At noon tomorrow, another hearing will be held in the trial of Pastor Paweł Chojecki, who is on trial for the words he spoke during his sermons and programs on Against the Tide TV. Three pastors called as witnesses in the case will testify:
- pastor Henryk Skrzypkowski, a member of the Presbytery of the Baptist Church Council, and the pastor of the Baptist church in Chełm,
- pastor Ireneusz Dawidowicz of the Baptist church in Bialystok, psychologist, co-founder and vice-president of the Association “Toward Good Hope”
- former priest Jerzy, now pastor of a home church.
The hearing is public and will be held before the Court of Appeals in Lublin. Journalists and all interested parties are invited to come to the courtroom in person.
Feel invited:
April 13, 12:00 pm
Court of Appeals in Lublin
II Criminal Division
1 Obrońców Pokoju St.
20-950 Lublin
The pastor of the New Covenant Church in Lublin, Pawel Chojecki, is on trial solely for his words – a few sentences from sermons and other programs aired on the web TV he runs, which were disliked by a group of haters and the Law and Justice prosecution. The pastor was charged with insulting the religious feelings of Catholics, insulting Catholic objects of religious reverence, praising the initiation of a forward war against communist North Korea, and insulting the Polish Nation and the President of Poland.
The court of first instance sentenced Pastor Chojecki to eight months of restriction of liberty in the form of community service. In addition, the pastor is to pay for the costs of the proceedings in the amount of nearly PLN 21,000. Four appeals have been filed to the verdict. In Pastor Chojecki’s defense, the law firm of legal counsel Adam Wroblewski, the law firm of attorney Andrzej Sawicki and the law firm of attorney Andrzej Turczyn filed an appeal. An appeal was also filed by prosecutor Katarzyna Urban, demanding a prison sentence. If the Court of Appeals in Lublin convicts the pastor, there is no longer any possibility of appeal in Poland.
Referring to the accusations of insulting the religious feelings of Catholics, Pastor Chojecki points out that as a Protestant he criticizes the dogmas of the Catholic Church, pointing out that they are incompatible with the Bible. As for the accusations of insulting Catholic objects of religious worship, these allegations are also about words – there was no real insulting of objects of Catholic worship. The pastor addressed all the allegations in a statement.
Who really is pastor Paweł Chojecki?
