Päivi Räsänen is the defendant of the “Bible Tweet” case that has continued for more than six years. In 2019, she tweeted a picture of Bible verses, a 2004 pamphlet from Bishop Juhana Pohjola about sexuality according to Christianity, and remarks from a radio debate about the human identity. All of this was directed at questioning her church for sponsoring an LGBTQ Pride event.
According to a press release from Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) International, Räsänen faces criminal charges for expressing her Christian faith. With the case being heard in the district court in 2022 and the appeals court in 2023, the case has now reached Finland’s Supreme Court, where it was heard last Thursday.
Bishop Pohjola is involved in the case for the pamphlet he had co-written with Räsänen over twenty years ago, reports the Christian Post.
Räsänen says that she trusts the Finish Supreme Court will uphold the freedom religious speech. As she stated before entering court, “I stand here not only to defend my own right to speak freely, but to defend the freedom of every person to express deeply held beliefs without fear of punishment. My case will show whether quoting the Bible can become a crime in a free country.”
The process is the punishment
Paul Coleman, executive director of ADF International, spoke with Jodi Hice on Washington Watch, putting perspective onto what Räsänen has gone through.
“Just in terms of numbers, Paivi has endured over 13 hours of police interrogation, four criminal charges, two court hearings — or three now, including yesterday — involving 11 different judges. And the case just goes on and on,” says Coleman.
He says that they have been acquitted in both the district court and the court of appeals. However, the Finnish legal system allows prosecutors to appeal not guilty verdicts. This is different than the U.S. legal system which has double jeopardy clause provided in the Fifth Amendment that does not allow a person to be charged with the same crime twice.
“Having lost twice, the prosecutor then appealed this case to the Supreme Court, which took place yesterday. So, it's just been an extraordinarily long and grueling process, both for Paivi and for Bishop Juhanna (Pohjola),” states Coleman “We are very confident that the Supreme Court will decide the same way as both the appeals court and the district court and are hoping and praying for a not guilty verdict.”
Coleman explains how they were charged. Unlike the U.S., which has freedom of speech under the First Amendment, Finland along with most other European and Western nations, have laws that criminalize hate speech.
“Finland has one such law. It's contained within the Criminal Code of Finland that has the chapter on ‘War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity.’ And so, within that section of the Criminal Code is this hate speech offense,” says Coleman.
He says it come down to Räsänen expressing deeply held beliefs on matters of public interest. It personal to her because it is in accordance with her Christian faith interests, and it is a matter that emanates from the Bible.
“The prosecutor says that these things are offensive and insulting, and therefore should be criminalized, should be banned, should be punished. And so, the case has always been about deeply theological concepts,” states Coleman.
Prosecutor: Sin is offensive to the sinner
Coleman says that, while Räsänen was interrogated by police, she was asked what is the meaning of the book of Roman or its first chapter? He witnessed this during the trial at the Supreme Court.
“Concepts of, for example, sin and ‘what does this mean?’ was discussed in court. And essentially, the view of the prosecutor is that the Christian concept of sin is offensive. Therefore, Christians are on notice that, if they use this sort of concept, that they could be also charged with the criminal offense of hate speech,” says Coleman.
Coleman expresses that there has never been a case like this in Finland before, and the decision will set a precedent for the whole country. However, the ramifications go beyond the nation’s borders.
“We live now in this world of globalized law and policy, and what we see all over the place is that what happens in one jurisdiction transfers over to another. So, the case will not only set a legal precedent in Finland that will have a huge impact for the entire nation, but it will also have an impact for many other nations across Europe,” says Coleman.
The stakes of the case could not be higher for everyone, not only Christians.
“If the prosecutor is successful in this case, then all Finnish people will be living in a situation where if, what they say — even going back in time two decades — is deemed to be insulting or offensive or hurtful or whatever, they could find themselves held before the courts as well,” states Coleman.
He recalls a conversation with Räsänen and Bishop Pohjola about appreciating all the support and prayer from churches around the world. And he emphasizes that this is still needed going forward.
“We just encourage everyone to continue praying for them and for their perseverance in what has been a very long trial, and ultimately for a victory, not just for them, but for Finland and for all of Europe,” concludes Coleman.
