Putin, Russian Cosmology, and Soviet Atheism: A Conversation

We are very pleased to be hosting Professor Victoria Smolkin of Wesleyan University for a conversation on Russian history and religion, Vladimir Putin, and the nature and legacy of Soviet atheism, about which she has written the definitive book, "A Sacred Space Is Never Empty: A History of Soviet Atheism" (2018). Join us for an exciting and fascinating discussion on religion, history, and contemporary affairs.

Victoria Smolkin is an associate professor of history at Wesleyan University. She joined Wesleyan’s faculty in 2010. A scholar of Communism, the Cold War, as well as atheism and religion in Russia and the former Soviet Union, Smolkin's expertise also covers religious politics and secularism, the Soviet space program, and East European and Eurasian studies. She holds a BA in European Literature and History from Sarah Lawrence College, and an MA and PhD in History from the University of California, Berkeley.

This is our monthly meeting, held on the third Monday of the month. The main program is announced closer to the date of the meeting.

We usually start with half an hour of coffee and conversation at 6:30 PM, followed by the main program after brief announcements at 7:00 PM.