Rabbi Borukh Gorin: "Regarding the jewel of human life, representatives of all faiths are united"

About religious duty and mercy, people of believers and religious officials

From the editorial office
Now in Russia there are extremely difficult times. Representatives of religious denominations cannot stay away. They must react and help their parishioners survive this Morok. Zoya Svetova, the observer of Novaya, spoke with Rabbi Borukh Gorin, the head of the Department of Public Relations of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Russia, and with father Alexei Uminsky , rector of the Moscow Trinity Trinity in Khokhlah.

- On February 24, Russia began a special operation in Ukraine, the Russians were divided into those who support it, those who leave Russia, and those who expect repression within the country. What do you say to your parishioners, how do you help them avoid despondency and survive the "dark times"?

- We are not in a vacuum, and it is clear that this is all discussed. The situation is complicated by the fact that members of Jewish communities in Russia and Ukraine are often close relatives, acquaintances, friends. And watching everything that happened, what is happening, it is impossible not to think about it as something very close. If someone can be deceived on this subject, assume that this is somewhere far away, then for so many members of our communities-this is not somewhere there. This is nearby: there are close ones, there are relatives, there are sometimes elderly parents, there are brothers, sisters. This is an alarming state, alarming time, anxious in the literal sense of the word, because people are worried about the fate of their loved ones, in the literal sense and for their fate, because we are all in some state of ... free flight. Therefore, we, the rabbis, in our appeal and in our speeches, are trying to contrast this situation with a certain sense of confidence in God, that is, in the hope that God is merciful, that all this sooner or later, preferably very quickly, will end, and people will cease to suffer. And in this sense, such a feeling is not a leading anxiety, just a depressive feeling - this is completely not a religious feeling. That is, a person of a believer in this sense has many ways how to resist this: you can try to effectively help someone who was in a difficult situation is his religious duty. This is one type, let's say, kosher anxiety, that is, your anxiety is that you are worried that people are left without shelter, or help in the evacuation of your loved ones and so on.

The second more inner feeling is a feeling of your own spiritual support, that is, it is that your anxiety should be included in the plea, prayer, in improving your own personal qualities ...

Circumstances are not all: behind them there is some kind of spiritual degradation of the world, and you can contribute to that this degradation becomes less,

So that you can balance and balance this scales. Of course, all this necessarily sounds in our communication with parishioners, with children in schools. And finally, the third is still a large, so to speak, by the message: the fact that everything that is happening around us is even the most catastrophic circumstances are called to teach us something. And these conclusions that a person should draw in such a situation when the whole world is turning and trembling is, of course, the fact that everything that seems constant and incomparable from a place is actually very unsteady, all material stability in this world is very ghostly, and as they say in the Bible: “The hearts of the monarchs in the hand of God”. That is, that as a result, as a result, it can occur in some geopolitics or in a geopolitical economy, and so on, it is absolutely unpredictable and turns out to be a completely card house. And in this sense, this is the lesson that in all such cases, similar circumstances, which, unfortunately, have been in our history, this is the conclusion that is required. A vivid sign is the shabbyness of the material existence of man. The fact that a person seems the most important is crumbling like a house of cards. And the eternal is the faith of man, mercy that is in a person’s heart, this is his moral election - before that, his entire material component is absolutely insolvent, if I may say so.

-Are representatives of your denomination any efforts to stop special operation and bloodshed?

- It was not only an appeal to the political figures of the main rabbi of Russia Berla Lazar, but also the willingness to act as intermediaries. After all, religious figures in this case can be a little outside the conflict, over the authorities, over the conflict, and so on, try to find some ways to negotiations. How much this call was heard? I can’t say because it should not be said, because until the process has gone and this has not ended, and because I do not know all the circumstances. But such activities are undoubtedly conducted constantly, and certain proposals of this kind sound from the leadership of our organization - this is a general public position.

- Many people left Russia: young people, fearing that they can be taken into the army, that they will participate in special operations. They leave, leaving their apartments, friends and their lives. Someone calls this emigration, someone is a “Moscow outcome”. We remember how Jews left the Soviet Union. But for other reasons. Do parishioners ask you for advice: to leave or not? Is there such a movement?

- Yes, these are, of course, the most common questions and discussions now. But there are no general answers, that is, we are always guided in our councils to parishioners a specific situation of each person. That is, roughly speaking, if a person was impoverished in this situation, because his enterprise was closed and so on, if nothing holds him more economically, but at the same time he hopes for some better share in some other part of the world, then in his circumstances he will probably be advised to leave. If someone is also afraid of some political processes and so on ....

But, in general, our common position is not in an extreme, not in a catastrophic situation - such a conversation is carried out, as a rule, about leaving for Israel.

It is said that there is a holy, promised land, in which, ideally, all Jews will gather.

We really do not want us to gather there, because in another place it burns, and due to the fact that some problems appeared in another place. It should be a spiritual choice: is it worth waiting for something good from the land of Israel? In this case, we are trying to say that in the most general question is as follows: that good land of Israel can expect from you? That is, at what moral level you are and so on. For us, this is not an emigration, but what is called the rise: this is a pilgrimage, this is our general attitude to, roughly speaking, where Jews should live. That is, you found yourself in a certain place, in certain circumstances. And if you can change something, you can do life around you better, then you should be here. If there are any feelings that this is due to the danger to you, or you don’t feel that you can change something and at the same time consider yourself tied with spiritual roots with the Earth of Israel, then yes, go to Israel. In this sense, of course, the situation has become aggravated now, but these questions remained: to go or not to go?

- So you do not give advice?

- We do not give a general answer, but to each specific person, having listened to his circumstances, the rabbi, of course, will give the Council that refers to him personally. For different people, these can be different answers.

-Is there any hope that your prayer, the prayer of the Orthodox, the prayer of Muslims (all faiths in this case, despite the disagreements that they have, according to confessional or any other issues, are still united in the fact that the situation should return to the normal direction) will be heard by God and the authorities?

-I am absolutely convinced that any person who believes in God, in his biblical department, if it is not some ancient cults of death, but if it is Abrahamic religions, then he, in general, understands that the most precious that exists is human life. And therefore, I am sure that any believer in this situation prays for preserving human lives and this is not a subject for discussions. That is, not that any Orthodox or Muslim will, in my opinion, will discuss: is it worth praying for the salvation of innocent people, human lives? On this occasion, we did not conduct inter -religious tips and so on. That is, we can have different views on geopolitics or on what methods to seek justice on Earth, and whether this is injustice, but about the jewel of human life is a common position. I think that this is absolutely one in this, if these are believers, and not officials from religion.