The paper is devoted to the interaction between science and religion in the theory of famous british philosopher of science Michael Polanyi. There is an analysis of relations between scientific and religious beliefs. According to Polanyi the religious cult provides a man with euristic vision of reality. Polanyi had a great impact into "untraditional" conception of truth.
This article reviews the ideas and motives of modern terrorism, discloses the concept of destructive human behavior, the analysis of the socio-cultural situation at the beginning of the XXI century and revealed disturbing factors intensify nationalist and religious terrorism as the most dangerous form of terrorism.
On the basis of the work of S. Kierkegaard «Exercises in Christianity» and V.S. Solovyov's «Readings on God-manhood» the article presents a comparative analysis of the positions of the authors as religious thinkers, formed in line with the problem of limiting the claims of the mind, which in earlier philosophy had become the only and comprehensive explanatory principle. The article outlines the common ground of their positions, which is a criticism of the official religion and the formalism of state churches. It notes that the innovative and original religious philosophies of Kierkegaard and Solovyov have a common mission – the revival of Christianity degenerated into a public religion, but at the same time they differ in character and structure. It concludes that Kierkegaard and Solovyov, critically reinterpreting the Christian religion that is contemporary to them, offer their religious philosophy as a way out of the crises of their time.
At the present stage of development of the Russian Federation, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the ideological bonds of the people disappeared. In these conditions, the "well-wishers" of various stripes are persistently trying to fi ll the resulting vacuum. The people themselves and their leadership are also in search of a national idea that can unite all Russians into a single nation. One of the options for a possible new national idea, according to some scientists, is the so-called "civil religion". Is it suitable for the Russian society?
This paper aims at reflecting on Vl. Solovyev's Three Conversations as a philosophical and religious fable. The stress is put on studying each of the protagonists: the Lady, the General, the Politician, Mr. Z, the Prince, as well as the Antichrist and the heads of the three main Christian denominations: the pope, the starets John and prof. Pauli. Each of them is presented both as a real type with his own idiosyncrasies (which is very important) and as an illustration of the truths and deficiencies of his time and milieu, keeping in mind the idea (so dear to Solovyev) that the people who actually promote and contribute to the good can only be those who have maintained a sense of humour and are the bearers of an honest, simple and authentic cultural and spiritual tradition, even if it is incomplete. The Antichrist seduces people by encouraging muddle-headedness, libido dominandi, intellectual pride and the taste for the sublime. Through those means he conquers, before being ultimately defeated by his own nothingness.
The article reveals the essence of the problem of the origin of man from the point of view of science and religion. We consider a variety of theories to explain the religious idea of the creation of man by God, the philosophical concepts that attempt to rationally, without the help of God, the absolute mind or alien, to explain the origin of man.
In: Vestnik Volgogradskogo Gosudarstvennogo Universiteta: naučno-teoretičeskij žurnal = Science journal of Volgograd State University. Serija 4, Istorija, regionovedenie, meždunarodnye otnošenija = History. Area studies. International relations, Volume 36, Issue 6, p. 63-70
The article studies the basic and complicated evolution of different approaches for investigating Russian post-Soviet Islamic transformation. The authors describe the logic and dynamic of scrutinizing such kind of problems as Islamic consciousness and Muslim institutes, relationships between Islam and ethnic political develoments, forms and manifestations of Islamic fundamentalism. In an effort to identify and assess the signs of post-Soviet Islamic revival, the Russian academic community has obviously been driven to despair. Especially since the tragedy of 9/11/2001 as a source of studying Islam as an evasive object. The main goal of this paper is the methodological innovation which consists in multilayered approach. The authors argue that changes of parameters and structure of post-Soviet policy is reflected in the change of format and unities of analysis. The paper examines the character of academic discussion about different understanding of such political phenomena as politization of Islam as well as bordering Islam in terms of multi-level methodology. This methodology could be able to clarify very complicated Islamic features: socio-territorial organization, communication, and the reproduction channels. It alone will help us explain changing Islam as a social and political enigma. In this paper the authors have correctly identified the phenomenon of Muslim regionalization as a situation under which the Islamic leaders concentrate on religious development at the local level. It is not the authors' aim to discuss the forms of Islamic existence and its religious-teaching component. The authors favor the wider approach typical of political science in which there is a component of Islamic studies. This analysis has demonstrated that the multi-layered approach to Islam, which identifies its viable segments, has a considerable heuristic potential. This approach helps to understand the inner dynamics of the Islamic development as a complex social and political phenomenon. This reconfirms the old truth that the deeper the analysis goes into the past the more integral an image of reality it acquires. (author's abstract)
The article discusses the interest of young people in Eastern religions, non-traditional and esoteric teachings, considered in a comparative analysis to what extent the worldview position of young people with non-traditional religiosity can influence the direction of their social orientations and attitude to the world around them. The focus of the article is youth (Muscovites and visitors). Youth as a social group, due to their age characteristics, is the most susceptible to the influence of non-traditional practices and religions, therefore, of particular interest is the study of the influence of non-traditional views on the consciousness of this particular age group. In the context of increasing migration flows to the metropolis (migrants from neighboring countries and migrants from other regions of the Russian Federation), young people among visitors cannot be ignored.
To understand the depth of transformations in all spheres of society generated by migration, new terminology is needed. The notion of "postmigrant societies" implies that the distinction between local and migrant population loses its relevance in certain social spheres. According to the familiar epistemological framework, societies are presented as consisting of "local population" on the one hand, and "migrant population" on the other. This understanding, however, is becoming obsolete. First, it does not reflect the fact that the phenomenon of spatial mobility is embedded in the social structure. A significant part of the so-called local population is itself included in migration processes. People who are considered to be part of the "autochthonous population" are in fact migrants themselves due to different circumstances (contract work, long-term stay in another country due to studies, involvement in joint business projects, participation in international scientific teams, availability of real estate abroad, etc.). At the same time, those people who are regarded as "migrants" by common sense can be well integrated into the social institutions of their new homeland. Second, the traditional epistemological framework does not reflect contemporary demographic trends. It is unable to capture two points: (a) population rotation within the framework of circular/pendulum migration; (b) qualitative change in the urban population of industrialized countries.
Some of the most significant consequences of transnational immigration is growing religious diversity and finding a way to manage it. This article considers the concept of pluralism, the differences in religious pluralism between America and Western Europe occurring due to immigration, as well as the roles and possibilities of immigrant religions in the process of adapting to the host society. The history of immigration, models of immigrant incorporation and adaption, patterns of religious pluralism and types of secularism strongly vary in the aforementioned regions. Religion in America is a positive resource and a basis for incorporating immigrants into American society, their recognition in public life, assimilation and construction of an American identity. By contrast, in Western Europe immigrant religions, particularly Islam, are perceived primarily as an obstacle to incorporating immigrants into European societies and their recognition in the public domain. This is explained mainly by the secularist mindset of European people in general, their uncertain "private" religiosity in the context of "Euro-secularity", the European concept of religion's place in the "private domain", as well as types of state-religion relations and institutional patterns of recognition which differ from America.
The article discusses the possible transformation of the geopolitical situation in the Francophone countries of Tropical Africa in the context of the coronavirus pandemic, based on the information published in the French media. And also, the analytical report, sent by experts of the Paris Center for Analysis, Forecasting and Strategy (CAPS), to the President and the French Foreign Ministry was used. The article contains a list of the main epidemiological, social, humanitarian, and political threats that will destabilize the situation on the Black Continent, as well asmade a prediction attempt of the dynamics of international relations in the post-coronavirus period. The aim of this study is to find out how the balance of forces of traditional and relatively new actors in international relations has been changed in the countries of Tropical Africa in the period of present observation. Particular attention is paid to the initiatives of the Champs Elysees, designed to preserve the traditional political, economic, and military dominance of the Fifth Republic in African countries, the territories of which were part of the French colonial empire. Emanuel Macron's proposals regarding forgiveness of external debts and economic assistance to African countries are analyzed. It is concluded that the initiatives of the President of France cannot be implemented in political practice and are aimed only at countering the growth of anti-French mood in the Sahel. A political analysis of the situation comes to the conclusion that, as a result of the economic and political upheaval caused by the coronavirus pandemic, it is very likely that the interests of France will be supplanted from Tropical Africa by China and, in part, by Russia.
Student unrest of 1956 in Soviet universities is examined based on the example of the Ural State University and the Ural Polytechnic Institute in Sverdlovsk. Student attitudes are analyzed in terms of social and critical thinking, and the reaction of authorities — in light of the policy towards the intelligentsia. The theoretical and methodological frame of analysis is constructivism, with emphasis put on aspects of bilateral, reciprocal design and temporality. The empirical base consists of documents from the collections of the Documentation Centre of the Social Institutions of Sverdlovsk Region, the University Museum, as well as materials from local and national press. The mid 1950's were marked by a radical revision of the limits of acceptable criticism, which was unfolding until the end of 1956. Unorthodox activity was not regarded as seditious up until a point. The gap, interval between the original action and the resulting stigmatizing mark shows how such a notion crystallized. At some point it seemed as if you could criticize everyone and everything. It is shown that the most crucial effect was produced not by the theme of student statements but rather by a mismatch in the magnitude of the subjects and objects of public criticism. The position of authorities was to depoliticize student activity, while using such a relatively new course as pathologizing objectification: the younger generation was treated as a bearer of specific problems requiring special attention. "Labor education" with emphasis on hard physical labor was used as the universal lifesaver. Sundays at construction sites, hedgehog-fit visits to farms, as well as sending expelled students to factories inform the phenomenon of organic intellectuals "on the contrary" (in the words of A. Gramsci and N. Savelyeva). At the same time, the pragmatic benefits of resolving to admit to universities only those who had sufficient work experience was not reduced to disposing of students' "unhealthy moods", but rather "postponement" of higher education was to attract the youngsters to the virgin lands and construction sites. Students themselves insisted on the political connotations of their actions. The desire of the young generation to "catch the winds of history in their sails" was gradually accumulated in the concept of romance, which had yet to displace the patriotism and heroism that prevailed within the ideological orientations and the official rhetoric of the 50's.
