American evangelist Tony Miano was arrested on Wednesday in Dundee, Scotland after preaching the gospel legally in a public forum. He was the second of two preachers to address shoppers in the high street during the busy lunchtime period.
Miano – a retired Deputy Sheriff, was on a week-long mission trip to Scotland from his base in Southern California, and was accompanied by Pastor Josh Williamson from Craigie Reformed Baptist Church in Perth, Scotland; who himself was arrested last year in Scotland under similar circumstances.
Miano was also arrested last year in the vicinity of the Wimbledon Tennis Courts during the annual Wimbledon ‘slam’ tournament because the language used in his sermon whilst teaching on sexual sin out of the book of 1 Thessalonians was considered homophobic .
This time, according to reports Miano talked about the nature of sin; about the different sins that Jesus had come to save people from when a woman began to shout at him. He was preaching about sin in general and when he mentioned sexual sin including adultery, promiscuity and homosexual practice, the woman shouted that her son was gay.
As Pastor Williamson puts it ““Tony wasn’t focusing just on homosexual practice – it was about all sin. A woman was yelling at him and her friend noticed we were filming the preaching, so she ran up to me and tried to smash my camera.”
The woman apparently called the police who arrived after the men were finished with their sermons. Williamson’s account continues: “The female officer saw we had a camera and lunged for it and then the male policeman grabbed it and threw it in the police van, After Tony was put in the police van I asked why he was being arrested and was told it was for a breach of the peace and for using homophobic language.”
Unlike last year when Miano was released with a police caution, this time he was held overnight and pleaded ‘not guilty’ to a charge of 'breach of the peace with homophobic aggravation' before being bailed for release. He is allowed to return to the United States and but the judge ordered he must attend court again for trial on April 22nd.
Dundee is the fourth largest city in Scotland with a population of just over 150,000. An unremarkable city it is a combination of architecture from centuries old combined with 20th Century poorly planned sprawl and even more recent attempts to spruce it up. The park near the Williamson’s church has had particular problems with violent attacks since 2009.
Andrea Minichiello Williams of Christian Concern & the related Christian Legal Centre is representing Miano and said “This appears to be an overzealous reaction by the police. The incident, adds to the number of arrests of Christian street evangelists for preaching from the Bible. It is indicative of the suppression of the freedom to speak and live out the words of Jesus Christ in public and present the teachings of the Bible, (and) at the Christian Legal Centre we are committed to helping people to continue to preach the Gospel in our nation.”
Both Miano and Williamson have trained under New Zealand evangelist Ray Comfort who cut his teeth in the open-air and very liberal Santa Monica Mall; as well as at the Bellflower, California courthouse where he created a tract for those lining up outside entitled “important information you need before entering court”. Comfort and actor Kirk Cameron also made the video series ‘Way of the Master’, which the strategies of Williamson and Miano utilize.
Julian Mann, an Anglican Vicar who writes for The Guardian and at Cranmer’s well known blog, suggests that even if Miano had preached as he did inside a Scottish church, the authorities point of view may well have supported arresting him anyway had a parishioner made a similar complaint.
Indeed Mann goes on to speculate in ‘Cranmer’s Curate’ that “Given that most local churches are not very far from a public pavement, what reason have we to expect that servants of the Lord Jesus Christ will not be arrested for teaching the Bible in Scotland beyond too long?”
Mann’s comments should not be taken lightly. It is clear that the Scottish authorities while claiming a loose Christian culture have little tolerance for anybody who exercises free speech by putting forth their views on The Bible. Additionally it is unclear how far they are prepared to take it.
Moreover the restrictions on Christian’s are beginning to parallel the kinds of no-proselytization laws imposed in Islamic countries. Some may think that’s far fetched but it’s hard to see where this slippery slope might come to an end. Muslim groups meanwhile are no doubt protected and excused at every occurrence.
