MARSHALL LAW IMPOSED ON ABUSIVE STREET PREACHER - 19TH NOVEMBER 2006 {Taken from a newspaper report in the 'Reading Evening Post' 9th November 2006}

Source from http://www.habakkuk2-4.com/5.html

An abusive and noisy street preacher from the Potters House church in Reading, United Kingdom, was hit with a noise abatement order recently after a flurry of complaints from shoppers and local retailers.

The report stated that Pastor Steve Marshall of the Potters House in Reading has been silenced by coucil officials and is also under investigation by the police regarding 'alledgedly homophobic rants.' The newspaper also reported that his noisy religious broadcasting in Braod Street had incenses local businesses and shoppers in his regular saturday street sermons over the last two years.

Early in November officials finally took action against the high decibel preacher with a noise abatement order being served courtesy of Reading Borough Council which for pastor Marshall means he could be served with a £5,000 fine or the confiscation of his P.A equipment if he continues to broadcast in Braod Street again. Recently he narrowly avoided a confrontation with officials by leaving the street just minutes before a team which included street wardens, PSCO's and an environmental health officer could move him on.

Andy Bagnell, an inspector in the local police was quoted as saying, "Pastor Marshall may be moved on or his sound equipment confiscated if he returned to Broad Street to preach noisily."

Despite the usual claims by U.K Potters House pastors that this is evidence of persecution, the issue here seems to be the excessive noise of the preaching which is a common problem in fellowship outreaches. In Northampton there were numerous angry confrontations with police and local retailers who claimed the excessive noise was so loud it made their windows shake. . Passers by often complained that the noise was so loud it hurt their ears as they walked past. The minister at the time, Linford Henry, simply dismissed all this as 'The devil trying to stop us'.

It would seem that after all these years the Potters House has learned nothing and is as arrogant and abusive as ever.