As the West has moved further from its historic biblical foundations, attacks against public Christian witness have increased dramatically. Finland’s prosecution of Member of Parliament and physician Päivi Räsänen is a clear example.
Over twenty years ago, Rasanen wrote a pamphlet that laid out her views on marriage and sexuality, which are rooted in Christian teaching. She was charged and prosecuted for hate speech. She was acquitted at the lower courts, but Finland’s Supreme Court found her guilty, imposed significant fines, and ordered that her pamphlet be destroyed.
Rasanen is now appealing that ruling to the European Court of Human Rights.
The Finland Supreme Court decision
Finland’s Supreme Court concluded that Räsänen’s pamphlet amounted to criminal hate speech because it contained statements that insulted homosexuals. In the pamphlet, Räsänen referred to homosexuality as a “sexual deviation” and a “psychological disorder.”
Although Räsänen wrote the pamphlet to articulate her Christian beliefs, the Court treated her statements simply as false claims about homosexuality that contradicted modern scientific data. In the Court’s view, that harm justified limiting her free speech.
The Court concluded that Räsänen’s stated views on homosexuality were false because most medical experts would disagree. But whether homosexuality ought to be regarded as healthy or disordered is not a question science can settle on its own. It also depends on a prior understanding of human nature and the purpose of human sexuality. Thus, Räsänen was penalized not for spreading objectively false information about homosexuality, but for holding a moral worldview about sexuality that the government and the Court rejects.
For her public witness, Räsänen has endured a lengthy police investigation, seven years of legal proceedings, criminal fines, and more. The United Kingdom recently denied the Finnish grandmother entry, preventing her from delivering a speech on free expression in Belfast.
The appeal
Given the close 3–2 split decision at Finland’s highest court, criticism of the ruling from members of Finland’s coalition government, and the widespread international attention the case has received, Räsänen’s decision to appeal is not surprising.
Räsänen explains:
“Hate speech” laws that criminalize peaceful expression are incompatible with a truly democratic society. As a Member of Parliament and a Christian who has faced censorship and years of criminal investigation, I am profoundly aware of the devastating consequences of curtailing basic liberties. The European Court of Human Rights must decisively uphold these freedoms and promote the common good across Europe.
Foundations Conference
Räsänen’s appeal to the “common good” raises a deeper philosophical question: even if everyone agrees that government should promote the common good, how does it decide what is good?
For centuries, Western societies understood the common good to rest on objective and God-given truths about justice and human dignity. As Western societies have increasingly rejected the Bible and Christianity as having any authority, however, public debates have become detached from those shared biblical foundations.
Räsänen’s case illustrates the consequences of that detachment. Because biblical principles are no longer seen as the basis of freedom in Finland, the Supreme Court does not see the value of Räsänen’s speech nor the importance of protecting it.
Christians must help recover the biblical foundations that shaped Western law and government if future generations are to enjoy enduring freedom.
Dr. Kevin Flatt, one of Redeemer University’s most engaging lecturers, will examine how the West abandoned its historic Christian foundations, what consequences have followed, and how Christians can faithfully bear witness in a secularized society.
We hope you will join us for this inaugural event as Christians gather to reflect on our culture and explore how Christians can respond and rebuild. Registration is required, so please visit our Foundations Conference event page to sign up.
