A Christian politician in Finland will face legal charges for sharing her biblical perspectives on marriage and sexuality on social media.
Finnish Christian politician Päivi Räsänen.
Päivi Räsänen is a doctor who became Finnish Minister of the Interior between 2011 and 2014; Räsänen, who is part of the Christian Democrats, was recently charged with three hate crimes against homosexuals.
According to Evangelical Focus, the nation’s General Prosecutor concluded that after two years of investigation, there is already enough evidence to open legal process against Räsänen.
The Christian leader will have to defend herself in court for three different charges.
The first one, for posting a message on social media that quoting Romans 1:24-27, where she criticized the Finnish Lutheran Church (to which she belongs) for taking participation in LGBT festivals in 2019.
The second one, for the content of a booklet about Bible and sexuality titled “Male and Female He Created them” published in 2004, and her words in a radio talk show in the Finnish Public Broadcasting System, where she was invited to speak about the issue “What would Jesus think about homosexuals?”.
When learning about the decision of the General Prosecutor , Räsänen said on social media that it was “shocking.”
”I do not consider myself guilty of threatening, slandering or insulting any group of people. These are all based on the Bible’s teachings on marriage and sexuality”. she said.
The Finnish news website YLE noted that the Prosecutor General said the believer’s statements were “derogatory and discriminatory against homosexuals” and “violate their equality and dignity”. Therefore, they would “overstep the boundaries of freedom of speech and religion and are likely to fuel intolerance, contempt and hatred”.
If she loses the case, she could face a fine or, in the worst case, a sentence of up to two years in prison, and ban of the contents considered hateful.
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However, Räsänen has stated on previous occasions that she is calm, because she knows that what she shares is in favor of the Bible and it is not a bad thing.