The last word of the defendant Pavel Popov in Chelyabinsk

 RUSSIA 

The last word of the defendant Pavel Popov in Chelyabinsk

May 23, 2022

Chelyabinsk region

From the courtroom

In his speech, Pavel Popov explained in detail that he was being tried for his faith, and not for any illegal actions: "My indictment was changed five times. Different phrases and formulations were changed. But no specific socially dangerous action on my part has been recorded."

Transcript of the court session in the Metallurgical District Court of Chelyabinsk dated 05/23/2022 in the case 1-77/2022 (1-659/2021) on charges of Popov Pavel Nikolaevich of committing a crime under Part 1 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Popov Pavel Nikolaevich:

Your Honor, I want to thank you for explaining to me how to behave in court, what questions not to ask, what explanations to make and when. This is all unfamiliar to me, since this is my first time in the dock. But respect for the highest authorities is very important to me, because the Holy Scriptures tell me so. The investigating party behaved quite correctly with me and without any threats, without the use of force or psychological pressure (although they did not hear my arguments, continuing their work).

In my last word, I would like to tell you a little about myself. I was born and lived in Novokuznetsk, Kemerovo region. When I was 15 years old, my father died. Mother raised us alone. I grew up in a large family, there were five of us. I am the second son. Of course, I bullied a lot in my youth. So I was brought to the police several times. I was a pickpocket, stole bottles and then handed them over to the same glass container reception point, tore lilacs in the school yard and sold them. He often got into fights. He was registered in the children's room of the police. The adults in the yard told me: "The prison is crying for you!" And what is it? At the age of 17, I started studying the Bible with Jehovah's Witnesses, and immediately a change occurred in me. I quit smoking, even though I smoked cigarettes like a steam locomotive for 10 years before that. I stopped using marijuana. And he began to lead an honest and decent lifestyle. What can you say about prison? Did she "cry enough" about me? Just for what? For the fact that I stopped behaving like a bully and a criminal.

When I became a Jehovah's Witness, I didn't even know about any charter, goals, or tasks. I was guided by the truth that I learned from the Bible. What is this truth about?

God is the Creator and Creator. His name is Jehovah, meaning "he gives to become." And so he let me become a completely different person.

I also learned the truth about the new world under the guidance of Jesus Christ. He is the king of God's kingdom. This is the kingdom that will save us from diseases, unemployment and wars. When I found out about this, my heart was filled with peace and joy at the prospect.

People can live forever. Thanks to the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ, we have received a firm hope to live forever. We all grow old and die, but we don't want this so-called "natural process of being." Everything in us opposes this, because we were created for eternal life. Jehovah God will make it happen. Since that was his original intention. Moreover, the Bible says that even the dead will rise and be able to live forever.

The kingdom of God is the government from God that Jesus Christ preached. Everyone knows the prayer "Our Father". There are these words: "... hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, and thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." Why is there a need for a Kingdom from God? Initially, God, as the creator, established laws, and this guaranteed people eternal life. Thus it was said to Adam, the first man: "Of every tree in the garden you will eat, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, do not eat from it, for on the day you eat from it, you will die." This indicated that only God has the right to set the standards of good and evil. Since the first people questioned the authority of God, there was a need for an instrument that would justify God's right to be a single ruler. This instrument turned out to be the kingdom that Jesus Christ proclaimed and which Jehovah's Witnesses proclaim throughout the earth in more than 240 countries and territories in more than 1,000 languages. This fulfills the prophecy expressed by Jesus Christ in Matthew 24:14: "And this gospel of the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole universe, as a witness to all nations..."

I firmly believe that Jehovah God will carry out his plan to restore paradise on our planet and give all people eternal life. Living in a world between people and a world with animals. A life without disease, grief and suffering.  As it says in Revelation 21:4, "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death, no more weeping, no more crying, no more sickness, for the former has passed away."

And it is for this very hope and faith in these promises that I am being judged. No, not extremism, not the continuation of the activities of an extremist organization… At this trial, the prosecution never mentioned any extremist acts on my part. Continuation of the activities of an extremist organization? The prosecution did not discuss this issue. Even after questioning the witness, it was clear that the state prosecutor was not interested in any specific socially dangerous actions, but whether I was a Jehovah's Witness! The accusation is based only on the fact that I am a believer and that I believe in Jehovah. Your Honor, this is a trial of faith!

As I said at the very beginning of the trial, no evidence of my criminal activity was presented to the court. All the evidence boils down to one thing: I am a Jehovah's Witness, a believer, and therefore an "extremist." But this is absurd! All this is obvious to everyone and especially to you, Your Honor.

Believers in Jehovah have always had some kind of organizational actions, but this in no way indicates the continuation of the activities of some forbidden organization. To have tea with friends, some kind of organizational action is needed. And the believers? We gathered to pray, to read the Holy Scriptures — there must also be organizational actions.

The very first people were organized. Adam and Eve had a clear place of residence, clear and simple instructions on what to do and what not to do, and a task. They were commanded to take care of the planet and fill the Earth with their descendants. And it all came from God. It was disobedience to God that led to such sad consequences for all mankind.

Later, Noah and his family were an organized group from God. There were only eight of them, but they were organized. Their faith in Jehovah God meant obedience and following the guidance. Otherwise, they would not have been able to carry out such a grandiose project, the construction of an ark to save the world.

Several hundred years have passed. Moses received a task from God to free the Israelites from Egyptian slavery. These people were later very organized. And this structure was not the will of any human organization or legal entity. Everyone obeyed God, and he himself was their leader.

In the first century AD, Jesus Christ gathered his disciples and gave them various instructions on how to worship God, how to perform his ministry. Christians obeyed their teacher, and the gathering of Christians in the first century was very organized.

Yes, there were various false accusations against Jesus himself and his followers. And, as a result, they were chased and chased. They were even executed in the first century. And for what? Whatever the charges, the persecution was for their faith. That's why Jesus warned that his disciples would be persecuted, just like himself.

It was the same in our days. For example, in 1936, the first people to enter concentration camps in Germany were Jehovah's Witnesses. For what? The German government saw them as a threat to the state. They did not salute Hitler by raising their hands and shouting "heil Hitler." A strange dissent. Imagine someone greets another with "heil Hitler", and in response he hears "guten morgen", that is, good morning. It took courage and faith.

During the Second World War, thousands of Jehovah's Witnesses were held in concentration camps. Many were executed for not taking up arms and believing in Jehovah.

There were Jehovah's Witnesses in the Soviet Union too. And they were also chased and chased. For what? For faith!

Persecution could have been avoided both in Germany and in the Soviet Union. All you had to do was sign a document renouncing your faith. So in 1951, more than 9,000 Jehovah's Witnesses in the Soviet Union were deported to Siberia for their faith. However, it was enough to sign a document of renunciation of faith, and then the person would have remained at his place of residence and would not have been deported.

It's the same now. To stop being persecuted, I need to give up my faith. After all, if I had declared that I was renouncing my faith, saying, "I'm sorry, I won't do it anymore," everything would have stopped at the preliminary investigation. And I wouldn't be here in the courtroom today as a defendant. Today they demand that I renounce my faith, they simply demand that I stop worshipping Jehovah God. And you should not hide behind loud and high-sounding accusations: "violation of the constitutional order", "extremism", "threat to the state". Persecution and trial for faith are the real reason for my presence here as a defendant.

We live in a unique time in human history. All of humanity is on God's trial. All people are determined in their relationship to the Lord of the Universe, the God Jehovah: should they recognize the sovereignty of God as the creator of everything or not? And in this judgment of God, I am not a defendant, but a Witness, a Jehovah's Witness.

There is a sense in all that is happening in Russia with Jehovah's Witnesses. And what's the point? The answer is found in Psalm 2:10-12: "O kings, act with understanding, correct yourselves, O judges of the earth. Serve Jehovah with fear and rejoice with trembling. Acknowledge the son so that ... [God] does not get angry and so that you do not disappear from the path, because his anger will quickly flare up. Happy are all those to whom he is a refuge."

Thus, this appeal of mine is not only the last word of me as a defendant, but also a call from God to recognize his authority and learn the truth about him. Everyone must learn the truth about God. Your Honor, how can such high-ranking people as the President, members of the Council of Europe, the United Nations, or you find out about God? Only the situation with the persecution of believers will create such conditions. And now I am here, and the president, the members of the Council of Europe, the United Nations, and even you have to listen and delve into the teachings of Jehovah's Witnesses.

Jesus predicted these events: "Beware of people, because they will put you on trial and whip you in synagogues. Because of me, you will be taken to the rulers and kings so that they, as well as people from other nations, will hear about me." So, all this is so that everyone can hear about Jesus. And he, the king of the Kingdom of God, always taught that the law should protect man. It is worth noting that the law always stands for the protection of a person. Not a man for the law, but the law for the man.

The expression "law enforcement agencies" indicates their main task: to protect the right. The right to life, the right to personal decisions, the right to freedom of confession of one's faith. To protect this right, not to take it away!

All people have conscience and sanity. Can't you see that Jehovah's Witnesses are not criminals? Then why is the prosecution trying so hard to stitch up the case? My indictment was changed five times. Different phrases and formulations were changed. But no specific socially dangerous action on my part has been recorded. What should be the decision in this case? It must be according to the law and according to conscience. [...] And the law says: Jehovah's Witnesses have the right to profess their faith both personally and jointly with others. This is exactly what was proved during this trial.

Your Honor, if your decision is accusatory, then you have assessed faith and beliefs. But I can't give up faith. I'm not going to run from the authorities, I'm not going to hide either. But I can't give up my beliefs, which are not prohibited by law or conscience. And since I have not committed a single socially dangerous act, I am not a criminal!

Therefore, Your Honor, I ask you to fully justify and make a decision to terminate the criminal prosecution of me as a law-abiding citizen!

Summary of the case

Region:

Chelyabinsk region

Locality:

Chelyabinsk

The number of the criminal case:

12102750030000010

Case initiated:

April 22, 2021

Current stage of the case:

The verdict has entered into force

Investigating:

SU IC of the Russian Federation for the Chelyabinsk region

Articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation:

282.2 (1)

Case number in court:

1-77/2022 (1-659/2021)

Court of First Instance:

Metallurgical District Court of Chelyabinsk

Judge of the Court of First instance:

Maria Melnikova