Finland may be viewed as “the happiest place to live” but not if you value free speech. A major free speech case is brewing in the country after Member of Parliament (and former Interior Minister) Päivi Räsänen was criminally charged after tweeting a quotation from the Bible in opposition to her church’s sponsorship of an LGBT pride event. Räsänen, 61, is reportedly facing up to two years in prison for exercising her rights of free speech and freedom of religion.
On June 17, 2019, Räsänen asked in a Twitter post how the sponsorship was compatible with the Bible, linking to a photograph of a biblical passage, Romans 1:24-27, on Instagram. She also posted the text and image on Facebook. However, she also insisted that “The purpose [of] my tweet was in no way to insult sexual minorities. My criticism was aimed at the leadership of the church.”
The Prosecutor General charged Räsänen with incitement against a minority group, arguing that her statements were “likely to cause intolerance, contempt, and hatred towards homosexuals.”
Räsänen has stood firm on her free speech rights “I cannot accept that voicing my religious beliefs could mean imprisonment. I do not consider myself guilty of threatening, slandering, or insulting anyone. My statements were all based on the Bible’s teachings on marriage and sexuality.”
She added:
“I will defend my right to confess my faith, so that no one else would be deprived of their right to freedom of religion and speech. I hold on to the view that my expressions are legal and they should not be censored. I will not back down from my views. I will not be intimidated into hiding my faith. The more Christians keep silent on controversial themes, the narrower the space for freedom of speech gets.”
We have previously discussed the alarming rollback on free speech rights in the West, particularly in France (here and here and here and here and here and here and here). Much of this trend is tied to the expansion of hate speech and non-discrimination laws. I wrote earlier about the prosecution of famous actress Brigitte Bardot for saying in 2006 that Muslims were ruining France in a letter to then-Interior Minister (and later President) Nicolas Sarkozy. Bardot, an animal rights activist, has been repeatedly hit with such criminal complaints for criticizing different groups. Now she was later fined for calling the the inhabitants of La Reunion “savages” for their continued sacrificing of animals in religious rituals.
These cases include ministers and others who have been prosecuted for calling homosexuality a sin.
The Finland case is an attack on core free speech rights. I happen to disagree with her views on homosexuality but that is immaterial. Many of us in the free speech community view this as a human right to be able to express one’s values and beliefs without threat of arrest. In the name of equity, Finland is sacrificing liberty. In the name of tolerance, Finland is declaring intolerance for opposing views. No such tradeoff is necessary. Political opponents can respond to what they view as bad speech with better speech. In the free expression of ideas, people can reach their own conclusions and better viewpoints can prevail. Instead, in cases like the one involving Räsänen, critics are seeking to silence those with opposing viewpoints. It is a new orthodoxy imposed on dissenting views — the same state-supported intolerance that once led to the censuring of gay activists and advocates for LGBT rights.
One can certainly disagree with Räsänen. I can certainly see how many would find her tweets offensive. However, we all must maintain a common covenant of faith in the right of everyone to be able to express their political and religious views without threat of punishment.
Christians who are truly saved are probably 1% of professed Christians, who are entirely apostate and deceived by many heresies, especially the Scofield Bible, etc. The world is being ended very soon. God is judging His own first, then the rest will all be destroyed. I pray Christ knows you.
I’ve only met 1 true christian in an entire lifetime, they are rare; but a ray of light
You are an absolute nutcase and more importantly don’t know the Scriptures or the power of God in a life.
“Finish MP Criminally Charged…” What a headline! Is he all done? Is that why he’s “finish?” It’s Finnish, you moron!
“likely to cause intolerance, contempt, and hatred towards homosexuals.” It’s evidently quite alright to actually engage in those things against Christians though, even though Christianity is the basis for all of western civilization.
You throwing the first stone?
Name calling makes one a loser every time.
Wow, the homophobes have really come out of the woodwork on this column. What bigots you are.
You seem to be missing the point. While homophobes may be on the wrong side of social discourse and guilty of an archaic form of moral reasoning, they are well within their rights to discuss their phobia and to cite the religious texts they hold dear. To limit that right is an infringement far more dangerous and far reaching than homophobia.
Do you mistakenly believe that all homophobes only “discuss their phobia and to cite the religious texts they hold dear,” and never act on their homophobia to restrict others’ rights, or physically harm people, …?
Is it “homophobic” to express disagreement with a policy that lets the trans-guy win all the swimming races? There is no point for a naturally-born female to compete with them.
Or: an Obama-appointed judge proclaimed from the bench there is “no reasonable expectation of visual privacy” so the girls cannot object to a anatomical male who “identifies” as female being in the shower room. Yes, that’s a real case, the girls at the school in question even staged a walk-out in protest but the usually walk-out-friendly media refused to report on the story (or the judge’s statement). This case was at Abraham Lincoln High School in Council Bluffs, Iowa, there have been so many of these web searching can be difficult (you will also find cases of walk-outs in support of trans teens getting this access). REALLY hard to find the accounts of the legal proceedings at that court.
“Homophobic” to object to the boy in the girls’ room?
There are are numerous “real world” issues associated with this among the worst involve gender-bending males getting access to women in correctional institutions (rapes have resulted). A site called womenarehuman covers these that you will not see in the “mainstream” media. CNN producers have had a spate of scandals related to abuse of the under-aged lately, and avoided by their mediacrat POCs.
There is a thuggish element who likes to masquerade under “civil rights” which is actually into cruelty and likes to see people hurt. The “trans” issue is their crowbar to use as justification for mentally programming children. You can see why so many of these types went into education.
Learn the difference between homosexuality and transexuality.
My comment was about homophobes, not transphobes.
Lets see… Admah and Zeboiim, Sodom and gomorrah, Lot’s wife being turned to a pillar of salt….makes perfect sense to God our creator… Man’s genitals are made fo fit into his woman, to become one flesh. Man’s penis is not for insertion into another man… not healty, this conduct polutes societies ..Romans 1
Phobia? Don’t flatter yourself.
There is no such individual as a homophobe because there is no homosexuality. Homosexuality is a mental illness and cannot be substantiated by DNA. Satan has them confused and they all need Jesus. Many redeemed homosexuals are happy and know the truth. May GOD have mercy and they confess their sin.
The only opposition to free speech are those who have no views able of overcoming that which cannot be overcome. So to hide their own stupidity they insist on everyone being silenced.
Sadly, Mr. Turley continues to “miss the forest for the trees”. It’s true that free speech is under attack in the examples he illustrates. Wherein he errs is in failing to see and discuss whether the truth of the statements made that he defends as free speech are factually true or false. Or even whether they are morally correct, though culturally valid. Societal support for a minimal amount of hygiene is morally correct because it lessens disease, regardless of whether culturally recognized. Consistently applies persuasion is the appropriate remedy for that
situation.
It’s not that false or just erroneous statements should be ‘allowed’, that is a given. It’s that whether they are true is the much deeper consideration. As it is impossible to contest with falsity when it remains unchallenged.
Censoring based on objective “truth” is impossible. As we have seen all over the world, allowing the government to be the arbiters of truth leads to tyranny.
“Given”? Have you seen what the Tech Titans of social media have done to scientists like Dr. Malone and medical practitioners like Dr. Peter McCullough? There has been an orgy of suppression of speech about the most serious, quite particular disputed issues of “science”. You just saw it in the media “coverage” of the Rogan affair–how many media accounts screeched about “misinformation”–without specifying exactly WHAT the supposed misinformation WAS?
The corporate media dictators ordered that all discussion of Hunter Biden’s laptop be erased. That’s fascism. Next the Biden regime sicced the FBI on parents who objected to their children being indoctrinated, not educated.
The majority of ‘gays and lesbians’ are pederasts. Very few are true homosexuals, i.e. sexual inverts. Read more at rod fleming dot com
Professor Turley, The Title of this Piece TYPO – “Finnish” not “Finish”. Please correct.
You’re not the first to point this out. He does not read the comments.
According to Blackstone’s (pp. 41 and 45), Article 18 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 9 for the 1950 Protection of Fundamental Freedoms both guarantee freedom “thought, conscience and religion,” which includesthe freedom “to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance.” The 1948 documents also affirms “the right to freedom of opion and expression,” including “freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” Also included are freedom of assembly and association.
They’re worth reading, and they were restated in the 1969 American Convention on Human Rights.
And yet there is no freedom of association in Canada, the right to free speech is restricted everywhere, and religion is under attack in Finland.
Some days it feels as if Charlie Brown will be forever condemned to have Lucy pull that football away at the last moment . . . .
Well said.
The scripture she quoted is valid for a bible believing church. Read it. This is her faith belief and her church is in violation of scripture by overtly supporting the practice of homosexuality. She calls her church leaders out on this point. People who are not of the faith take offense because they don’t understand that Christians can love the sinner but hate the sin. Her Twitter post: “How does the doctrine of the Church, the Bible, fit in with the idea that shame and sin are raised to the point of pride?” This is indeed valid free speech and non Christians who react claiming this is hate speech have no business commenting. The idea that free speech can be prosecuted because some people find it offensive is clearly wrong and dangerous.
Where’s the future in homosexuality?
A homosexual is his own cessation.
Homosexuality is a concluding lifestyle – a deathstyle.
Homosexuality is self-destructive to the point of societal suicide.
What’s that tell you?
God cannot possibly promote homosexuality as anything other than sin because homosexuality does not perpetuate self-replication, homosexuality establishes a terminal point for God’s children. .
Homosexuality is a terminal disease and homosexuals are piteous sinners in dire need of salvation.
Lots of gay people have kids. It’s easy for lesbians to use a sperm bank. A bit harder for gay men to hire a surrogate, but still possible. They also adopt kids (and lest you not understand biology: kids need parents to raise them). I wouldn’t be surprised if you needed to do the same, as I doubt that any woman wants to have kids with a misogynist like you who has repeatedly said that you want to take away women’s right to vote.
Mentally ill pederasts shouldn’t be allowed to adopt.
No one said they should.
In the 1980s, San Francisco social services handed a boy over to a couple of transvestites from Oakland. They killed him. (Most likely the basis for this bad decision was that the couple’s racial ID–black–matched the child’s). More recently Oakland CPS refused to remove a child from an abusive household, the mom’s relatives in LA finally drove all night to rescue the child themselves, only to arrive at the house as the ambulance carrying the dead child was driving away.
The “social services” systems run by the big metros have been run by increasingly deranged ideologues, with dysfunctional results similar to what they have done to education and criminal justice. The current U-Haul data tells the rest of the story. The Left controls the media and academic narratives, but they cannot control reality. Thus, the frenzied efforts to shut down free speech.
Vs a gaystapo fascist like you who wants to take away our first amendment, so as to better protect your right to normalize rubbing your stick in feces.
If there is a god, a god that is all the usual: omnipotent, omni-benevolent, and all knowing, then gays are how that god made them. Just as everyone is how god made them and he already knew the future so no surprise to him. How co UK ld he condemn or punish what he has already set in motion?
Yaweh exists and finds homosexuality an abomination as the bible clearly lays out. People can be offended all they want but that doesn’t change the fact the creator of them and the entire universe who if he wanted could destroy every one of us in a split second, finds it an abomination and despite human hubris, nobody is above Yahweh.
The nice thing is that contrary to what churches teach, which are completely antichrist and the worst offenders as they teach a form of paganism rather than what’s actually in the bible, there is no physical hell (the bible teaches of no such place as the word hell originally meant the grave, as in you die and cease to exist forever. The bible even talks about Jesus going to hell which would be absurd if it were the pagan church’s definition. Instead, he went to hell because he died and was in the grave for a few days, so to speak) so it’s not like these people are facing some eternal damnation. The church (and the early church translators who butchered the bible by translating passages to be different than the original texts and to fit the paganism they believed in) has really done a number on all this and they are the main driver of why more people don’t believe in Yahweh and Jesus because the stuff they push is insane. If they actually taught what is in the bible and more people realized a lot of the bible is not to be taken literally and deals a lot with symbolism, I think more would believe there indeed is a God and that Jesus was who he said he was, God’s son.
Good for this lady to stick to her guns and it’s a shame she is dealing with this but Jesus stated people that believe in him and believe in Yaweh and who speak up against the “beast system” (basically the world system as we know it) will deal with this type of garbage from the people that hate him and God (aka, most people in this world) so she should take it as a badge of honor.
You must have missed the parable of the rich man in hades and Lazarus told by Jesus himself, yes there is a place of torment and good Christians don’t want lost sinners to think their sins are OK and fail to come to repentance.
I understand the point about free speech, but I don’t think we can rely on the marketplace of ideas to always win out when woke religions are involved. Conservativism was outlawed in a lot of places in this country until recently in the name of the BLM; in Some liberal states, they still shoot Whites, burn down buildings and throw molotov cocktails. The marketplace of ideas does not always work when someone quotes a BLM leader; logic does not work where people are expected to have unquestioning faith.
I do not think people should get a heightened right to “free speech” when they are saying “but the BLM said” – because that has been used to oppress and kill people. I am sure people could quote the BLM to go after Jews, Asians, Whites and Homosexuals too, and we know how anti-Jewish/Asian/White/LGBT rhetoric ended in Europe. (And Jews / Asians / Whites / homosexuals were also terrorized in the BLM riots).
So let’s not imply “it must be a reasonable position, even if I disagree with it, because he was quoting the BLM.”
Progressive regimes in Helsinki, Wellington, Paris, Ottawa, and Washington cower behind their imposing yet brittle Walls of Jericho, terrified by the trumpet call of the ideals of the people over which they rule. Terrified that their their depressing, dead end political ideology is being exposed and replaced with inspiring ideals of freedom, human self-determination and change. As recent events show, progressive elites like Justin
‘flee the capitol in fear’ Trudeau will do anything, literally anything, to retain their grip on political power. Yet the trumpets are growing louder.
While Biden and his progressive handlers are consumed by their strange obsession with which black woman to anoint to the Supreme Court, this statement by Clarence Thomas to Joe ‘leader of the lynch mob’ Biden serves as a timeless reminder of the principles that unite and inspire free Americans:
Brother Thomas is the poster boy for affirmative action.
It is physically impossible that the highest quality candidate for SCOTUS comes from the smallest pool of candidates; let’s ask the intellectuals of the Theoretical Physics Department to resolve that question.
What kind of self-governing nation would ensconce the lesser candidate who clearly does not merit the position?
Affirmative action is unconstitutional and must have been declared void by the judicial branch, including the Supreme Court, the Justices of which swore an oath to support the Constitution.
Affirmative action is but one of many artificial, invalid political emulsifiers employed in the communist effort to deny and nullify constitutional rights and freedoms of Americans, and force the impossible mixture of political oil and water.
Why and how in God’s name does a minority hold dominion over a majority?
Answer: The minority pays the one man, one vote electorate to vote for “free stuff” which, in turn, provides political power to the minority.
Never was restricted-vote America designed and engineered to be a one man, one vote democrazy.
States are provided the power to restrict the vote by the Constitution.
______________________________________________________
“the people are nothing but a great beast…
I have learned to hold popular opinion of no value.”
– Alexander Hamilton
_________________
“The true reason (says Blackstone) of requiring any qualification, with regard to property in voters, is to exclude such persons, as are in so mean a situation, that they are esteemed to have no will of their own.”
“If it were probable that every man would give his vote freely, and without influence of any kind, then, upon the true theory and genuine principles of liberty, every member of the community, however poor, should have a vote… But since that can hardly be expected, in persons of indigent fortunes, or such as are under the immediate dominion of others, all popular states have been obliged to establish certain qualifications, whereby, some who are suspected to have no will of their own, are excluded from voting; in order to set other individuals, whose wills may be supposed independent, more thoroughly upon a level with each other.”
– Alexander Hamilton, The Farmer Refuted, 1775
I understand the point about free speech, but I don’t think we can rely on the marketplace of ideas to always win out when religions are involved. Homosexuality was outlawed in a lot of places in this country until recently in the name of the Bible; in Some Muslim countries, they still throw gays off buildings. The marketplace of ideas does not always work when someone quotes a religious leader; logic does not work where people are expected to have unquestioning faith.
I do not think people should get a heightened right to “free speech” when they are saying “but the Bible said” – because that has been used to oppress and kill people. I am sure people could quote the Bible to go after Jews too, and we know how anti-Jewish rhetoric ended in Europe. (And homosexuals were also killed in the holocaust).
So let’s not imply “it must be a reasonable position, even if I disagree with it, because he was quoting the Bible.”
Pride events often showcase Drag Queens. Drag Queen acts are this era’s ‘minstrel shows’. The denigrate and ridicule women just minstrel shows denigrated Blacks. They are, in fact, a hate crime. Only privileged gay men could get away with such egregious, hateful behavior.
sefsfs
The war on Christianity and free speech.
It is false to claim that if you disagree with someone’s actions, then you hate them or wish them ill. For example, I don’t think it’s a good idea for a woman to live with a man unless they are at least engaged. Most relationships break up. If you’re living together, and you break up, then you have to still sleep there until you find another place, or one of you has to stay somewhere else. Then there’s disagreements on who pays rent if someone moves out right before it’s due. It’s even worse if you buy a house together without a serious commitment. It also creates pressure to remain in a relationship that your instinct says is not right for you. Just too many problems. But I don’t hate anyone who does this. I have an opinion that it will not work out well for most of them, but I don’t think anything bad should happen to them. Likewise, if someone has a Biblical view on anyone’s behavior, it doesn’t follow that it’s hateful.
I remember urging my parents to support gay marriage here in the US. “How would anyone else’s relationship affect you?” Well, now I know. People get fired and harassed or lose their business if they don’t believe in gay marriage. People can lose jobs, scholarships, spots on sports teams, ruin future career and education opportunities unless they agree that a man can decide to be a woman, and again a man, at any given time of day. If you don’t think it’s fair for a biological male to blow women out of the water in their own sports divisions, raking in records, scholarships, awards, and coveted competition spots, then you’d better shut up, or the Left will ruin you. My gender has been reduced to a state of mind. The scientific definition of sex is now taboo. When we filled out my young son’s Covid test registration in CA, it asked if his gender was female, male, trans female, trans male, genderqueer/gender non-binary, not listed, or prefer not to say. Then there was sex, with female, male, or non-binary. This makes data collection utterly useless. The virus doesn’t care about your state of mind, behavior, or how you see yourself. But there can be biological differences in risk factors for infection rates and complications. Yet, if we don’t collect accurate data on sex, then it handicaps epidemiologists. I don’t think sex and gender should have been divided to mean different things. It also would appear that stereotypes are applied more often in trans. When I was a kid, I was a tom boy. It was a battle to get me in a dress. I associated feminine things with the Great Home Perm Disaster when I was little. If I was a kid nowadays, teachers would probably try to convince me by first grade that I was really a boy. Kids aren’t allowed to dress or behave non typically without having their sexual identity questioned long before they are mature enough to even consider such topics, or their permanent consequences.
The castration and sterilization of youth in the misguided attempt to mutilate their bodies to approximate another sex is going to be the great shame of this generation. Later generations will wonder how ours could have so lost our moral compass. We are creating a misfortune similar to the Castratti of Opera’s shame. These kids don’t understand the permanent consequences of going down the transgender path. The attention is alluring.
Karen,
Well said! Let kids be kids. Let people be who they are, not what someone tells them to be. If they are tom boys or boys who play with dolls, what does it matter? What is egregious is to assume that they fit into these newly contrived titles. It is only the activists who wish to corner traditional citizens who push these titles on kids and adults. It is an effort to divide people into tribes. When tribalism flourishes, society breaks down. It is “us” and “them.” This is right up the alley of a community organizer (I wonder who described himself that way?).
How many kids know what they want to do when the grow up? I have met only a handful of freshmen university students who really have a good idea where they are truly headed in their academic career. How can kids much younger make any truly life changing decisions at such an early age?
These activists play a long game. They are methodical and deliberate. They are educated and determined. They count on people not seeing their true motives. They would love nothing more than to marginalize traditional, law abiding citizens and what they stand for. Their goal is to destroy what is good and wholesome and replace it with tyranny and depravity. They especially despise Christians. The delineation rests on the the term Christians. Authentic Christians. Not religiosity. There is a difference.
I am happy to see her stand up for her faith and rights. Professor Turley spoke well when he said that people can disagree and still hold respect for people of differing views, work with them and enjoy their company. This alarming case is a matter of civil liberties and freedom of expression.
Religious freedom? No group is more restricted in practicing their religious freedoms than Muslims in the West. Why, they can’t even stone women, execute apostates, execute blasphemers and do none of the fun stuff against mischief makers called for in Qur’an 5:33 like crucifixion, or the cutting off of hands and feet from opposite sides. And to boot, Muslims have to put up with Islamophobia.
Dammed right!
Better cherish the U.S. Constitution then, because it recognizes the Natural State of mankind as all being equally human, with independent Values springing directly from each unique body. No human being therefore has any God-like permission to Initiate Force against another human being. All of the egregious, immoral actions you mentioned are forbidden by the U.S. Constitution, in accordance with Natural Rights. In short: A person’s Right to do whatever they desire MUST STOP at the next person’s nose and wallet. Thinking otherwise immediately creates a slave and a slave owner.
Hi there,
Perhaps it would be a good idea to line up your ducks before you quack.
1. Suomi MP Rasanen addressed her tweet to her congregation, and pointed out to them that they stand contrary to the fountainhead of their stated belief, the gospel.
2. The passage quoted says that sinners must stand, individually, in judgment for their sins, after they cross the River Styx on their own.
3. Your friends, members of the politico-religious organization that shall not be named, and which opposes speech rights under penalty of death, have an affinity for handling “other” sexuality” by decapitation, stoning, defenestration, and toppling walls onto miscreants (https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9780437/Taliban-judge-says-gays-killed-toppling-wall-group-takes-Afghanistan.html) (copy and click if our gentle host will not show direct links). hardly equivalent.
4. The moral equivalence explains a lot.
Best to you, and may G#d grant you the time to think.
“No group is more restricted in practicing their religious freedoms than Muslims in the West”
Come to America where Woke religionists call parents terrorists, have the Attorney General pursue them, spy on Republican presidents, imprison rioters for taking photos in the US Capitol while Wokeists can kill innocents in Seattle’s “summer of love” CHOP zone, and the politicians cheer. Heck, a BLM member can even approach a Jewish Democrat candidate in Kentucky, shoot him at close range in an assassination attempt, and get out of jail free by BLM millionaires. There is a reason why these BLM types have skull and crossbones tattoos. Hurry up in coming to America before the Truckers arrive in DC, and all out war begins. Should be a blast!
24 Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, 25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
26 For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their [i]women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. 27 Likewise also the [j]men, leaving the natural use of the [k]woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.