Franklin Graham urged his social media followers to pray for a retired pastor who was found guilty of violating Northern Ireland’s abortion buffer zones legislation after holding an open-air service outside of a hospital. Pastor Clive Johnston was convicted on Thursday, May 7, even though Johnston said he was simply preaching on John 3:16 and did not mention abortion.
“We held a small, open air Sunday service near a hospital. We made no reference whatsoever to the issue of abortion,” Johnston said, per The Christian Institute (TCI), which represents him. “And yet the buffer zones law is so broad that holding a Sunday service has been found to be a criminal offence. And at 78 years of age I find myself, for the first time, convicted of a crime.”
“God bless Pastor Clive Johnston for preaching the Gospel—John 3:16!” said Franklin Graham in a social media post May 8.
Graham is the president and CEO of Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. He said, “Pray for this 78-year-old retired pastor and his legal team as he was convicted and fined for preaching in a ‘safe access zone’ outside a hospital in Northern Ireland where abortions are performed.”
God bless Pastor Clive Johnston for preaching the Gospel—John 3:16! Pray for this 78-year-old retired pastor and his legal team as he was convicted and fined for preaching in a “safe access zone” outside a hospital in Northern Ireland where abortions are performed. Pastor…
— Franklin Graham (@Franklin_Graham) May 8, 2026
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“Religious freedoms are being threatened not only in the UK, but here in the US, Canada, and around the world,” said Graham.
Retired Pastor Clive Johnston Convicted After Preaching on John 3:16 Outside of Hospital
Clive Johnston is a retired pastor, former president of the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland, a husband, and a grandfather of seven. According to the BBC, on July 7, 2024, Johnston held an open-air service in an abortion buffer zone near Causeway Hospital in Coleraine, Northern Ireland.
Abortion buffer zones, which came into effect in Northern Ireland in 2023, are intended to be zones within 100 to 250 meters of a facility that ensure that patients and staff can access or provide abortion services without being subjected to harassment, intimidation, or any unwanted attempts to influence their decisions.
Franklin Graham urged his social media followers to pray for a retired pastor who was found guilty of violating Northern Ireland’s abortion buffer zones legislation after holding an open-air service outside of a hospital.Click to PostTCI stated that Johnston had no signage referring to abortion, nor did he mention abortion when he preached outside of the Coleraine hospital. “I know it was an unusual place to hold an open-air service but that was the point: There shouldn’t be any public spaces in Northern Ireland where you can be prosecuted and convicted simply for preaching the gospel,” Johnston said.
TCI said that Johnston was not arrested but “was simply cautioned on 7 July 2024 and later notified of prosecution by way of a summons.”
