The last word of the defendant Lyubov Asatryan in Magadan

 RUSSIA 

 

The last word of the defendant Lyubov Asatryan in Magadan

February 12, 2024

Magadan region

Explaining her position to the court, the believer noted: "Millions of people in our country go to churches, mosques, profess their religion, talk about God among themselves and with others. I also worshipped the living God Jehovah at meetings. And I'm being judged for it."

Transcript of the court session in the Magadan City Court of the Magadan Region dated 02/12/2024 in the case 1-12/2023 (1-220/2022) accusing Lyubov Ivanovna Asatryan and others of committing a crime under Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Asatryan Lyubov Ivanovna:

I want to thank everyone who has been involved in my life for the last five years. Your Honor, thank you for treating me with respect as an elderly person. When I didn't understand or didn't hear something, you calmly explained it to me, repeating everything over and over again. Thank you for respecting my feelings as a believer, pronouncing God's name correctly, and even correcting others. This is very important to me!

Thanks to Marina Nikolaevna and Elina Olegovna, who represented the prosecution, for correctly pronouncing the name of our Creator Jehovah. You tried to explain everything incomprehensible to me, treated me not as a criminal, but in a kind, understanding way.

Thanks to all the lawyers for trying to get to the bottom of the case. It's nice to see people's keen interest. I also want to thank the assistant judges Natalia Petrovna and Vera Nikolaevna for their conscientious work, willingness to help and kind smile.

But the main helper is my God Jehovah. In addition to the emotional and physical difficulties that my friends and I suffered during the investigation and trial, I had serious health problems. Old diseases have worsened, new ones have appeared. I cannot explain to you how difficult it was for me to sit at meetings when my spine was very sore; I could hardly hear anything and could not see well. It was my God Jehovah who supported me and gave me the strength to endure everything.

Your Honor, of course, you have a lot of experience in your work, so you see and understand what the defendant is like. Surely you have had to deal with cases involving murders, violence and other criminal acts more than once. We are being judged as extremists. Nevertheless, we were not led down the corridor in handcuffs, nor were we told to enter the open doors to make way for us. The security guards were not even present at the meetings! But there was a whole group of us — thirteen so-called "dangerous criminals"!

This is because we have not harmed anyone, we have not done anything illegal. Our conscience is clear before the state, people, and most importantly — before God. The investigators also understood this. One of them once said, "If I had handled your case from the very beginning, you would all be free."

Your Honor, you have seen our kindness, honesty and peacefulness. This is what the Supreme Judge of the universe, Jehovah God, teaches us.

However, despite all this, they have been looking for my guilt for the fifth year now. But it is impossible to find something that does not exist, because there is no evidence of criminal acts, there is not a single person who has suffered from me, humiliated, insulted by me. And it can't be.

The right to freedom of worship of God was given to me by the state and is recorded in Article 28 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation. My views have nothing to do with extremism. My actions were peaceful and dictated by faith in God and love for people.

Your Honor, I am accused of reading the Bible, praying and talking to people about God. This proves once again that I did not commit any crime. I am being judged for believing in God.

Your Honor, in order to find a person guilty of extremism, the prosecution must establish and prove a motive for hatred or enmity. None of the above and no other specific extremist actions on my part are included in the case file.

I, like all my friends, am far from anything called extremism. We strive for peace, we do not participate in rallies, strikes against the authorities. Jesus Christ taught peacefulness. Loving God and others is what distinguishes true followers of Christ: "Whoever does not love has not known God, because God is love" (1 John 4:8). If I don't love my neighbor, then I don't love God. A person who does not love God cannot be his servant.

Like Christ, Jehovah's Witnesses sanctify the name of God. This name, Jehovah, has been used by many famous people. For example, Joseph Brodsky (although he was an atheist). He knew that this was the name of God, and used it in his poems. Also, the name of Jehovah was used in their works by Sergei Yesenin, Leo Tolstoy, Nikolai Karamzin, Alexander Radishchev, Anton Chekhov, Maximilian Voloshin, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin, Alexander Kuprin, Alexander Pushkin, Vladimir Dahl, Afanasy Fet, Marina Tsvetaeva, Maxim Gorky, Emile Zola, Bernard Shaw, Alexander Solzhenitsyn, Yevgeny Yevtushenko, Ernest Hemingway, Vladimir Mayakovsky, Nikolai Ostrovsky, Konstantin Paustovsky, Andrei Voznesensky, as well as famous composers Fyodor Glinka, Franz Schubert, Modest Mussorgsky. Why did they do it? They were reading the Bible. From it they learned that the Creator of everything is a living God and his name is Jehovah. So it is written in his Word, the Bible, in Psalm 82:19: "And let it be known that You, Whose name is Jehovah, are One high above all the earth."

Alexander Pushkin greatly appreciated the Holy Scriptures. Here are his famous words: "I think we will never give the people anything better than Scripture, we find all human life in it. The Bible is universal." At the end of his life, Pushkin made an important conclusion: "I want to say by this that the people feel that God exists, that He is the supreme being of the universe. In a word, that God exists! I eventually came to the conclusion that man has found God precisely because He exists. You can't find something that isn't there, even in plastic forms."

Abraham Lincoln, an American statesman, said: "I am convinced that the Bible is the best gift that God has ever given to man. All the best from the Savior of the world is transmitted to us through this book."

Jesus Christ taught to pray to his Father: "Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come" (Matthew 6:9-13). And as you have seen, Your Honor, I have not told people anything else, except that there is a living God, the Creator, whose name is Jehovah, and that there will be his rule on earth, that is, a Kingdom that will solve all the problems of mankind.

Your Honor, I am not ashamed of my faith. I do not swear, I do not steal, I do not harm anyone by smoking, drugs, I treat any job conscientiously, wherever I work. Often, in unforeseen situations, employers asked me to do something other than my job. They said, "There is no one to rely on. Please help me out." I always met them halfway, faithfully and gratuitously fulfilled their request. I was pleased that by doing so, I glorified our Creator Jehovah. The Bible says: "And whatever you do, do it with all your heart, as for the Lord, and not for men" (Colossians 3:23). Although no one at work shared my beliefs, more than once employers expressed their wishes: "If only everyone were like you, Jehovah's Witnesses!" I was glad that my God was glorified in this way. And one day the boss asked: "Lyubov Ivanovna, is there anyone among your people who would like to work with us?"

Many years ago, I read several ads in the newspapers saying that people want to marry a faithful and honest man — a Jehovah's Witness. And one director of a meat processing plant instructed to hire only Jehovah's Witnesses, because they work honestly, do not steal products and working hours. Your Honor, why are Jehovah's Witnesses like this? Because God teaches us this through his Word. The Bible is a book of wisdom and justice. She's an instruction manual for life.

Your Honor, can such honest, conscientious people, for whom the most important thing is a relationship with God and a desire not to upset him, be extremists? No. It's impossible.

In the testimony of the witness, Chibis sounded the idea of how the Bible negatively affects people's lives. Here are his words (I wrote them down): "Their entire personal life is subordinated to the service of Jehovah. This is above everything else — the family, society, the state." I want to explain how it looks in reality. To serve Jehovah means to live by remembering his laws. Therefore, everything that concerns my life must be consistent with God's laws.

For example, families are God's device. God has assigned a role for each member of the family. A husband should love his wife like his body and take care of her. A wife should deeply respect her husband and remember that he is the head of the family. This is recorded in Ephesians 5:33. And children should obey their parents. Interestingly, God not only tells you what to do, but also explains why it is right. Ephesians 6:1-3 says: "Children, obey your parents as the Lord wants you to, because it's the right thing to do. Honor your father and mother... so that you may feel good and live on earth for a long time."

As for society, we do not forget the "golden rule", which says: "In all things do to men as you would have them do to you" (Matthew 7:12).

And what does the Bible say about the state? It is known from the Bible that our Creator, for certain reasons, allowed human governments to rule the earth for a while. And in order for people to listen to them, God wrote a specific guide in Romans 13:1, 2: "Let every soul be subject to higher authorities; for there is no authority not from God, but the existing authorities are established from God. Therefore, he who opposes authority opposes God's establishment; and those who resist will bring condemnation upon themselves."

Your Honor, can this be considered a deliberate crime against the state? Is this extremism? I think many people will agree with me: if people lived by these commandments, life would be happier and safer.

Your Honor, I was born in a multinational Soviet country. She was a pioneer, a Komsomol member. There has never even been a conversation about the difference between us children. We often called girlfriends and friends brother and sister, and this relationship lasted for a long time. But then I didn't know either God or Jesus. Now that I have learned that all people are actually brothers and sisters, since they came from the same parents — Adam and Eve, how can I now show hostility, hatred and religious superiority towards people who are actually my relatives? This is unthinkable to me. And most importantly, it is a sin in the eyes of Jehovah.

Your Honor, last Friday, during Ivan Puida's last speech, you saw my tears. Why was I crying? Because I love my friends, they are my family! Jehovah taught me how to treat people correctly — to love them, regardless of nationality, culture, language or origin. In the 1st letter to Timothy, in chapter 5, in the first 4 verses, the apostle Paul wrote: "Do not scold older men, but speak kindly to them as to fathers, to young men as to brothers, to older women as to mothers, to young women as to sisters, with all purity."  That's why I cried — they are my family, they are like children to me.

Your Honor, over the years of the investigation, neither the investigator nor the respected prosecutor have found any evidence of my crime, nor any violation of the law on my part. I live in a state governed by the rule of law. It is my constitutional right to believe in God and communicate with my co—religionists. But, according to the prosecution, this is a crime. The law of gathering together is from God. It is written in the Bible, which means it concerns believers of any religion: "Let's be attentive to each other, encouraging love and good deeds. Let's not leave our meeting, as some people have a custom; but let us exhort one another, and the more so, the more you see the approach of that day" (Hebrews 10:24, 25).

This law of God is confirmed by Article 28 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation. Millions of people in our country go to churches, mosques, profess their religion, talk about God among themselves and with others. I also worshipped the living God Jehovah at meetings. And I'm being judged for it.

I understand that this is not a human feud. This is the enmity of the Devil, an evil and treacherous fallen angel, against God. That's why this opponent is still telling lies about God's servants and his Word. He doesn't want people to know the truth about Jehovah and Jesus Christ, the King of the new world. He has blackened the good name of God and by all means prevents people from not only recognizing this name, but even pronouncing it. However, this is vitally important, because "whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved" (Romans 10:13). Out of love for people, Jehovah gave his Son as a sacrifice for our sins so that an opportunity for salvation would open up.

Your Honor, I am sure that God's Word brings people only joy, comfort and hope. It is useful for everyone. For example, would you be happy if a neighbor warned you that electricity and cold water would be turned off? Or would you consider it an imposition of your opinion, humiliation and insult, or maybe even hostility? I think not! You would be glad and very grateful to your neighbor for her care and attention. It is important that you hear, and then decide for yourself whether to stock up on water, whether to cook dinner in advance.

I learned the answers to people's questions from the Bible and shared it with others: why is there so much suffering? Why do people get sick and die, especially children? can something change for the better? If so, when will it happen? The person decided for himself whether to listen or not, accept or not. This is a personal matter for everyone.

I want to give you an example from my life. I once told a young woman that children are a gift from God. She replied to me: "Anyway, I have already signed up for an abortion." And when we talked with her about how God looks at this, she said: "Thank you, Lyubov Ivanovna, I never thought that, I didn't know that, no one told me about it. I'll think about it." And we said goodbye. I didn't see her anymore, but I was glad that the man thought maybe this child's life had been saved.

Another example. When I talked to one woman about family happiness, about the fact that the family is a device of God, she told me: "Maybe so, I do not know, but I have already filed for divorce in court." By that time, they had two children — a 6-year-old girl and a boy less than a year old. I suggested that the woman find out the reasons why it is so difficult to maintain happiness in the family, even though we get married in order to be happy, and then make the final decision. She agreed, but said that, most likely, it would not help her, but it could help her nephew. At that time, the nephew was in a psychiatric hospital. He was an adult with a college degree. As a result of studying the Bible, this woman was able to help him find the meaning of life. All his worries and illnesses were left behind, he got married, he has a prosperous family and children, and this woman herself saved her family and in the end she thanked God for understanding what happiness in the family depends on. Was it an imposition of one's beliefs, humiliation of a person's dignity, or hatred of him? Is this extremism? Of course not! This is the love and fervent care for people that Jehovah shows.

[…]

Is there a person in the world who has not experienced the loss of a loved one? No. But whatever death may be, our Almighty God Jehovah has seen and knows everything. He promises to bring every dead person back to life on earth: "There will be a resurrection of the dead, the righteous and the unrighteous" (Acts 15:24). How can we keep silent about the happiness and joy that God has prepared for us?

Why am I telling you this? When I read in the Bible about the death of Jesus Christ, I cried. After all, he died to redeem people from the captivity of sin and death. The doctrine of the resurrection is considered the main teaching of the Bible, because it is connected with God's plan for eternal life on earth. Jesus said the following words in the Gospel of John, chapter 3, verse 16: "God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in Him would not perish, but have eternal life."

People often ask the question: what about those who have not heard or read the Bible at all and have not had time to find out about it? Will the loving God Jehovah, who gave his Son for us, not show mercy to them? In the book of Revelation 20:13 it is written: "Then the sea gave up the dead who were in it, and death and hell (the grave) gave up the dead who were in them."

Usually people talk a lot about good deeds for a long time, sometimes it gets into history. So how can we keep silent about our loving, kind Creator? Your Honor, what kind of extremism and malicious intent is it to talk about the mercy of a loving God? I think everyone here will agree with their mind and heart that this is only love and kindness to people; this is a desire to help and comfort in grief, and not evil, not hostility and not extremism!

Your Honor, it is often asked: what kind of good news is it if God destroys? The news is really joyful, because it tells us that in the near future there will be a happy, wonderful life on the whole earth, where there will be brotherhood, unity, one law, one worship, one ruler ... All families are happy — there is no orphanhood and fatherlessness. There are no poor, unemployed or homeless people. There are no diseases, old age and disability. There is no fear of natural disasters and cataclysms. Isn't this good news?

It turns out that our loving Creator will restore the original living conditions that were in the Garden of Eden. And God offers to find out about this to every person living on earth. But he does not force or force anyone to accept it — he wants people to want it themselves. And this is evident from the fact that Christ died for all, not for the elect. John 3:16 says, "That everyone who believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life."

Yes, the messages about God's plan written in the Bible should be heard by everyone. This is urgent! By all indications, it is clear that the prophecies about the last days have already been fulfilled, with the exception of two… Therefore, the time when God will begin to act is already near. If you find it difficult to believe what is written in the Bible, please believe your eyes. We all see how the situation in the world has deteriorated dramatically, how it is becoming increasingly difficult for people to show love for each other, how many unhappy families, orphaned children, abandoned parents. We will also see the fulfillment of the last two prophecies. […]

Jehovah God is very just and loving, he is ready to forgive any person who sincerely repents and corrects himself. God wants every person to make their own choice. And in order to choose, it is important to find out what kind of life God offers. Therefore, salvation depends on knowledge, and knowledge depends on what is heard.

Your Honor, I am pleased that God has taken care of you and everyone here. You are all very busy people. You have heard this joyful news about the love of God and his Son, and you would hardly have learned about it anywhere else. That is why Jehovah did not save us from the investigation and trial, but allowed us to be here. He leaves the choice to everyone. This is also a manifestation of his love.

Your Honor, I have not violated any law, I have not committed any crime, and no one has been injured because of my actions. On the contrary, hearing about God's mercy, many thanked him from the bottom of their hearts! All I've been doing is worshipping God. Due to the lack of corpus delicti, I ask you to acquit me.

Summary of the case

Region:

Magadan region

Locality:

Magadan

What is suspected:

According to the investigation, he conducted divine services together with others, which is interpreted as "organizing the activities of an extremist organization"

Criminal case number:

11807440001000013

Case initiated:

May 30, 2018

Current stage of the case:

proceedings in the court of first instance

Investigating:

2nd investigative department of the 3rd Department for the investigation of particularly important cases of the SU IC of the Russian Federation in the Irkutsk region

Articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation:

282.2 (2), 282.2 (1), 282.3 (1)

The number of the case in court:

1-6/2024 (1-12/2023, 1-220/2022)

Court of First instance:

Magadan City Court of the Magadan region

Judge of the Court of first instance:

Tatyana Belaeva