Vladimir Soloviev and the Spiritualization of Matter

While he is widely acknowledged as the most important Russian thinker of the nineteenth century, Vladimir Solovievs place in the landscape of world philosophy nevertheless remains uncertain. Approaching him through a single synoptic lens, this book foregrounds his unique envisioning of the interaction between humanity and the material world. By investigating the development of a single theme in his workhis idea of the spiritualization of matter, the task of humanitySmith constructs a rounded picture of Solovievs overall importance to an understanding of nineteenth-century thought, as well as to modern theology and philosophy. The picture that emerges is of a writer whose contribution to a Christian philosophy of matter resonates with many of the religious debates of modernity.