On February 28, at Tbilisi
Theological Academy and Seminary a public lecture, titled “Power
and Those Born by Revolution” was held. It was delivered by the
member of the Napoleonic International Society, PhD in History,
Professor Ivane Menteshashvili.
The Rector of Tbilisi Theological
Academy and Seminary, PhD in Theology and Philology, Professor,
Protopresbyter Giorgi Zviadadze, professors, teachers and students
attended the lecture.
Protopresbyter Giorgi Zviadadze
expressed his deep respect toward Mr. Ivane. He noticed that the
scientist is a recognized investigator, a writer of a high
professional level and a translator. Mr. Ivane Menteshashvili is
always ready to give help to the Patriarchate of Georgia and to the
Theological Academy in the activity within his competence.
The professor spoke about his
book, titled “Power and Those Born by Revolution”. The book gives a
description of premises for the rise of great historical figures
who emerged in the storms of revolution – Oliver Cromwell, Napoleon
Buonaparte and Joseph Stalin. Mr. Ivane Menteshashvili considers
that “the success of the aforementioned persons and their coming to
power were preconditioned not only by their personal characteristic
features but rather objective social, political and
ethnophsychological circumstances preconditioned an expression of
these features in practice. The unity of precisely these premises
determines historical epochs, which in the end, are unique and
inevitable.”
Mr. Ivane emphasized the
particular traits and roles of these persons through which they
shaped the world history. All of them defended the interests of
their states - England, France and Russia - and fought for them. He
marked out the most significant of the characteristic features of
these men. Apart from his peculiarities as of a revolutionary,
Cromwell was a man of deep faith (he was an unswerving Puritan,
which is the most radical confession in Protestantism), had a good
knowledge of the Bible, which helped him greatly in the unification
and formation of his regiment, called “Ironsides”. His soldiers
fought with great courage and conviction with their foes who were
circles adhering to other religious confessions. Mr. Ivane
mentioned that Cromwell promoted individuals according to their
faith in the idea they were fighting for. He remembered the
well-known battle of Dunbar when Cromwell started to sing his
favourate Psalm 68 and his inspired troop sang with him.
Napoleon, as a talented and
successful general, mused on how long he would fight for the
benefit of an unpopular among the people government who solely
sought their own ends. He was well aware of the objectives the
French people aspired to achieve; these were their aspirations
after antiquity, love for the Motherland and devotion to her, civil
liberty. By accentuating these ideas, by striving and working for
attaining them, he drew the attention of the political circles of
France and the majority of the people, who remained loyal to him
for a long time.
Mr. Ivane describes Stalin as a loyal follower of revolutionary ideas, which were related to not only the social freedom and consolidation of the rights of the oppressed working people, but also to an unsparing fight against the oppressors and dominant classes, their defeat and final destruction. Brought up in austere conditions and being a fighter, he developed a ruthless attitude to people, which was also bolstered by the ruthlessness of the forces, contending him (especially, of Lev Trotski) towards the opposed to them social classes and individuals who did not share their ideas. With all these peculiarities and their particular roles, with intensive struggle and activities, these persons put a significant mark on the history of the world, which cannot be looked over by any of the investigators of these periods…
Mr. Ivane describes Stalin as a loyal follower of revolutionary ideas, which were related to not only the social freedom and consolidation of the rights of the oppressed working people, but also to an unsparing fight against the oppressors and dominant classes, their defeat and final destruction. Brought up in austere conditions and being a fighter, he developed a ruthless attitude to people, which was also bolstered by the ruthlessness of the forces, contending him (especially, of Lev Trotski) towards the opposed to them social classes and individuals who did not share their ideas. With all these peculiarities and their particular roles, with intensive struggle and activities, these persons put a significant mark on the history of the world, which cannot be looked over by any of the investigators of these periods…
Mr. Ivane Menteshashvili, with
his zeal, profound knowledge of the issues and reference to very
eloquent facts, impressed highly the auditorium, leaving them with
multiple questions to think over… At the end of the lecture, the
Rector of Tbilisi Theological Academy and Seminary asked the
professor, how the faith in God and love for the singing of Psalms
correlated with the conquests of Cromwell. According to Mr. Ivane
Menteshashvili, Cromwell’s conquests and activities were grounded
on his faith and, at the same time, on the intolerance toward his
opponents, his negative attitude toward ethnically and politically
different people (Irish and Scottish peoples). It was colonialism,
which, in the aforementioned period, was veiled with religious
ideology.
