MIKHAIL BLUMENKRANTZ FROM NIMROD TO THE GRAND INQUISITOR: THE PROBLEM OF THE DEMONISATION OF FREEDOM IN THE WORK OF DOSTOEVSKIJ KEY WORDS: Freedom, Dostoevskij, Christian World View , Stavrogin, Kierkegaard A cultural cri sis begins with the n ecrosis of the spirit and its degener- ation into a hard-set system of dogmas; it ends with the destruction of the hierarchical vertical and its replacement by the historical horizontal of collectively or individually chosen values whose characteristics are wholly conditioned by social norms and prac- tice. Tillich clearly saw the danger of this in relation to the present era civilisation pted in favour of s~ularisation. That was a great and very necessary decision . t dethroned the Church - the Chur ch having establis hed tself by the mig ht of oppression and prejudice. It sanctified nd fill ed ith meaning our d~ly life and labour; but it repudiated those profound things symbolised by religion: he feeling of the inexhaustible ystca of life he penetration nto the ultimate meaning of existence and the invincible power of unconditional devotion. Such things should not be repudiated. If we turn them away in their godly forms they will return in satanic forms: and so now in the declining centu ry of our s~ularise~ l orld w e have becom e witne sses o the most monstrous nlanifestation s f those demoni c forms; we have seen further into the depths of evi l Sa n mo st previous generat ions ... I Denial of the hierarchical principle in accordance with Sartre's thesis there are as many truths as there are people, or the supplant- ing of the cosmic hierarchy by the false hierarchy of popular ideology, leads to the demonisation of human existence and the destruction of the spiritual basis of culture. Man does not attain personal virtue by a 'move forwards,' but by rising above that plane where one moves 'forwards' or 'backwards.' Forward movement is possible even in darkness, and it may be that the darkness entices us by the very supplant ing of true 'attainments' by movement back and forth. 'z At the very beginning of this century Buber warned of the threat of the demonic reincarnation of contemporary culture: Studies in East Europ ean Thought 48: 231-254, 1996.