Finnish Member of Parliament Päivi Räsänen has said that her recent trial has given her opportunities to ‘testify about Jesus’ that she would not have otherwise had.
Wife to a Lutheran pastor and a mother of five, she has held a parliamentary seat as a member of the Christian Democrats since 1995, serving as the party’s leader between 2004 and 2015.
The 64-year-old was investigated and charged with offences relating to incitement of a minority group following criticism of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland for its involvement in LGBT Pride events.
She has testified in a recent article for Christian Network Europe (CNE) that her case has given her opportunities to share the gospel which she would otherwise never have had, such as speaking about Jesus to police officers, in courtrooms and on live broadcasts.
In her testimony, she detailed of how having grown up near the Soviet border, where Bibles were forbidden, she ‘could never imagine something like this could ever happen in my lifetime’ in her country.
She described of how during a police interrogation, she was asked about the meaning of verses from Romans 1 and what she meant by the term ‘sin.’ She was also told to delete what she had written within the next two weeks, which she refused to do ‘whatever the consequences.’
'From the beginning, I deeply felt that the entire process was in God’s hands and had a purpose. I have considered this fight my calling.'
She said: ‘The situation felt unreal like I was watching myself in a movie. How could this happen in Finland, a model country of democracy and the rule of law? Was I really going to stand before a judge to defend my Bible-based faith? It was only a few years after I had been in charge of the same police as the Minister of the Interior.
‘At the District Court, the religious interrogation was continued. The prosecutor argued that the Biblical views on sin are hate speech and a criminal insult to a minority.
‘While working as a government minister, I once met a Chinese Minister of Religious Affairs who was visiting Finland. He assured me that people in China are free in their beliefs, but the actual expression of their faith must be limited so as not to offend anyone. It was absurd to hear the same argument by the Finnish prosecutor in the courtroom.’
Räsänen has been involved in legal proceedings surrounding the case for over five years and is waiting to be tried at the Supreme Court, where she hopes she will receive a final acquittal. Despite having to endure many difficult periods, she spoke of how she now regards her case as her calling.
‘During this legal process, my biggest surprise has been how much joy and opportunities this has opened,’ she said. ‘I have gained much more than I have lost. From the beginning, I deeply felt that the entire process was in God’s hands and had a purpose. I have considered this fight my calling. It has been a privilege and an honour to defend freedom of faith, a fundamental right in a democratic state.’
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