Andrey Vyushin's last word in Yaroslavl

Russia

Andrey Vyushin's last word in Yaroslavl

July 7, 2023

Yaroslavl region

"I do not consider life according to the principles of God a crime," Andrei Vyushin told the court, speaking with the last word. He also told how he came to believe in God and how, thanks to this, he became a good family man and a happy person.

Transcript of the court session in the Dzerzhinsky District Court of Yaroslavl dated 07.07.23 in the case 1-7/2023 (1-387/2022) on the accusation of Andrey Yevgenyevich Vyushin of committing a crime under Parts 1 and 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Vyushin Andrey Evgenievich:

At the very beginning, I would like to express my gratitude to all participants in the process. Although there were tense and nervous moments at times, but in general there was a rather friendly atmosphere that contributed to the calm flow of the process.

Your Honor, what I would like to tell you about myself. I grew up in an ordinary Soviet family. I was raised by my mother and grandmother. As usual, we lived from payday to payday. At school, I learned to believe in the theory of evolution. Faith in God was alien and unpleasant to me. That's how I grew up. In high school, I began to be stressed by what was happening around me: all the neighbors around — from below, above, to the left, everywhere — were swearing, drinking, smoking, fighting. Sometimes we even fought with my mom. I understood that a similar family life was likely to await me in the future, and I wanted to be a happy person. I really wanted to break out of this vicious circle.

What else happened in high school? I was thinking about the theory of evolution. First of all, it began to alarm me that at the end of the XX — beginning of the XXI centuries, the theory of evolution did not turn into a proven theorem, did not become an axiom. Although professors, doctors of sciences have been trying to prove it with an army for more than 100 years. There are a few oddities in this theory of evolution for me. For example, I have a firm belief that a reasonable person, such as he is now, appeared instantly, although, according to this theory, this process should have taken millennia. There are millions of dinosaur fossils, millions of human fossils, millions of ape fossils— but only a few Neanderthal fossils or transitional forms from ape to homo sapiens. In an instant, the monkey understood how to become a human being, turning into the highest form of life on earth — I can't interpret fossils any other way.

On the other hand, I began to pay attention to another theory of the appearance of life on earth — the theory of the creation of the world, which assumed a genius Creator. And one day I decided to ask him for help. At the same time, I did not understand who I was addressing. In general, I prayed to myself. Almost immediately, I was offered to study the Bible by Jehovah's Witnesses. Only a living God, who can hear even our mental requests, could answer so quickly. What I heard struck me with its simplicity, harmony of thought and logic. I was struck by how these people have learned to live according to what they are taught. Their deeds did not differ from their words. That's how I became a Jehovah's Witness.

Also, an important story happened to me at school. I had to do my homework every day. When I was tired, I could fool around. For example, I simultaneously threw down a sheet of paper and a thick textbook. While the light leaf was floating in the air, the thick textbook fell to the floor with a crash. When I put the textbook on the sheet, they both fell down at the same time. When, on the contrary, I put a piece of paper on top of the textbook, I noticed that, again, they fell on the floor at the same time. It was as if the sheet was glued to a textbook. I did this often and for a long time. When, years later, we studied the vacuum in physics class, the teacher began to repeat exactly my home experiments. When she came to the most interesting thing — the fall of the sheet down with the textbook under this sheet — she asked the opinion of the students, which would fall first. Almost everyone replied that the textbook would fall first, and the sheet would continue to float easily and slowly in the air. 5 people answered the same way as I did, raising their hands with me. After that, the teacher asked the five of us: are we sure of our answer? One hand remained raised—mine. It was scary for me, of course, but I was supported by the confidence that my home experiments work not only at home, but also at school. And so it turned out.

At that moment, I realized two things for myself. First, if I am convinced of something and I am sure of it: you should not give up your beliefs immediately at the first test. After all, trials do not make beliefs wrong. The second thing I realized is that sometimes the absolute majority of others can also be wrong. So, in the XVI century, Galileo Galilei was persecuted for the idea of heliocentrism (the idea that the center of our planetary system is the Sun). The great astronomer was forced to renounce his views. But he turned out to be right, although the absolute majority believed that the Earth is the center of our system.

When I started studying the Bible, I decided that I would check everything critically, making sure of everything by my own experience. As they don't build a house in a swamp, so I didn't want to live by principles that are fragile, are erroneous. What convinced me of the accuracy of the Bible? Speaking about Galileo, I remembered one stable idea of the Earth: people live on the earth, flat in shape, located on 4 elephants, which, in turn, stand on a huge turtle. The earliest theory about the spherical shape of the Earth was put forward in Greece in the VI century BC by the outstanding mathematician of antiquity Pythagoras of Samos. Then few people took this theory seriously, the prophet Isaiah wrote in the Bible: "He is the One Who sits above the circle of the earth" (Isaiah 40:22). In the original language [in this text] is the Hebrew word "hug". How does this word translate into Russian? "Circle, circle, area, sphere". Another interesting point is that these words were written in the VIII century BC — that is, several centuries before Pythagoras. How could the prophet Isaiah know that the earth is not just round, but has the shape of a ball? After all, the Jews did not just use the word "hug" in the meaning of "circle", but also in the meaning of "sphere" when they talked about the Earth. In addition, the same prophet wrote: "He spread the north over the void, hung the earth on nothing" (Isaiah 26:7). Why did the Bible describe so accurately that the Earth is not just round, but has the shape of a ball or sphere, that it has no visible support and hangs on nothing? Only the one who created it could describe it so accurately.

I have found many such exact scientific facts over the decades of studying the Bible — in the field of psychology, medicine and many other sciences. Over time, I became convinced that all the advice of the Bible is very useful when you apply it in life. That they are the best compared to thousands of other tips from people. People's opinions change so quickly, often even to the opposite. The councils of God have been working for centuries and do not age.

What else do I want to say now. My life has become what I dreamed of. I have a family — a wife, a child. We don't drink, we don't smoke, we don't swear. We love each other. We are happy. I'm happy. I was able to break out of the vicious circle that I was afraid of in my youth. Neither the advice of psychologists, nor the doctrine of evolution, nor other theories could make me happy. Only Jehovah could do this. I became convinced that this is a very solid foundation for a happy life, and not a swamp on which nothing should be built. I remembered my last conversation with Investigator Zaitsev in the pre-trial detention center. He promised me that while I was in prison, my wife would divorce me, my friends would turn away from me. How wrong he was — our relationship has become even stronger: both with his wife and with friends.

To be a happy person and worship Jehovah God is an honor for me. At the same time, I do not consider life according to the principles of God a crime. Why the investigation thinks otherwise is a mystery to me. Your Honor, I still believe in the fairness of justice. And I am sure that you will be able to make an honest and fair — truly fair - decision. Thank you.

Summary of the case

Region:

Yaroslavl region

Locality:

Yaroslavl

What is suspected:

they held liturgical meetings "including with the help of the network "Internet", in which [they] promoted prohibited exercises" (from the press release of the SU IC of the Russian Federation in the Yaroslavl region)

Criminal case number:

12102780014000004

Initiated:

April 12, 2021

The current stage of the case:

Appeal

Is being investigated by:

SU IC of the Russian Federation for the Yaroslavl region

Articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation:

282.2 (1), 282.2 (2)

Case number in court:

1-7/2023 (1-387/2022)

Court of First Instance:

Dzerzhinsky District Court of Yaroslavl

Judge of the Court of First instance:

Irina Vlasova.