The clergy commented on the ban on the collection of Koranic verses

In August, the city court of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk declared extremist the book "Prayer (dua) to God: its purpose and place in Islam", which is a brief explanation of the verses of the Qur'an. President of Chechnya Rmazan Kadyrov demanded that the judge and prosecutor who made such a decision be punished, and ban the recognition of sacred texts as extremist. bill with amendments to the law on countering extremism has already been submitted to the State Duma. Representatives of different confessions commented on the decision of the court and the conflict around it.

Chairman of the Department for missionary, youth and catechism work of the Gatchina and Luga diocese St. Petersburg Metropolitan Priest Nikolai Svyatchenko fears that “a similar judgment may be rendered in respect of Orthodoxy - a religion that is considered fundamental in Russia . The decision of the South Sakhalin court, the priest considers it discriminatory and recalls that “the statement about the truth of religion can easily be blamed not only on Islam, but also Orthodoxy, Catholicism, Lutheranism" .

O. Nikolai is sure that before consideration of such cases, engage religious scholars. Interestingly, the priest cannot to imagine “that such a decision will be made in the West” , - “probably because there, educated and erudite people are engaged in the study of these issues .

PhD in Philosophy, Candidate of Theology, Associate Professor, Head of the Department of Moral Theology Orthodox Institute of St. John the Evangelist priest Stefan Domuschi also noted that "it is normal for any religion to assert its exclusivity" , however, this statement "does not make you the best others" .

In his opinion, the decision of the court of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk testifies to people’s lack of knowledge about religions: “It’s not so much that in Russia there are many confessions (there are many of them in any country), and that the world has become more mobile, we began to meet more often, to go beyond the boundaries of the community ... This means that we must be ready to meet other people, people of a different culture and tradition. If there were preparations for such a meeting with people of a different tradition, the problems would become much less . "

Rector of the Bishops Compound of the St. Nicholas Cathedral in Valuyki, Belgorod Region, hegumen Agafangel (Belykh) also recalled that the assertion of one's exclusivity natural for any religious teaching. He considers "ridiculous" the attempts of the courts "to judge mysterious texts that are one and a half, two or more thousand years old" . However, “If this or that religious group calls for violation of constitutional order, public order, crime, war - let responsible to the fullest extent of the law . "

At the same time, the priest admitted that he was "cautious" about the law on insulting religious feelings, realizing that "he was taken under one religion” : “If we now demand to protect, according to this law, the feelings of believers Christians, it is quite possible that the day will come when the alignment will change political forces and preferences, and someone will consider our faith, our teaching hurting your feelings. And the feelings of militant atheists are not worth it forget. And according to this example, the Gospel will be banned .

Head of family counseling center of st. blgv. book. Peter and Fevronia in the village. Reasonable Belgorod region Priest Mikhail Artemenko believes that "the prosecutor's office and the court are just institutions that must operate with facts, without questioning dogmatic truths .

The decision of the city court of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, according to the priest, could be legitimate, "if in the Koran they found an indication of violent ways of initiation to the faith, or not very correct attitude towards representatives another religion . " However, he stipulates that “such conclusions must be drawn, by examining the founding books of each religion. Why only Islam and not Buddhism, or, shall we say, Judaism? Study every faith, including Orthodoxy .

Moscow church cleric Cosmas and Damian in Shubin, Archpriest Alexander Kuzin is sure that in Old and New Testaments, as well as in the Koran, you can "pull" quotes that will seem extremist to some. “Who and how compiled these quotations, what are comments to them and interpretations need to be clarified. But it is not necessary for this bring the court , "- said the priest.

Ramzan Kadyrov, according to him opinion, too, "one should reduce one's zeal a little" : going to court in In this case , "as senseless as the reaction of extremists to publications in Charlie Hebdo. This path is a dead end and will lead to religious strife .

The conflict, according to Fr. Alexander, could be resolved by convening a theological symposium "to explain quotes from the Koran, draw some parallels with Christian Scripture, you get a good dialogue that will help you understand each other friend . "

Director of the Traditional gymnasium, candidate of historical sciences, priest Andrey Posternak , too admits that in the book banned by the Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk court there were quotations from the Koran poorly arranged and taken out of context, and the court "for this very reason interested in the selection . Muslims in this situation, the priest believes, should to give an explanation of what constitutes a prohibited publication.

On the whole, he notes, “even in the Bible one can find many fragments that do not meet the requirements of the current liberal democratic society. And that's okay, because both the Bible and The Koran was created in other conditions, in another time by people with a different consciousness. Therefore, it is absurd to evaluate them from the point of view of modern legal norms .

Chairman of the Ulyanovsk Jewish cultural and educational public organization "Shalom" Igor Dabakarov fears that “the conclusions that were made regarding the holy book of Muslims, can be done in relation to the Torah - a centuries-old a book that gave all mankind morality and ethics . He recalled the withdrawal religious literature from the Jewish school in Yekaterinburg.

According to I. Dabakarov, “it is not necessary to look for there is some kind of sedition in the Koran, Torah or the Bible - you can find fault with anything .

Public organization "Jewish national-cultural autonomy of the Tula region" Lev Raikhlin sees a solution to the conflict in the involvement of representatives of religious organizations and specialists in religion, since "a judge cannot know everything" : "You can also invite well-known and respected representatives of confessions, as well as specialists - religious scholars, and discuss this issue with them. Always need be aware of what rash decisions can lead to .

Solidarity with the position of R. Kadyrov was expressed only by the mufti Moscow and the Central region of Russia Albir Krganov . He is sure that the subject the verdict should be regarded as a provocation, an “attempt on the sura” and an insult Muslim feelings.

According to the mufti, “it is necessary to move away from the fact that the regions made such decisions, it is necessary to consider such cases at the federal level . He lamented the lack of "an expert community that would appropriate solutions . "

This point of view is shared by the Mufti of the Spiritual Administration Muslims of the Stavropol Territory Muhammad Rakhimov . He is sure that "regional courts consultation from Moscow is needed . Because even the local religious it is better not to trust the figures involved as experts: “When a local the mullah, who sometimes does not even have an education, comes on a call to the judge and almost by eye determines whether a book is good or not, about what kind of justice can we talk here?"  

Sources

• The decision of the Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk court is akin to a Charlie Hebdo-level provocation. Opinions of the clergy // Regions.ru. 2015. September 11.