Russian citizen Maria Butina, jailed in the United States on accusations of acting as a foreign agent, spends her time in prison praying, reading Fyodor Dostoevsky and religious books, Russian Orthodox priest Victor Potapov told Sputnik
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 01st March, 2019) Russian citizen Maria Butina, jailed in the United States on accusations of acting as a foreign agent, spends her time in prison praying, reading Fyodor Dostoevsky and religious books, Russian Orthodox priest Victor Potapov told Sputnik.
"I started visiting Maria Butina four months ago and I have to say the person I met then is a totally different person now," Potapov said.
He conceded that Butina, who is baptized in Russian Orthodoxy, did not take her faith seriously but has changed dramatically since her ordeal in US prison began.
The priest said that he brought Butina about 50 religious books penned by different Orthodox writers and commentators, as well as a copy of the Bible.
"Each time, I bring her four to five religious books," Potapov said. "She studies them, and each time I come, she prepares a list of 15 to 20 questions about religion and spiritual life. I can see that thanks to the grace of the Holy Spirit, she has truly been transformed."
The priest emphasized that whenever he visits Butina, he tries to provide her comfort.
"I hear her confessions and give her Holy Communion," he said. "I can say that Maria is a very intelligent woman and her only goal in life now is to leave for Russia and join her family."
Father Victor noted that Butina feels blessed for her imprisonment. "Maria feels that the time she is spending in prison is a positive experience. She thanks God each day that she has the time to pray, to study and to live a spiritual life," he said.
After her release from prison, Butina hopes not to move further from the faith, the priest added.
Asked about her conditions in prison, Potapov said that she has no complaints about food and plans to fast during the Great Lent that begins on March 11.
He also said that Butina found several Russian-language books in the prison library, and took interest in Dostoevsky.
"Maria is reading Dostoevsky's "Crime and Punishment" and wants very much to read "The Brothers Karamazov," he added.
Butina was arrested in mid-July of last year and imprisoned in Washington, DC before being transferred to a detention center in Alexandria, Virginia. Initially she refuted all accusation but in December pleaded guilty to acting as a foreign agent without prior notification to the US Attorney General and agreed to cooperate with authorities.
On Tuesday, US judge Tanya Chutkan scheduled next status hearing in Butina's case for March 28 after prosecutors had requested additional time to complete their investigation.
