The last word of the defendant Olga Zhelavskaya in Chelyabinsk

 RUSSIA 

The last word of the defendant Olga Zhelavskaya in Chelyabinsk

April 14 , 2023

Chelyabinsk region

From the courtroom

Turning to the court, the believer asks her to be acquitted, wondering: "So why am I being tried? For the fact that we have gathered peacefully to discuss the Bible? Did you sing, pray to your God Jehovah? So this right is guaranteed to us by the 28th article of the Constitution of the Russian Federation."

Transcript of the court session in the Metallurgical District Court of Chelyabinsk dated 04/14/2023 in case No. 1-27/2023 on charges of Olga Pavlovna Zhelavskaya of committing a crime under Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Zhelavskaya Olga Pavlovna:

Dear court, dear participants in the process!

I would like to begin by thanking you for the kind and calm atmosphere that has always prevailed at the meetings. Thank you, Your Honor, for being very attentive to me, taking into account that I do not have legal knowledge and clearly explained to me what I did not understand, and also gave me time to consult with a lawyer. Thank you for such a sensitive attitude to me and patience. Thank you to the prosecutor for treating me with respect. Thanks to the secretary for his kindness. Thanks to the lawyer who explained the legal details to me and defended me throughout the whole process, trying to do it professionally. And I also want to thank my friends who support me. Thank you, my dears.

In my last word, I want to tell you how I became a Jehovah's Witness.

I was born in a village and grew up in a large family. My father died when I was seven years old. My grandmother, my mother's mother, lived with us. Nothing special happened in our family, we lived an ordinary life. I went to school, was an October boy, a pioneer, then joined the Komsomol.

Only my grandmother was a believer in the family, but she did not read the Bible to us. I remember that she had a "god page" on which there were three icons. Then she removed the "god", and hid the icons in her trunk, since the church in the village was closed and agricultural machinery was repaired there. So everything is still standing. At that time, it was forbidden to believe in God. When my mother came home from work, I heard her warn my grandmother not to have any icons, as they would go around the houses and check.

I heard from my grandmother that there is a God, but I didn't believe it, because at school we were taught that there is no God. I asked my grandmother, if there is a God, then why don't I see him? I see people, but he's not there. She explained to me that God cannot be seen, but He sees us, observes what we do. Of course, I didn't believe it. But I had a question that I didn't find the answer to then: what happened to my father? where do the dead go?

I also saw, as I grew up, that other people in our village also died. Therefore, the question of what happens to the dead has been with me since childhood. If there is a God, as Grandma says, then why doesn't he make sure that people don't die, that children don't become orphans, and that the whole burden of life doesn't fall on women's shoulders?

I didn't know where to look for an answer to this question, and there wasn't much time. After finishing school, I went to the city and continued to study. Then she got married and gave birth to a daughter. By that time, I began to have other questions: how did people come about? what is the meaning of life — to produce offspring and die? If there is a God, then why is there so much injustice? After all, Grandma said that he was watching everyone, so why not put things in order on earth.

In 1992, my grandmother died. And the question "what happens to a person after death?" arose with renewed vigor. I really wanted to find answers to all my questions, and I went to the Orthodox church. I attended many services, went to confession and communion, for which, according to Orthodox custom, it was necessary to prepare, which required effort. I tried to follow all the church recommendations. In church, I asked my questions to the priest, to which I heard such answers: "it's God's will for everything," "it's God's will," "God needs good people." But these answers gave me even more questions: why does God take only the good ones? and what happens to the bad ones? why does God give good people families, and then takes someone from the family? why? to hurt the rest of the family? And many others. I went to the Orthodox Church for 20 years, but I never found the answers to my own.

I have met Jehovah's Witnesses, but treated them with caution, as I have heard from other people that it is better to stay away from them. However, one acquaintance said that he found answers to his questions in the Bible thanks to Jehovah's Witnesses. Although I was afraid, but the thirst for answers was stronger. Besides, he explained to me that there is no reason to be afraid of Jehovah's Witnesses. These are people who not only tell others what is written in the Bible, but live according to the norms of God. They are peaceful, calm and kind because they imitate God.

In 2010, I began researching the Bible and found answers to all the questions that worried me.

First, I learned from the Bible that God really exists. I was convinced of this by the fact that all 66 books of the Bible are consistent with each other, although they were written by different people for 1600 years. For example, the first book of the Bible tells how people and evil appeared. And the last book says that the whole earth will become a paradise, that is, a beautiful garden. The narrative of the Bible covers thousands of years of human history, and each of its books reveals to one degree or another the fulfillment of God's plan. The consistency of the Bible is simply amazing! Its author could not be a man! The author of the Bible is God himself! And people only recorded his thoughts.

The historical accuracy of the Bible is no less striking. And scientific information was far ahead of the ideas of people who lived in the past. Besides, the Bible is a book of practical wisdom. If you apply her advice, then a person's life comes back to normal: a person stops swearing, cheating, smoking, getting drunk, cheating on a life partner, stealing, learns to appreciate not only his life, but also the lives of people around him. Thus, a person who carefully reads the Bible feels for himself that "all Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16).

And I was also convinced of the existence of God by the prophecies that are recorded in the Bible. They are all exactly fulfilled, because God is behind them. And this God is called Jehovah! He has a unique name that no one else has! The name Jehovah means "I will become." He will become what is needed to fulfill his every word!

Secondly, I found the answer to the question: "What happens to a person after death?" It turns out that God does not take anyone to heaven. People were created by him to live on earth forever. And for life in heaven, God created angels.

Psalm 113:23 says, "Heaven is heaven to the Lord, and he gave the earth to the sons of men." And Psalm 36:29 says, "The righteous will inherit the earth and will live on it forever."

Because of disobedience to God, the first human couple Adam and Eve lost the right to live forever. Therefore, they died and passed death and sin, as a hereditary disease, to their descendants. We are all their descendants. That's why people die. But with death, the hope of living again does not die: the dead have hope of resurrection thanks to the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. "Do not be surprised at this... all who are in the graves will hear his voice and rise again" (John 5:28, 29).

The atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ enables those who show faith in him to live in paradise on earth without pain and disease. And this means that God Jehovah will resurrect my father, my grandmother, mother and brother here on earth! And I believe in it, and it's much easier to live with hope! Jehovah is a reliable God and through his Word, the Bible, he assured me that this would definitely happen by writing down several examples of the resurrection of the dead. The prophet Elijah resurrected the boy, Jesus resurrected his friend Lazarus, and Jehovah resurrected Jesus. Reading about this, I am overcome with joy at what God has prepared for people!

And it is for this very hope and faith in these promises that I am being judged.

Despite everything, the simplicity and logic of the answers convinced me that I had found the truth. Over time, while researching the Bible, I realized that it is not enough to have answers to my questions. Jehovah wants me to develop a close, trusting relationship with him, as with a father. And to do this, I had to bring my life in line with his point of view. That's why I left the Orthodox Church and became a Jehovah's Witness, because I realized that God demands to observe his standards of righteousness, and not traditions and rituals invented by people.

At this trial, the prosecution never mentioned any extremist acts on my part. The interrogation of both witnesses showed that neither during a friendly meeting with co-religionists, nor at any other time, calls for the overthrow of the political system, the rupture of family relations or any other extremist statements came from me. No quotes, no facts, no records, no victims.

So what am I being judged for? For the fact that we have gathered peacefully to discuss the Bible? Did you sing, pray to your God Jehovah? So this right is guaranteed to us by the 28th article of the Constitution of the Russian Federation.

So what is my extremism? The group "4" or "Cherkassk assembly" has never been part of the structure of the Chelyabinsk MRO or any other, and I personally have never been on the lists of any MRO. And I am accused of continuing the activities of this legal body, to which I have nothing to do. I also ask the court to take into account that during the searches, no extremist materials were found in my possession, of which I am unfairly accused of reading.

I really hope that the court will sort everything out.

Your Honor, I trust the court and hope for a fair decision, which can only be an acquittal!

Case Summary

 Region:

 Chelyabinsk region

 Locality:

 Chelyabinsk

 What is suspected:

 “Acted from religious motives” and participated in “collective worship, consisting of sequential performances of songs ... and prayers to Jehovah God, studying and discussing articles and religious texts” (from the decision to initiate a criminal case).

 Criminal case number:

 12202750030000018

 Case initiated:

 August 31, 2021

 Current stage of the case:

 The verdict came into force

 Investigates:

 Third department for investigation of particularly important cases of the Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Chelyabinsk Region

 Articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation:

 282.2 (2)

 Court case number:

 1-27/2023 (1-528/2022)

 Court of First Instance:

 Metallurgical District Court of Chelyabinsk

 Judge of the trial court:

 Alexander Shatsky