Jehovah's Witnesses brace for court decision

[bruceq]

"GOD SIMPLY HASN'T GIVEN UP YET." FOUR DAYS UNTIL THE BAN OF JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES IN RUSSIA

Will they change methods of ministry, violate the law, or all emigrate?

Novaya Gazeta, 13 July 2017

 

On 20 April the Russian Supreme Court found the organization of Jehovah's Witnesses to be extremist and prohibited its activity in our country. (An appeal of this decision was filed and it has not taken legal effect.) The Ministry of Justice discovered "violations of the charter goals of the organization and of current legislation in the RF," in particular, violation of the federal law "On combating extremist activity." The religious literature of the Witnesses (brochures, booklets, magazines Watchtower" and "Awake," etc.) have also been found to be extremist and their distribution has been prohibited. The property of the organization and of 396 Kingdom Halls (including the enormous complex of the headquarters of the Russian affiliate, "Administrative Center," in St. Petersburg) by the decision of the court will go to the benefit of the government.

 

On Monday, 17 July, the Supreme Court will consider an appellate complaint of the Jehovah's Witnesses.

 

And on 13 July, the Levada Center published a survey according to which 79% of Russians support the ban on Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia.

* * * * *

"For Easter, Mama always colored eggs, but why she did this, she could not explain." Marina is setting the table; she is preparing for the arrival of fellow believers. "I rummaged through a slew of literature, I studied up on the Law of God, but I did not find anything about eggs there. I tried to find a Bible to read. In the early 90s, the father of one of my pupils worked in a publishing house and he gave it to me. I began to read—nothing about eggs, but there were prophecies and a bunch of names and I did not understand anything at all. And then Witnesses knocked at our door. They suggested studying the Bible. My husband and I agreed. And then even Katya became interested."

 

Marina's husband, Katya's father, died several years ago. "I used to be afraid of the dead with a beastly fear. When my grandmother died, I was not able to go to her grave. I was 30 years old but I believed that she would jump out and grab me," Marina describes while her daughter laughs. "Now this is funny. After all the Bible says that the dead are in an unconscious condition and they cannot help nor harm. So that when my husband died there was not such a pain of loss that many talk about. And now there isn't. I have the feeling that he has simply gone off and some day he will return."

 

After the closing of the Kingdom Halls, mass meetings of believers gave way to house gatherings with tea. They converse and discuss the Bible. Many continue to witness on the street. "Once they took us to the Arbat department of internal affairs and the major began saying: 'Go to the Garden Ring; why are you walking in my precinct?' I showed him the verse from the Bible where Jesus says that it is necessary to go and proclaim. The major responded to me with understanding: 'Well, you have a task.' After this we even began communicating with them. Liuda once brought them magazines and they laid them out in the police department. Perhaps they were read, or not, but they leafed through them willingly," Evgeny recalls.

 

By order of the court, the Witnesses must transfer their buildings to the state. The principal Moscow Kingdom Hall is located on Mikhalkov Street. By their own hands the Witnesses transformed it from a palace of culture to a building for services. They laid tiles themselves, painted the walls, upholstered the seating, and hired an electrician.

 

"I was a happy young man, but there was no sense of fulfillment. There was a feeling that everything was somehow incomplete. You feel it especially in the army. After meeting Liudmila, a real life of 'pilgrims' began. We traveled about the country and we witnessed. We even lived in Chechnya—that's where it was really hard."

 

Concerning the upcoming appeal of 17 July, Liudmila and Evgeny speak with hope: "Even if the decision is not changed, there still is the European court. We do not want to leave the country because of the ban. We love Russia. We love the Russian language. We love these people."

 

A photograph of her husband stands next to a computer in the living room. When Witnesses visit Marina it's as if he really is with them as before. "When I began studying the Bible, I read that a wife must submit to her husband. I thought: 'Pshaw!' I was brought up like the center of the universe." Katya adds: "That's Mama completely. Robust to the core!" "I had to break myself very much," Marina admits. "And I now greatly regret one thing—that I came to know the Bible very late. That way the first marriage could have been saved. This one was already the third. I was like—I don't like it, to hell with it. This one also would have gone to hell if it were not for the Witnesses."

 

Over tea and pizza the believers discuss the history of the organization. They recall Eleanor Roosevelt, who acted for the persecuted Witnesses, and they hope that on 17 July the judges will make a different decision. Katya does not believe in defeat: "If everything now happens thus, it means that it is necessary to God, and God has no losses. If it seems to you that he is losing, that means that he simply has not yet given up."

 

"They have lived with me for eleven years now. I in one room and they in the other," Valya explains. She struggles to keep her feet, but she firmly rejects help. "I will make it myself. I am falling apart, but I will make it!"

 

"If it were not for Liuda, I would not be able to keep such cleanliness. She both keeps house and cooks every day. It is good for me with them," Valya comments on her fellow believers with warmth. As a former science worker, she speaks about the Bible as almost a scientific achievement. For her, everything there is logical and consistent. And it is also like a detective novel—truly fascinating reading for every day. After the ban on printed literature, Valentina again mastered the computer.

 

"My girlfriend now lives in New Zealand. She also is a Witness. There they are simply in shock from what has happened," Valya returns to 20 April. "They are supporting and praying and believing that justice will triumph."

 

"They called us extremists and in the minds of the majority of people we are equated with terrorists," Valentina's friend says.

 

"I have faced open aggression on religious grounds," Veronika describes. "A year ago, on 8 March, I was witnessing, going about apartments and inviting everybody to our holiday, the Evening of Memory of the Death of Jesus Christ (the only religious holiday that Witnesses observe—ed.). I was with my partner. While I was talking with a young man on the stairway, a drunk woman came out of the door across the way. She began to curse. I tried to leave then but she began cursing in God's name. I asked her to stop, but she kicked me on the rear, and she pushed me, and I flew down the stairway. She flew after me and grabbed me by the hair. My partner tried to call the police, but she did not make a connection in the entryway. She tried to call to apartments and asked for help, but everybody refused. And then the woman called to a guy: "I caught a sectarian. Come in, I have a gun under the icons in the cupboard."

 

My partner's husband came. He also separated us. Then the police took us to the precinct and there this woman wrote out a statement, that I broke into her apartment and wanted to rob her."

 

Veronika has survived this situation so far. It was then that she, for the first time, began to think about moving to another country. One other factor was the decision of the court in April. "It's scary to live in this country. Here a decent and law-abiding person can be placed in a different light and put in jail. It is one thing to be jailed for a crime; it is another when you are framed. And I have already experienced this myself. That woman then wrote something completely different in her statement."

 

For now, Veronika is only thinking about the possibility of moving. However some Witnesses even with tourist visas are now being refused by receiving countries. One married couple was not able to leave for the U.S.A. In an interview it was learned that they were going to America on the basis of religious convictions. Another was denied a Schengen visa when they tried to exit for a congress of Witnesses in Finland.

 

"Before the wedding, baptized Witnesses may not have intimate relations," Yura explains. "That is, take a walk, go on dates, even kiss, but without physical intimacy."

 

Sasha has her own group "Ameli na meli." They often perform on the summer terasses of popular Moscow cafes. Yura is a journalist. He found Sasha on social networks and he followed her productions for a long time.

 

"I thought that since she is a singer then she obviously does not observe all biblical rules," Sasha's husband jokes. "I was mistaken."

 

The young people learned about the court's 20 April decision from the Internet. "It was the same as if you heard news about a terrible criminal and you would stand and your heart stops when you hear about him—and then there appears on the TV screen your photograph," Sasha says.

 

Sasha and Yury have been together since 2012 and they married in 2014. While living together for two creative people, each with their own cockroaches, in their opinion it helps to study the Bible. In the evenings they read. There are two Bibles on their bookshelf, beside Bradbury and Strugatsky.

 

Evgeny: "In Russia now the image of Witnesses is being demonized. Previously they also dreamed up for us many different names: enemy of the people, sectarian, spy, and now the fashionable word is 'extremist.'"

 

"Witnesses do not bear arms nor participate in wars and rallies. We will struggle by purely legal methods," Evgeny explains, and he adds: "I do not understand why they are banning us. But it seems to me that those who are banning also do not know the answer."

 

"I once read that Jesus said: 'Go and speak about me,' and that upset me so much," Evgeny jokes. "Well I did not want to go up to anybody and converse with anybody. That was hard for me, but now it is a given."  (tr. by PDS, posted 13 July 2017)

[The Librarian]

Can you imagine if they overturn the decision? Wow.

[Bible Speaks]

Jehovah has perfect timing! He has it already solved. Already His Name has been known so much more since these trials. We anticipate His next move!

?????

[bruceq]

Yes all of this is amazing. No matter what happens on Monday another great witness will result. What is truly remarkable is the fact that just this week all around the world we were ALL in our Book Study discussing about the events in Russia. Yet the Slave a year and a half ago when they first decided to go over this book had NO IDEA that THIS MONDAY would be the Supreme Courts appeal. Talk about "food at the PROPER TIME" !!!!!!!!!! Obviously this shows that we are Jehovah's People and he is caring for and teaching us and directing those taking the lead. Mt 24:45.

"The nations shall know that I am Jehovah" Ez 38:23

[Bible Speaks]

9 minutes ago, bruceq said:

Yes all of this is amazing. No matter what happens on Monday another great witness will result. What is truly remarkable is the fact that just this week all around the world we were ALL in our Book Study discussing about the events in Russia. Yet the Slave a year and a half ago when they first decided to go over this book had NO IDEA that THIS MONDAY would be the Supreme Courts appeal. Talk about "food at the PROPER TIME" !!!!!!!!!! Obviously this shows that we are Jehovah's People and he is caring for and teaching us and directing those taking the lead. Mt 24:45.

@bruceq Yes if Jehovah "wills" we shall do this or that! Glad that we have the most powerful force in the whole Universe! May Jehovah's Name be Praised! ???

[Shar Shar]

2 hours ago, Bible Speaks said:

Jehovah has perfect timing! He has it already solved. Already His Name has been known so much more since these trials. We anticipate His next move!

?????

Dear friends of Jehovah...we all are waiting on him...our whole world wide association of faithful brothers and sisters. Of course we dont need to even know one another on a personal level to just know how united we are! I pray everyday for us all.

[bruceq]

From the new "breaking news" for instant news [which will come in handy during the Great Tribulation} of JW.ORG :

 

BREAKING NEWS | Russian Supreme Court to Hear Appeal on Monday

 

On Monday, July 17, 2017, a three-judge panel will consider the appeal of the Russian Supreme Court’s April 20 decision against Jehovah’s Witnesses. Further updates about the hearing will be provided using this new breaking news feature. Please pray for our brothers and sisters in Russia. Regardless of the outcome, we are confident that Jehovah has all matters in hand and the nations will know that he is Jehovah.–Ezekiel 38:23.

[bruceq]

Just like in April I will again try to keep everyone here up to date with a minute by minute translated transcript of the court hearings beginning on Monday. Pray for Jehovah's will to be done and His name to be glorified. Bruce

[bruceq]

Police ask public to report Jehovah's Witnesses activity

BRYANSK POLICE REMIND: ACTIVITY OF RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATION OF JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES IN RUSSIAN TERRITORY IS ILLEGAL

Website of Directorate of MVD for Briansk province, 12 July 2017

 

A police report concerning administrative violation of law has been composed with respect to a woman citizen who conducted missionary activity.

 

On 20 April 2017, by a decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian federation, the religious organization "Administrative Center of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia" and local religious organizations that are members of its structure were liquidated. But the police are receiving information that individual representatives of the Jehovah's Witnesses are continuing missionary activity.

 

Thus, in Surazh a resident of the near abroad, who visited private households and invited them to join the religious organization of Jehovah's Witnesses, was arrested. On the basis of the results of an inspection that was conducted with regard to her, an administrative protocol was composed on the basis of part 5 of article 5.26 of the Code of Administrative Violations of Law of the RF (violation of legislation on freedom of conscience and freedom of religious confession and on religions associations, committed by a foreign citizen). An administrative penalty in the form of a fine of 40,000 rubles was ordered.

 

The Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia for Briansk province reminds: if you are confronted with preachers of the Jehovah's Witnesses (they canvass around apartments and houses or distribute literature on the streets), contact the police for taking measure of response in accordance with the legislation of the Russian federation. (tr. by PDS, posted 14 July 2017)

[bruceq]

State policy blamed for negative attitudes toward Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia

MAJORITY OF RUSSIANS SUPPORT BAN OF JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES

by Vladimir Dergachev, Anna Kovalenko

RBK, 13 July 2017

 

Of Russians who have heard about the Ministry of Justice's ban of the Jehovah's Witnesses, 79% support this decision, a survey by the Levada Center shows. Experts consider that the negative attitude toward the Witnesses is connected with state policy in the area of religion.

 

They do not like and do not know

 

Of those who had heard about the ban of the activity of the organization of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia, 51% "definitely" support this decision and another 28% "likely" support it. At the same time, 9% "likely" do not support it and 3% "definitely" do not support the ban of the Witnesses, sociologists of the Levada Center discovered in a survey conducted from 23 to 26 June.

 

In all, almost half of respondents had heard about the ban while 13% "know about it in detail," and 34% had "heard something."

 

Sociologists of the Levada Center asked the respondents to answer who the Jehovah's Witnesses are. Two percent chose "variant of ordinary Christians," while 5% chose "offshoot of protestantism," 15 % chose "a separate religious confession." The most popular answer (49% of respondents think so) was "a Christian sect."

 

The survey was conducted from 23 to 26 June 2017 on a representative Russia-wide sample of urban and rural populations among 1,600 persons aged 18 and above in 137 population centers of 48 regions of the country. The investigation was conducted at respondents' homes by means of a personal interview. The distribution of answers is given as percentages of the total number of those questioned.

 

State policy

 

The harshly negative attitude toward the sect of Witnesses is 80% attributable to news media and state propaganda and 20% to stereotypical thinking of citizens, Boris Malyshev, senior scientific associate of the Academic Scientific Center for the Study of Religion of the Russian State Humanities University, maintained in an interview with RBK. He said that a broad audience has a vague perception of religions since state propaganda recognizes only Orthodoxy and Islam, and all "the rest are considered an annoying misunderstanding." Malyshev himself classifies Witnesses as a para-Christian movement similar to Mormons and he calls the movement "a purely American phenomenon." In his opinion, movements of this kind have elements of authoritarianism and sectarian isolation, but this depends to a substantial degree on the personality of the leader.

 

In the 1990s there was a surge of interest in Russia toward various kinds of sects, and about ten years later there began a planned struggle with them, noted Aleksei Levinson, the director of the department of socio-cultural analysis of the Levada Center. He said that the state broadcasts the idea that there should be no religious minorities and the negative attitude toward Witnesses is intensified by reports about their links with "subversive foreign forces."

 

Traditional confessions form the worldview of a person but they do not cut him off from the social and biological life, and they translate values that are accepted in the greater part of society, according to the executive director of the Moscow Lomonosov Center for Education of Schoolchildren, Konstantin Gusov. But sects, in contrast with traditional denominations, cut a person off from society, he believes.

 

The telephones of the press service and members of the Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia were not answered and the St. Petersburg division of the organization was not available for comment.

 

Ban the Witnesses

 

The Ministry of Justice filed a lawsuit in the Supreme Court on 17 March to ban the Witnesses. The ministry explained this by a February inspection which revealed that the parent organization of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia was violating "charter goals and purposes" and also Russian anti-extremism legislation. On 23 March, the Ministry of Justice entered the organization into the list of associations whose work was suspended for "extremist activity." On 20 April, the Supreme Court ruled the work of the centralized religious organization "Administrative Center of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia" to be extremist and prohibited it. Representatives of the Witnesses declared that 20 April 2017 "has a chance of entering into history as the black day for fundamental human freedoms in Russia."

 

The court ordered the liquidation of 395 local divisions of the Witnesses and confiscation of their property for the benefit of the state. The Investigations Management Center "Open Russia" reported, with reference to data of EGRN, that Russian and foreign organizations of Witnesses and persons affiliated with them own 211 pieces of real estate in 58 regions of the country. The total assessed value of this real estate is 1.9 billion rubles. [See Anti-Putin group defends Jehovah's Witnesses]

 

On 17 July a hearing on the appellate complaint of the Administrative Center of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia" against the Supreme Court's decision will be held.

 

Jehovah's Witnesses

 

Religious studies scholars, sociologists, and other analysts disagree about the definition that may be given to the international religious organization of Jehovah's Witnesses, with its administrative center in the U.S.A. Some investigators maintain that the Jehovists adhere to a nonorthodox movement within protestantism, others call it a pseudo-Christian structure (devotees deny the immortality of the soul, the Trinity, and the deity of Christ), while a third group defines it as an independent confession, and a fourth, as a sect.

 

In total, in the world there are more than eight million adherents of Jehovah's Witnesses, who are required to engage in witnessing activity and to submit accounts about it, including about 160 to 170 thousand in Russia. The organization officially was registered in Russia in 1991 and since then its activity has frequently become the occasion for judicial proceedings.

 

The Witnesses are criticized for the fact that they do not participate in elections, parties, and any other political activity, refuse service in the army in favor of alternative civilian service, and do not celebrate state and Christian holidays and birthdays. One of the main charges against the Witnesses is that their adherents speak out categorically against any medical procedures and drugs connected with blood, including opposition to transfusion of donor's blood during operations to save life.

 

The activity of the organization is forbidden in China, North Korea, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, and other countries. (tr. by PDS, posted 14 July 2017)

[The Librarian]

@bruceq I have set this post up for you.... for one place to be updating while others can leave comments.