From a Reader to The Silent Majority regarding “Russia Wrassling while a War is Raging…”
“… my thoughts about article. I understood that the writer is not the first time in Russia . What I do not understand are the questions about the lack of evidence of Jewish contributions to the Russians, monuments, signs, houses of worship and so on in the church- and cathedral/monastery/nunnery-rich landscape of Russia . Jews definitely could not contribute to all these places because they are Jews, they do not build cathedrals! They build Synagogues! I did not find any mention about them. I do not know who created the tour, but it was ‘classic’ Russian religious places….Trust me, they are beautiful. Jews never in their history, at least of my knowledge, could build the Synagogues openly. I mean that churches and cathedrals were erected on the hills; they were shining far away for people to come. Most of Jews in Russia could live in special pure suburbs. Very rarely some of them lived in cities. It required special permission and a lot of money. Synagogues could be destroyed any time with anti-Semites, so they were not very open.
•
Strange for them to be so protective/proud of these obscenely gilded, artifact-choked venues of belief, when they have been so routinely atheist for so blatant a time.
We lived in atheistic country. But all education was based on Russian history and Russian literature. And we saw only churches. Nobody went to pray there, but we saw them every day. I went to synagogue the first time (we have the only one in the city with population 3, 5 M) in 80‘s. We have Cathedrals with the icons created by famous, very!!!! good painters, but we did not go there. It was not safe. I was in the 8th grade in the school when we decided with girlfriends to go to Vladimir Cathedral. (Oh, you have to see that beauty.) Somebody said that there was very handsome, young priest there. The evening before I visited my grandmother and told her about very excited tomorrow. She asked me not to go. She asked me so deeply and sadly that I gave her my word and stayed home. It happened that only one girl went there. She was expelled for a week from the school. My grandma saved me. I guess she knew what could be. Christianity was inside us. Sorry to say, but I never looked for a synagogue during my vacations. We traveled with my daughter and looked for churches, because they were nice. You have to see gothic in Baltic republic.
•
In Zagorski: Lots of women and children (some men) kissing fetishes, crosses, coffins…
I don’t understand why the writer was so surprised to see such behavior. People kiss fetishes all over the world. Zagorsk is a very particular place. The whole city is religious treasure. There are Cathedrals, monasteries; people come there with hope to get special blessings. (BTW I thought that speak language, but in the mouth we have tongue.) Everybody is bewitched. There was not an ‘Apple’ celebration in my time. There is a lot of changes now.
•
the huge worm-hole in the side not facing me on my plate.
She was happy to have only a hole without worm in the apple. But we joked that apple with worm is a good one, because there were not pesticides. I can say nothing about prices, dead zones for Blackberries-this happens everywhere, and Muslims. I left before. Thank G-d.
•
Embarrassment and fast-footwork over the Georgian enterprise, most people offhandedly telling one the “Georgians started it,” despite the reality.
People cannot be open with somebody from US. May be they were agreed with newspapers. I know that neither Abkhazia, no Ossetia loved Russians.
•
The article left a little bitterness. I never liked when Russians saw only dirt abroad. But there is something you can write nice about Russia too. I’m sending you Moscow subway. I always argue with our people that that beauty does not connect so long distance as NYC Subway, and it’s not so nice far from center of the city, but I think the writer could find a couple of words besides The subways are something.“
•
[vodpod id=ExternalVideo.688248&w=425&h=350&fv=]
Best Regards
•
For original article on “Russia Wrassling while a War is Raging…” Go Here>>