a case through to trial there are various safeguards in place, not least of which the defence indicating what their defence is going to be.’
Many observers would say that is not just complacent but plain wrong. The most important safeguard is not the defence telling the prosecution what their defence will be. It is the police and prosecution disclosing all the evidence!
Do not convict the innocent
The word of God sets forth a basic principle of justice – not to convict the innocent:
Exod 23:7 Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked.
The Bible says this about perjury:
Deut 19:18 And the judges shall make diligent inquisition: and, behold, if the witness be a false witness, and hath testified falsely against his brother; 19 Then shall ye do unto him, as he had thought to have done unto his brother: so shalt thou put the evil away from among you.
Evidence disclosure failings
Diligent inquisition requires all the disclosure of all the evidence. Moreover, the BBC reports today on all cases dropped over evidence disclosure failings. The number of prosecutions in England and Wales that collapsed because of a failure by police or prosecutors to disclose evidence increased by 70% in the last two years.
Last year, prosecutors dropped charges against 916 people over a failure to disclose evidence. The dropped charges against 537 in 2014-15.
Reporters obtained the figures under the Freedom of Information Act. They reveal the total number of people whose trials have ended or the charges against them dropped. In every case this was because of a failure to disclose evidence:
Over those four years, the number of completed prosecutions fell by almost 150,000 cases – from more than 736,000 in 2013-14 to just over 588,000 in 2016-17.
‘Systemic’ problems
Contrary to the complacent response of Alison Saunders, the Crown Prosecution Service admitted the justice system had ‘systemic’ problems. A CPS spokesperson defended the number of dropped cases due to evidence disclosure failures. He said they represented just 0.15% of the total number of prosecutions. However, he went on:
‘That is still too many … and we are clear that there are systemic disclosure issues across the criminal justice system which will require a collective effort in order to bring about improvement.
‘Getting this right is a priority, and along with the police and other criminal justice partners we are working to improve how we fulfil these vital disclosure obligations.’
Angela Rafferty QC, chair of the Criminal Bar Association, blamed a ‘lack of investment, training and attention to the criminal justice system’.
She said barristers face ‘A daily struggle in respect of disclosure, delays and all the other disastrous consequences of a system that is openly described by MPs as at breaking point’. ‘The reasons for it must be properly explored and dealt with,’ she went on.
MP concerned
Anna Soubry is a long-serving Conservative MP and a barrister. @Anna_Soubry tweeted: ‘Appalled at the ill informed comments of #DPP Alison Saunders. There hv been longstanding problems w disclosure’ Anna Soubry said she feared Mrs Saunders was ‘part of the problem’.
Continue to pray for the administration of justice in England and Wales. In our January newsletter we stressed the need to bring back the need for corroborating evidence in England and Wales and Northern Ireland. In addition, our Scottish readers must defend it in Scotland. Scotland has its own legal system. A recent attempt to abolish the need for corroborating evidence north of the Border failed. We reported on that in our January newsletter as well. We have already sent it to members. If you are not a member and did not receive it, click below to support and join us:
Find out how to join Christian Voice and stand up for the King of kings
(Article Published in Christian Voice newsletter Summer Recess 2016)
A former fireman convicted of a sex attack and held in jail for four years had his conviction quashed in July 2016 in the Court of Appeal.
David Bryant, now 66, of Grove Road East, Christchurch, Dorset, was accused of committing an offence against a man named in court as Danny Day, who was a 14-year-old boy in the 1970s.
Mr Bryant was found guilty of buggery by a majority verdict of a jury in December 2013. He was jailed for six years in January 2014, but appeal judges later increased the sentence to eight-and-a-half years ruling that the original term imposed at Bournemouth Crown Court was ‘unduly lenient’.
MAJORITY VERDICT
Only a courageous and relentless campaign by his wife, who continued to believe in him, led to the evidence of Mr Day being called into question. The latter’s greed in demanding compensation on false pretences also saw his credibility evaporate.
Mr Bryant’s conviction was overturned as ‘unsafe’ by Sir Brian Leveson, Mr Justice Singh and Mr Justice Holgate in the light of the new evidence.
Mr Day alleged David Bryant carried out the attack with another man who was working as a fireman in Christchurch after they had invited the schoolboy to their fire station to play darts with them.
At a previous Court of Appeal hearing a judge said the alleged victim did not report the alleged incident until 2012 ‘after being motivated to come forward in the aftermath of the Jimmy Savile affair’.
CORROBORATING EVIDENCE NOT NEEDED
The need for corroborating evidence in sexual cases was abolished by the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 in order to secure more convictions in rape cases.
Any case of alleged rape or sexual assault may now be determined simply on the word of the accuser against that of the alleged perpetrator. It all comes down to which of the two is more plausible. In some cases, particularly where celebrities are involved, police name the alleged rapist hoping other accusers will come forward to bolster the case.
A senior police source said in connection with the disgraced ‘Operation Midland’: ‘You don’t have forensics, you don’t have cell site evidence in these kinds of inquires. What you are looking for is other witnesses who are giving similar accounts.’
In Operation Midland the police believed a serial liar known as ‘Nick’ and both ex-MP Harvey Proctor and Lord Bramall, former Chief of the General Staff, endured months of suspicion. The singer Sir Cliff Richard also fell foul of supposed ’historic’ accusations with no merit.
But barrister Matthew Scott, writing on the David Bryant case at http://barristerblogger.com, says juries may not reach a proper verdict in a case where no evidence is offered other than the testimony of an accuser.
DAVID BRYANT CASE: ONLY ACCUSER’S WORD
Mr Scott says it is a ‘fallacy … that a jury of ordinary men and women, or for that matter a bench of magistrates or a single professional judge, can be relied upon, without extraneous evidence, to discern beyond reasonable doubt when someone is telling the truth.
‘Unfortunately, as we have learnt time and time again, neither jury nor professional judge can do anything of the sort. Liars sometimes look shifty and nervously play with their hair; but so do people telling the truth, especially when defending themselves in the witness box under extreme pressure. At other times liars are utterly believable.’
In the case of David Bryant, there was no evidence save the word of Mr Day. The jury were unable to ‘spot the liar’, exactly as Mr Scott contends. He was believed. An innocent man spent over two years behind bars.
NOT BOXING CHAMPION
Mr Day waived his right to anonymity in a series of newspaper interviews after the conviction. But he was finally exposed as a liar after detective work by Mrs Bryant and a team of lawyers and private investigators, who worked on the case ‘pro bono’.
After David Bryant’s conviction, Mr Day launched civil proceedings against Mr Bryant and Dorset County Council, which ran the fire service.
In those proceedings he claimed aggravated damages because he said the assault had ruined his chances of appearing at the Olympics in 1984.
Mr Day claimed to be a boxing champion with a record better than Muhammad Ali. He said he had given up his place on the British boxing team at the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984 because of the trauma of the sexual assault.
PSYCHIATRIST REPORT
Mr Scott says: ‘Mr Day had made a mistake. His insatiable greed led to his downfall. Unlike his allegation of rape, where it was just his word against Mr Bryant’s, his claim of having been an Olympic standard boxer was demonstrably untrue. There was no evidence that he had ever so much as stepped foot in a boxing ring.
‘Then he relied on the report of a psychiatrist to prove the extent of his suffering. But this led to his medical records – inexplicably perhaps overlooked or ignored by the police in the original investigation – being examined. It turned out that, to use the language of Mr Justice Singh: “over a period from 2000 to 2010 the complainant in this case had to seek medical attention from his GP in relation to what can only be described as his being a chronic liar”.
‘When the case eventually made its way back to the Court of Appeal even the Prosecution conceded that the conviction could not possibly stand and Mr Bryant was finally set free.’
BIBLICAL STANDARDS OF EVIDENCE
Under a Godly system, a miscarriage of justice such as has happened to David Bryant could not occur. The scriptures show some basic principles:
Firstly, no-one shall be convicted on the evidence of only one witness. Two or three witnesses are required to establish a conviction. God’s eternal standard is especially important in capital offences, but it applies to all.
READ: Exod 23:7; Numb 35:30; Deut 17:06; Matt 18:16; John 8:17-18; 2 Cor 13:1; 1 Tim 5:19; Heb 10:28.
Secondly, perjury is punishable by the same punishment as would have been inflicted upon the innocent man were he to have been found guilty. The witnesses bear the primary responsibility of conviction.
READ: Deut 17:07, 19:15-20, 1Kgs 21:13; Est 7:10.
Corroborating evidence, forensics, CCTV, for example, can plausibly stand as a ‘witness’. But the testimony of a single individual will not meet the standard. It should not even meet the lower standard of ‘beyond reasonable doubt’ adopted by our courts.
INNOCENT SHOULD NEVER BE CONVICTED
It was a solid Rabinnic principle that the innocent should never be convicted even if that meant some of the guilty also went free. The English jurist William Blackstone expressed the ratio like this: ‘All presumptive evidence of felony should be admitted cautiously; for the law holds it better that ten guilty persons escape, than that one innocent party suffer’.
Matthew Scott writes: ‘What I cannot accept is that criminal courts should be asked to decide cases from decades ago which depend on the word of one complainant against one defendant.
Distressing though it may be for individuals who were sexually abused when they were children not to be believed, the danger that justice will not be done in such cases is simply too great.
‘In 2003 the then Lord Chief Justice, Lord Woolf, quashed a conviction largely on the grounds that there was no rational way of deciding who was telling the truth in a case which turned on which of two people was right about an incident that allegedly occurred about 30 years earlier:
‘“At the heart of our criminal justice system is the principle that while it is important that justice is done to the prosecution and justice is done to the victim, in the final analysis the fact remains that it is even more important that an injustice is not done to a defendant. It is central to the way we administer justice in this country that although it may mean that some guilty people go unpunished, it is more important that the innocent are not wrongly convicted.”’
PRINCIPLE ‘IGNORED’ BY THE COURTS
But Mr Scott says even this principle is being ignored by the Courts. The matter is left to juries, and for the court of appeal to put right any wrongs. But juries should not be expected to convict on one party’s word against another, and the court of appeal cannot be relied upon.
READ: Psalm 89:15; Prov 16:12, 25:5, 29:2,14; Isa 16:5.
PRAY: Thank God for the eventual acquittal of David Bryant and praise God for his wife who stood by him. But cry to God in anguish that such injustices are not rare in our land and are not easily put right.
