Religious leader in Russia sent to prison

Question: A question regarding the arrest and sentencing of the leader of a religious community in Russia, calls himself Vissarion, as well as two of his close associates. They have been sentenced to long prison terms in a high security penal colony. Does this case represent a serious violation of freedom of religious belief? Could this situation also be viewed as a return of Vissarion’s karma, given that some former members claim his organization harmed them? Is it possible that those who were sentenced may have chosen, at a soul level, to manifest a judgment of the Christ over an authoritarian power structure in Russia?

Answer from the Ascended Master Mother Mary through Kim Michaels. This answer was given during the 2026 New Year Webinar.

Well, I will comment in general. When you have a repressive regime, as you have in Russia and other countries, it is clear that any limitation of religious freedom is a violation of the people’s rights. Now, most people will not care so much about this particular religious leader or organization. But that is not actually the point. The point is that if the state determines which religion people can follow, then that is a violation of your right to choose for yourself. Of course, you can say the Russian state has already violated that right in so many other ways. But it is a violation, nevertheless.

Is it a result of, the person’s karma? Well, partly so, because the organization is not really in any way sponsored from the ascended level. There is a lot of personal ambition on the part of the leader. In terms of whether this is bringing the judgment of Christ, well, you can say in a general sense, any violation of people’s freedoms brings the judgment of Christ to some degree. But the higher the level of consciousness of the people, the more powerful the judgment of Christ will be.

And in this case, their consciousness is not really that high. And therefore, it does not have a major impact on the situation in Russia. But there are already so many violations of people’s freedoms.