The Kremlin in Moscow
A regional court in Stavdofil, Russia, fined the local Jewish community for the possession of Jewish literary books (historical novels) written by Rabbi Marcus Lehman which tell about Jews who were coerced to convert.
The court which issued the fine did so on the grounds that these works were included in a list of books which contained "controversial material," which is forbidden by law. The list presented by the court, publicized by the Russian Ministry of Justice, enumerates books which are counter to tolerance "between religions and faiths."
"It was discovered that the printed edition of the book was freely available to members of the local Orthodox community," the court ruled. "The book stood on the shelves of the library room and was accessible to all visitors."
The report noted that the fine which the court was permitted to impose on infractions such as this one can come to between 100,000 and a million rubles. In this case, the court chose the lesser amount.
The book in question deals with pressure exerted on the hero of the story who converted to Christianity so that he could maintain the post of the Royal Ministry of the Treasury. The story is based on the background of forced baptism of many Jews in Lithuania and Poland in the fourteenth century.
This book was written by the famous writer, Rabbi Meir (Marcus) Lehman who lived in Germany in the Nineteenth Century and authored dozens of books, literary and also scholarly works. He is most famous, however, for his novels based on historical facts, geared to a youthful readership, printed in numerous editions and languages.
When the bizarre ruling of the Russian court came to light in 5777, it was challenged by people in the Jewish community. "It is a travesty of justice, unworthy of the Russian court, a total mockery of the law against fanaticism to label this book as being fanatic. This is a book which was reprinted in dozens of editions, including in Germany of the nineteenth century. It is a book dealing with discrimination against Jews. It simply makes the whole battle against fanaticism ridiculous."
