Russia’s Phony Jehovah’s Witnesses

[dozerman5676]

From The Moscow Times

 

Russia’s Phony Jehovah’s Witnesses

How state television framed a bunch of university students to make this Christian group seem extra scary.

 

https://themoscowtimes.com/articles/russian-students-framed-as-jehovahs-witnesses-in-field-trip-to-crowd-courtroom-57684

[Beggar for the Spirit]

Thanks Tommy for the interesting article. Here are a couple of very interesting points I saw in this article that help answer certain questions:

 

Q - So why are so many Russian officials wanting to ban & liquidate Jehovah's Witnesses?

I think this quote helps explain why there is so much prejudice, besides the prejudicial influence of the Greek Orthodox Church 

Quote

Alexander Verkhovsky, director of the Moscow SOVA Center, which monitors abuses of anti-extremism legislation:  

      “This escalation is the result of three factors:  anti-Westernism or anti-Americanism, personal prejudices among the higher-ups in the FSB, and anti-cultism. They want Russian people to view them as a cult. That's why the Russian Justice Ministry spoke about the organization’s ban on blood transfusions at length [during the trial].”

 

Q - How long will this court case last?

Quote

Within the next week, Russia’s Supreme Court is expected to rule on whether to classify Jehovah’s Witnesses as an “extremist organization,” banning the group entirely inside Russia.

 

Edited April 10, 2017 by Beggar for the Spirit

[Tortuga]

Wow, interesting.

[Omoyeme]

Quote

But the crowd hadn't come to fight for Russia's religious freedom. Most of the people lined up were students from Moscow State Linguistic University, and they'd been promised a field trip, where they expected to learn about the Russian court system, sitting in on a real trial. Students Kira and Alina (not their real names) said they were looking forward to being inside the court. “When else would I get an opportunity to see justice in action?” Kira told The Moscow Times.

 

Quote

[...]had been invited a few days earlier, when a man they'd never seen before interrupted a lecture to invite students to the trial.   The man said he needed 30 people from the department to show up outside the Supreme Court, early in the morning. He warned students to dress “nicely,” not to take pictures in court, not to post anything on social networks, and not to talk to the press.

Step 1:  The ruse is set in motion.

Step 2:  A government operative needs patsies (gullible youngsters.)

 

Quote

“It sounded a bit bizarre,” admitted Ruslan (not his real name), another student who agreed to attend the hearing.  “In the end, we figured that it would normal, for this kind of thing,” Alina explained.  The students arrived at the courthouse early the next morning, only to find themselves waiting in line with dozens of students from other departments, as well as some older visitors. They'd been told to arrive at 8:00 a.m., though the hearing didn't start until 10:00 a.m.  “We were baffled,” Kira said.

 

Quote

Instructed not to give interviews, they had ignored questions from Russia's state-funded Channel 5. “[The correspondents] were asking us whether we would comment,” Alina told The Moscow Times. “We kept silent and just turned away.”

Step 3:  Obedience to State authorities without question.

 

Quote

Tempers frayed when the crowd was told that the courtroom was already full, before the hearing even started.  “One of our professors went with us. He was appalled, too. He didn't know it would turn out the way it did,” Kira said. Cold and disappointed, the students left and went on with their day, only to discover later in the afternoon that they'd actually made headlines.  The state-run news agency RIA Novosti described the students as “a huge line of Jehovah's Witnesses.”  

Quote

The university's students have their own theories about why they were sent to the courthouse. “Maybe they wanted us to occupy seats in the courtroom in order [to stop] actual supporters from getting in,” Alina suggested.

Step 4:  Mission Accomplished by State

Step 5:  Deception uncovered but too late.

 

Students are hoodwinked! bamboozled! conned!  This is why Putin and the Russian Orthodox Church hates Jehovah's Witnesses.  They are not easily swayed and deceived into helping Mother Russia accomplish their wicked purposes.

 

And this is why the Jehovah tells us time and again:

Do not put your trust in nobles, nor in the son of earthling man, to whom no salvation belongs.--Psalm 146:3.

Edited April 10, 2017 by Omo_Yeme

[Doug]

Good Grief !!!   When will the subterfuge end ?   At least the local brothers are now aware, and may ask the friends to arrive at 7:00 a.m. to fill those seats !

[Raven]

Not sure what kind of recoil this will have, but at least all those university students are now aware of this attempt to ban Jehovah's Witnesses, and no doubt some of them will look deeper into this.