Woman Arrested for Praying Silently Near an Abortion Clinic
Your eyes are not deceiving you; this event actually occurred in the United Kingdom (your congenial editor verified it to make certain this was not something that some zealot made up or slanted just to get people angry). Isabel Vaughan-Spruce, the director of the UK March for life, was standing near an abortion clinic in Birmingham, England, but she was not speaking aloud, but rather praying silently. She had engaged in this “questionable” behavior for a long time, but Britain has a new law. Apparently, if someone is praying—even silently—such an action can be regarded legally as protesting. When the police asked her if she was protesting, she said no, but since she admitted to praying silently, they arrested her.
One is reminded of two other situations. First, George Orwell’s book, 1984, comes to mind. Of course, it is good to know that the crime rate in Great Britain is so low that the police have time to arrest people praying silently. In some American cities, thugs don’t get arrested for throwing bricks at the police, or vandalizing and looting neighborhood stores and businesses (or if they do, they are quickly bailed out—and maybe, as a bonus, the charges are dropped). The second reminiscence is of Daniel, who continued to pray even after the king passed a foolish law against it. In that instance, the Lord bailed him out by keeping the lions’ mouths shut, and he was released.
The pro-choice crowd is fearful. They do not want women to know the truth about abortion. They want women to think that abortion is no different than having one’s appendix removed. Of course, it is different. Abortion involves a mother and a child—two human beings. When an appendix is removed, there was only one person to begin with, and when the surgery is completed, there is still only one person. Abortion begins with two living beings and ends with one. The human being removed from the woman had a heartbeat after only three weeks. Many women, when they see a sonogram of the child, decide not to have an abortion. The pro-choice crowd prefers that they did not have that choice.
According to Catholic Review (September 25, 2023), after more than six months, the charges have been dropped, and the police have issued an apology. Furthermore, “the British government’s secretary of state for the Home Department” wrote to all the police forces in England and Wales to tell them that “silent prayer was not a criminal offense.” Hooray! But isn’t it disturbing that they had to be told that? Why would you not know that? Are the laws in the United Kingdom so ambiguous that policemen need to be told not to arrest people praying silently? Something made them think it was against the law. Isabel said: “What happened to me signals to others that they too could face arrest, interrogation, investigation, and potential prosecution if caught exercising their basic freedom of thought.” Christians could be penalized for resisting Groupthink.