Europe has seen rising instances of persecution of Christians for expressing unpopular views. Is America next? CBN News asked this question in an article published Sept. 5 of this year. The article draws attention to three recent cases in Europe in which Christians were prosecuted for boldly exercising their faith publicly.

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The first case concerns Dr. Päivi Räsänen, a member of Finland’s parliament who was accused of “inciting against sexual minorities” because she quoted what the Bible had to say about homosexuality on Twitter, in a pamphlet she had written years ago, and on a radio broadcast. IFA called for prayer on several occasions last year when she was facing her initial legal challenge. She was unanimously acquitted of all charges, but prosecutors appealed the verdict, and she is now awaiting the verdict of that appeal. She expects to be victorious because Finland’s constitution protects freedom of speech and religion. However, that has not stopped police from interrogating her on her religious beliefs, or prosecutors from filing charges.

The second case takes us to the Mediterranean island nation of Malta, where Matthew Grech was charged with violating a law  passed in 2016 that bans attempts to “change, repress or eliminate a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity and/or gender expression.” Grech is a former LGBTQ+ activist who became a Christian and publicly shares his testimony of leaving the gay lifestyle. He told CBN: “If I’m found guilty, I could spend five months in jail, or I could … pay a fine of up to 5,000 euros … just for really exercising my freedom to be a Christian and to support others who want to move away from unwanted LGBT identities or desires.”

The third case took place in Great Britain, of all places. Army veteran Adam Smith-Connor was charged with violating the U.K.’s so-called “buffer-zone laws” prohibiting protests within 490 feet of abortion clinics by praying silently near a clinic in Bournemouth. He was questioned by the police and ultimately fined the equivalent of $123 by a district court. His case closely follows that of Isabel Vaughan-Spruce, a British pro-life activist who was arrested twice for silent prayer outside an abortion clinic. After her first arrest, the Birmingham Magistrates’ Court acquitted her of all charges, but that did not stop police from arresting her again. In a video obtained by the nonprofit law firm Alliance Defending Freedom U.K., an officer can be heard saying that engaging in silent prayer is an offense under the Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) buffer-zone laws.

So far, constitutional rights to free speech and freedom of religion have, for the most part, protected them. But we mustn’t miss what their cases imply: The persecution of Christians in countries where religious freedom is supposedly protected is on the rise. This went from one cases to four in just the past year. That engaging in silent prayer near abortion clinics and quoting what Scripture says about homosexuality can even be considered crimes now means that anti-Christian sentiment in the West is growing — and this may well change the way constitutional law is interpreted.

That attitude change is knocking on our door as well. In an address at Notre Dame University on July 21, 2022, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito warned his audience that “we can’t lightly assume that the religious liberty enjoyed today in the United States, in Europe, and in many other places will endure.” He noted that many legal academics who write on religion no longer believe that it merits special protection. Instead, he said, they increasingly hold that a “liberal” society must be “value neutral,” treating religion like any personal passion: the pursuit of a hobby, rooting for one’s sports team, following a popular musical artist or group, and so on.

Increasingly, speaking absolute and biblical truth is considered hate speech, and prayer is regarded as something that ought not to be conducted in public places. People have been arrested for protesting abortion and sued for refusing service to LGBTQ couples. In a society that celebrates sin, the Church is considered an impediment to progressive thinking and must, therefore, be muzzled or otherwise neutralized.

This requires a courageous and uncompromising stand on the part of God’s Church. Scripture says: Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and shrewd in their own sight! (Isaiah 5:20–21).

Those verses reflect the grief and anger in God’s heart toward His image bearers who celebrate, legalize, and elevate what is evil in His eyes, considering that to be “wisdom,” over what the Church proclaims.

But that is our prophetic warning to a nation that claims to be under God and yet increasingly rejects His moral laws and design for life, and consequently turns against His people.

They are also reason to keep praying for our nation and for the American Church. We desperately need divine intervention for our society to stop sliding down the slippery slope of turning against God altogether. We equally desperately need the Church’s prayerful and humble return to solid, uncompromising biblical doctrine — believed, embraced, and proclaimed in unity. God’s message to His people is to pray, prepare, and proclaim.

Almighty God, our nation pledges to be one nation under You, but we are departing from Your moral law and design for human life by calling what is evil in Your eyes good, and what is good, evil. Please forgive us and open the eyes of many to the need to surrender to You, seek forgiveness, be saved, and embrace Your kingdom’s way of life. Move with power in Your Church to pray fervently, proclaim boldly, and prepare wisely for interpretations of our Constitution that will no longer guarantee religious freedom. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Share below your prayers against a growing cultural depravity and hostility to God’s truth.

Remco Brommet is a pastor, spiritual-growth teacher, and prayer leader with over 40 years of experience in Europe, Southeast Asia, Africa, and the U.S. He was born and raised in the Netherlands and pastored his first church in Amsterdam. He moved to the U.S. in 1986. He and his wife, Jennifer, live north of Atlanta. When not writing books, he blogs at www.deeperlifeblog.com and assists his wife as a content developer and prayer coordinator for True Identity Ministries. Jennifer and Remco are passionate about bringing people into a deeper relationship with Christ. Photo Credit: 3Trinity/Getty Images Pro.