You’re All Going to Jail: A Friendly Warning from Charles Colson to the Southern Baptist Convention

Charles Colson, who knows his way around a jail cell, told Southern Baptist pastors that they would be headed behind bars, too, if the current Hate Crimes bill becomes law.

In an address to the Southern Baptist Convention Pastor’s Conference, Colson chose to attack everything from the Hate Crimes bill to Islam:

“Sponsors of congressional hate crimes legislation insist it won’t restrict speech, but Colson warned that ministers will face the threat of prosecution within the next two years.

He also said medical professionals are losing their conscience right to refuse to perform abortions, and faith-based ministries could soon have to hire non-believers.

Colson also predicted a continuing threat from Islamic terrorists and dismissed the Qu’ran as an “irrational invention of Muhammad rather than divinely inspired scripture.”

It seems Colson is reverting back to the Right’s tired (and false) argument: If we protect LGBT people from violent crimes targeted specifically at them because of their sexual orientation, then any conservative, anti-homosexual priest who speaks out against homosexuality will be jailed.

Maybe Colson is still shaken up, and paranoid, by his own 7-month prison sentence due to his involvement in Watergate.