It’s becoming more difficult to hold open air meetings in Russia.

Russia (Forum 18) — It’s becoming more difficult to hold open air meetings in Russia. Forum 18 News reports after police broke up an open air Baptist evangelistic service in southern Moscow, a court ruled on 11 August that the singing and praying “disturbed
public order and the peace of those relaxing nearby”.

One Baptist was fined 16 US dollars after police claim he swore at them, a charge denied by local Baptists. “Believers don’t swear,” Veniamin Khorev told Forum 18 News Service.

He described the breaking up of the service as “part of the normal life of our church,” as the Baptists refuse to register with the authorities they have no legal status and in practice cannot rent buildings for worship.

Their evangelistic events have been disrupted across Russia this summer, with books confiscated, tents taken down, six church members detained for five days and four fined.