In May 2025, Rushmoor Borough Council's attempt to ban Christian street preachers from praying, preaching, or distributing leaflets in Aldershot and Farnborough town centres sparked outrage, but little mainstream attention. As JJ Starky notes in his August 21, 2025, article, this Labour-led initiative, which could have jailed violators for up to two years, is part of a broader pattern where UK authorities wield tools like injunctions and Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPOs) to suppress Christian expression under the guise of preventing "alarm and distress." Starky's claim of a "war" on Christians is bolstered by cases like John Steele's arrest for questioning a Muslim woman about the Quran, Dia Moodley's detention for discussing Christianity and Islam, and David McConnell's conviction for "misgendering." Yet, the deeper issue lies in Christian weakness, both cultural and theological, allowing "Caesar" to encroach unchecked.
The State's War on Christian Expression
Rushmoor's proposed injunction, as reported by The Telegraph (May 10, 2025), sought to criminalise core Christian practices: praying without permission, handing out Bibles, or preaching sermons deemed "hostile" toward protected characteristics like race or sexual orientation. Breaching such an order could lead to fines or two years' imprisonment, a draconian response to complaints about "offensive" speech. Similarly, Hillingdon Borough Council's 2023 PSPO banned amplified preaching and Bible verse displays, with violations risking £100 fines or jail time. Other councils, Birmingham, Leicester, Leeds, and Blackpool, have imposed PSPOs restricting street preaching, often under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, originally intended for issues like dog fouling, not religious expression.
High-profile cases underscore this trend. John Steele's 2025 arrest in Rotherham for asking about Quranic verses on domestic violence, Dia Moodley's 2024 detention in Bristol for discussing Christianity's moral distinctions, and David McConnell's 2021 conviction in Leeds for "misgendering" a transgender person, highlight a pattern of state overreach. Anthony Stevens' 2023 arrest for retweeting a video criticising police treatment of a Christian preacher, held for nine hours on suspicion of "stirring up racial hatred," further illustrates the use of vague public order laws (e.g., Sections 4A, 5, and 19 of the Public Order Act 1986) to silence Christians. These laws, carrying penalties up to seven years, are applied disproportionately to Christians, as Starky notes, with no comparable arrests of Muslim street preachers for similar offenses.
Two-Tier Justice and the Sacred Cow of Progressivism
Starky's assertion of "two-tier justice" is supported by data and anecdotes. Home Office figures for 2022/23 show 609 hate crimes against Christians, nearly 10% of total recorded hate crimes, yet terms like "Christianophobia" are absent from political discourse, unlike "Islamophobia." Nick Tolson, a former government faith adviser, told The Critic (March 2024) that crimes against churches are treated as "normal" unless proven otherwise, while mosque vandalism is presumed to be hate-driven. During the 2022 Hindu-Muslim unrest in Leicester, Hindu temples faced attacks, yet the government allocated over £100 million to protect mosques, with no equivalent funding for Christian or Hindu sites.
This disparity reflects a sacred cow of progressive governance: prioritising emotional safety and "inclusivity" over fundamental rights like free speech and religion. The Rushmoor injunction and PSPOs embody this dogma, equating "distress" with criminality, a shift Starky calls "childish" and rooted in modern progressivism. On X, users like @Con_Tomlinson (August 13, 2025) argue that authorities "bend over backwards" for certain groups while Christians face "state-sanctioned persecution." The lack of Muslim preacher arrests for "alarm and distress," compared to cases like Anjem Choudary's terrorism-related convictions, fuels perceptions of bias. As Starky suggests, if Muslims faced similar restrictions, "parts of Britain would likely be on fire," pointing to the vocal resistance Muslim communities might mount.
Christian Weakness: A Theological and Cultural Failure
The core problem, however, lies in Christian weakness, which allows "Caesar" to encroach unchecked. Culturally, British Christians have internalised a post-Christian society's expectation of restraint, often avoiding confrontation to maintain a veneer of respectability. Theologically, this stems from a misapplication of "turn the other cheek" (Matthew 5:39), where passivity is mistaken for virtue. Jamie Broadey, a Rushmoor preacher, told the BBC (April 3, 2025) that Christians are "prepared to take punches" but sometimes "take too many for too long." This echoes a broader reluctance to challenge state overreach, unlike the Hindu community's protests in Leicester or the Muslim response to perceived slights, as seen in 2025 summer riots over "far-Right" rumours.
The Christian Legal Centre's (CLC) interventions, such as halting Rushmoor's injunction and supporting preachers like Steele and Moodley, show resistance is possible. Yet, these are exceptions. Many Christians, lack training in UK free speech laws, leaving them vulnerable to intimidation. The contrast with Muslim advocacy groups, which swiftly label restrictions as "Islamophobia," highlights a gap in organisation and assertiveness. On X, @SpeechUnion (August 7, 2025) notes that Muslim communities effectively leverage legal and public pressure, a strategy Christians rarely employ.
The Risks of Passivity and the Need for Action
This weakness risks further erosion of freedoms. If Christians continue to acquiesce, PSPOs and injunctions could normalise censorship, extending to other groups. The sacred cow of progressive governance, which prioritises "distress" over liberty, thrives on this passivity, replacing older ideals of free expression with a new dogma of enforced sensitivity.
To counter this, Christians must emulate the CLC's model: legal challenges, community organising, and public advocacy. Training in free speech laws, as Andrea Williams of CLC advocates, can empower preachers to resist intimidation. Engaging with sympathetic politicians, like Conservative councillors Gareth Lyon and Ade Adeola in Rushmoor, can amplify their voice.
Christians should assert their rights without mirroring the divisive tactics of others, focusing on legal and cultural pushback. The Rushmoor case's pause after faith leaders' objections (May 12, 2025) proves dialogue works, but it requires sustained effort.
The UK's state-led restrictions on Christian expression, from Rushmoor's injunction to Hillingdon's PSPO, reveal a troubling pattern of abuse, exacerbated by two-tier justice that downplays anti-Christian bias. Yet, the deeper issue is Christian weakness, a cultural and theological failure to challenge "Caesar's" overreach. By questioning the sacred cow of progressive governance and embracing assertive, reasoned resistance, Christians can reclaim their freedoms. Failure to act risks normalising censorship, threatening not just Christians but the very principle of liberty in Britain's public square, already facing collapse.
https://news.starknakedbrief.co.uk/p/if-muslims-were-treated-like-christians