The Revival of a Person in the Interpretation of Nikolay Berdyaev: Explanation of the Idea of Sobornost’ on the Example of Kabbalistic Concept about Adam Kadmon

Authors

  • Nataliya Petreshak Ukraine, L’viv Pontifical University of John Paul II in Krakow PhD student

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15633/lie.4167

Keywords:

Berdyaev, person, individual, Adam Kadmon, sobornost’

Abstract

The questions about how human can be seen and recognized as a person were asked throughout the centuries. The Russian thinker Nikolay Berdyaev as a representative of personalistic school answers this question through the prism of the calling of man. Thus, he distinguishes between a person and an individual, when the former is created by God, and the latter is a social construct. In this fallen world human exists rather as an individual, but his aim is to become a person. According to the thinker, human by his spiritual exaltation is able to reveal himself as a person, but finally he admits it is possible only along with other people. Berdyaev connects the topic about human becoming a person with the idea of Sobornost’, which finds analogy in the Western theological literature in terms like “catholicity” or “conciliarity.” In his explanation of this topic the Russian thinker refers to the Kabbalistic tradition takes its idea about Adam Kadmon as an example for a perfect unity of all beings. Still, Berdyaev develops his vision about the idea of unity of all creation on the basis of the idea of human creativity and his destiny. And in such a spiritual unity of all beings every human revealed himself as a person what is foremost vision of Berdyaev’s personalistic sight.

Author Biography

  • Nataliya Petreshak, Ukraine, L’viv Pontifical University of John Paul II in Krakow PhD student

    Nataliya Petreshak, received a degree in theology at the Ukrainian Catholic University (2010–2014), studied at the University of Leuven (Belgium) and received a Master of Arts (2014–2016), for some time studied at the Institute of Philosophy of St. Edith Stein (Spain, 2016) and the University of Pannonia (Hungary, 2017).
    Postgraduate student of the Faculty of Philosophy at the Pontifical University of John Paul II in Krakow (from 2018 to the present). The member of the internet Journal “Political Theology.” Intellectual interests: theological and philosophical anthropology, Christian mysticism, traditionalism, ethics, psychology.

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Published

2021-12-16

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