George Pattison

During his fellowship, George Pattison will be working on preparing papers from the lecture series "Russian Religious Thought in the Age of Putin" (IWM, 2022–3) for publication. He will also work on Nikolai Berdyaev’s discussion of "The Russian Idea," considering both Berdyaev’s book of that title and other books and articles where he discusses relevant texts and ideas. Berdyaev was an especially significant figure in Russian philosophy due not only to the influence of his books but also to his activity in setting up and contributing to a range of lecture series, institutions, and journals that promoted knowledge of and engagement with Russian religious thought in the West. Despite affirming his own Russianness, Berdyaev was highly critical of all forms of political and ecclesiastical authoritarianism and nationalist movements, making him a crucial figure for reflecting on the heritage of Russian religious thought today.