Mikheil Kakabadze

About me

My Ph.D. project investigates apocalyptic themes in the work of the Marxist philosopher Ernst Bloch (1885-1977). Specifically, I am interested in how Bloch negotiates religious and political ideas by means of apocalyptic themes and traditions, and how this process is informed by early twentieth-century utopian discourse of revolution, both spiritual and secular. Conversely, I am interested in how attention to this dimension of Bloch's thought can help to shed light on the greater intersections of religion and politics within apocalyptic discourse in this period. Steeped in war and revolution, but undergoing rapid innovations in society and culture as well, visions of radical social change were omnipresent and often articulated at the crossroads of religion and politics.

I received a research Master's degree in Theology & Religious Studies from the University of Amsterdam in 2021 with a focus in the academic study of esotericism. My thesis - 'Esotericism and Socialism in the German Empire: Erich Gutkind and His Writings Before the First World War' - investigated a neglected but important figure in Imperial Germany who facilitated utopian social efforts to prevent the catastrophe of World War I by attempting to establish a trans-national spiritual leadership.

My research interests include the relationship between Marxism, critical theory and religion, the study of apocalypticism and millenarianism, and the study of esotericism in the modern period.