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Berdyaev Nikolai, Sources and meaning of Russian Communism, transl. E.D. Nianios, P. Pournaras Publ., Thessaloniki, pp. 269.

In the introduction of the book, titled “The Religious Idea of the Russian State”, Berdyaev claims that Russian communism has ethnic roots and for this reason, Marxism alone is insufficient knowledge for its comprehension. The Russian psyche was formed and sealed by the Orthodox Church. He describes in brief the development of ideas of Moscow as a third Rome, the ecclesiastical schism of the Old Believers in the middle of the 17^th century, the reformation of Peter the Great and the break up of the bonds of state administration – intellectuals and the people.

            In the first chapter he examines the character of the Russian intellectual class, the influences of German romanticism, the problem of belonging to either the East or the West and the Slavophiles. On to the second chapter, he approaches Russian nihilism and socialism and looks at personalities such as Bielinski, Dobroliubov, Tsernitsevski and Pissarev. The third chapter looks at Russian populism and anarchism and the ideas of Netsaev, Jerzinski, Bakounin, Lavrov, Michailofski, Tkatsev, Plechanov and Yeliabov. The subject of the fourth chapter is Russian literature of the 19^th century, the prophetic nature of which is evident in the work of Pushkin, Komiakov, Gogol, Blok, Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy, Leodiev, Soloviev and Fedorov.

            The fifth chapter comprises of a discourse about the peculiar relationship between Russian Marxism and classical Marxism, as well as the various tendencies formed within Russian Marxism. In the sixth chapter follows a penetrating and critical approach to Russian communism and the October Revolution, and in particular Lenin’s personality and work.

            The final chapter of the book is titled “Communism and Christianity”. Here Berdyaev claims that communism is against all religions, as it represents a religion itself. He critically examines the anti-religious attitudes from Marx to Lenin and the reasons behind the religious persecutions conducted by the Soviet regime. He accuses the Church of historical errors that contributed to the success of communism, to which he attributes Judeo-Christian roots regarding its preaching on social issues. According to Berdyaev Christianity stands against bourgeois capitalism as well as atheist communism, but ought not to lose its social justice. He maintains that the struggle for the daily bread of others (social justice) is a spiritual and religious issue.

Berdyaev Nikolai, On Social Inequality, transl. E. D. Nianios, P. Pournaras Publ., Thessaloniki, 1984, pp. 382.

The book constitutes a collection of 14 letters in which Berdyaev unfolds his ideas about social philosophy. The work is apologetic and at the same time a polemic. Initially he expresses criticism about the violent, equalizing nature of the Russian revolution, declaring that only a religious and spiritual revolution could be authentic. He declares himself against sociologism, claiming that society in all its forms is founded on religious and spiritual principles. In contrast to anarchy theories he defends the ontological nature of power and the state, which however must not be elevated to absolute or god-like status.

            In the fourth letter he rejects internationalism and recognises an ontological nucleus to the nation. In the fifth, he objects to radicalism, and stands in defense of conservatism, to which he attributes religious importance as a declaration of the hypostasis of the Father. He defends the aristocratic idea which calls for the dominance of the best ones, while the democracy calls for a perfunctory domination of all. Liberalism misses the mark by replicating the spiritual aims of life with material needs. He proposes the true freedom of the brotherhood of Christ, the Church. In the eighth letter he expresses criticism about the tendency for uniformity and the loss of creative and spiritual elements in democratic regimes.

            The material and totalitarian nature of socialism hinders recognition of social problems as spiritual and religious. Also, if socialism comes to naught because of its desire for equality, anarchism comes to the same end because of its desire for freedom devoid of depth.

            The eleventh letter refers to thoughts on war, while the twelfth seeks the spiritualization of economic life. He attributes a sacred quality to culture and differentiates it from civilization, which is of rationalistic and utilitarian nature. The aims of culture do not represent the higher purpose of life, which is to seek the Kingdom of God. But this search will not be the result of an evolution or a revolution, but a miraculous transformation of the world. The final chapter, written 5 years after the rest of the book, the author explains the historical conditions of the time of the writing, which had influenced his demeanor.

Berdyaev Nikolai, The Destiny of Humans in the Modern World, transl. Eytychia V. Youltsi, P. Pournaras Publ., Thessaloniki, 1980, pp. 143.

The present book of the Russian religious philosopher completes his trilogy on the philosophy of history. The preceding books of the trilogy were The Meaning of History and The New Middle Age. Written during the interwar period, it is permeated by an intense agony in the face of various visible and invisible threats to human societies and it constitutes a prophetic and critical approach to the historic destiny of humans and civilization.

            The author’s main concern is in the human person, which he considers under threat, particularly in the period that he writes, by ante-personal objectifications leading to inhumanity. He sees the failure of history in the tragedy which emanates from the discordance between what actually exists – the human and the personal – and objectification, the subjugation of the dissimilar and unrepeatable human persons to illiberal and oppressive collectivities and various –isms.

            The author describes his era as civilized barbarism. War, the praise of violence, capitalism, biological racism, rapid urbanisation, individualism, proletarisation, the elevation of states and collectivities to God-like status, mass phenomena, idolisation etc. constitute some of the threats to human destiny. According to Berdyaev, they tend to dominate, control and prevail completely on the spiritual order of the human person.

            However, the book refrains from pessimistic and hopeless conclusions. It sources its prophetic optimism from the dynamics of Christianity. This is not historical Christianity, burdened with a plethora of failures, misses and compromises but the authentic Christianity, which is the hope and ultimate abode of humanity. The conclusion comes from a social point of view, that only a person-centred state socialism which combines community and the human person can correspond to the authentic Christianity. The renaissance of this authentic Christianity will lead to the transcendence of human and social problems and constitute a revelation of the Holy Spirit.