Reclaiming the Dead: Russian Cosmism and Humanity’s Common Task
Chapter: Provo
In his presentation, "Reclaiming the Dead by Emile Alexandrov," speaker Emile Alexandrov explores the radical 19th-century philosophy of Russian Cosmism through its foundational thinker, Nikolai Fedorov, drawing profound parallels to the mission of the Mormon Transhumanist Association (MTA). Alexandrov addresses the historical divide between contemplative theory and practical action, pointing out that modern transhumanist movements and religious traditions often lack a cohesive ontological anchor to make their visions of the future viable. To solve this, he presents Fedorov's "Common Task"—the collective, divinely mandated duty of humanity to actively regulate chaotic, death-bearing nature through love and scientific collaboration. The core thesis of the presentation is that humanity must participate in bringing about the Kingdom of God on Earth, culminating in a literal, physical resurrection of all human ancestors. By unifying religious worship, data preservation, and history into a "Cathedral of Divine Wisdom," Alexandrov proposes that the MTA can build a robust, scripturally grounded philosophical framework to transition spiritual hope into a structured, universal scientific endeavor.
Timeline
01:36 Introduction of Emile Alexandrov
02:25 Emile's Personal and Academic Background
05:03 The Biography of Nikolai Fedorov
14:12 The Concept of the Common Task
18:18 Universal Bodily Resurrection
24:07 The Orthodox Doctrine of Theosis
36:45 The Cathedral of Divine Wisdom
42:14 The Twelve Pascal Questions
We are honored to welcome Dr. Emile Alexandrov for a fascinating exploration of Russian Cosmism, a religious movement dedicated to the technological resurrection of humanity
In the nineteenth century, while American prophets were calling the dead to rise, a Russian Orthodox philosopher named Nikolai Fedorov was articulating a vision just as radical: that humanity’s moral duty was to gather the scattered atoms of all the dead and restore them to life through the charitable use of technology. This was not fantasy. It was the philosophy of the common task—a summons to unite all humanity in the greatest of works.
Fedorov’s vision animated the Russian Cosmism movement and echoes today in every technological project aimed at radical longevity, decentralization, and the sanctification of matter itself. Yet his work remains far less known in the Anglo-American world than it deserves, even among those of us working in Christian and Mormon Transhumanism.
We are honored to welcome Dr. Emile Alexandrov for an evening of conversation on Fedorov’s vision of humanity’s responsibility for the dead, its theological foundations, and what it might mean for those of us today who believe that technology and faith are not enemies but allies in the work of resurrection and renewal.
About the Talk
This lecture unpacks Nikolai Fedorov’s Philosophy of the Common Task as an often-neglected metaphysical source for transhumanism. Fedorov reveals the deeper religious logic of transhumanism by weaving together scriptural sources, philosophical rigor, and scientific aspiration. Human beings are not merely called to extend life or overcome biological limits, but to assume collective responsibility for death itself. Universal resurrection becomes, for Fedorov, the logical outcome of a unified humanity that draws science, labor, and moral obligation into a single eschatological task.
Dr. Alexandrov will also show how Fedorov’s vision is commensurate with Mormon metaphysics—especially its distinctive view of eternal matter and divine progression, through which human and divine life are understood as continuous. Against the notion of matter as fallen nothingness, the talk advances a view of matter as eternal, transformable, and potentially glorified, from which universal resurrection emerges as the highest organization of embodied human existence. The result is a form of transhumanism articulated through brotherhood, kinship, and ancestral redemption—whether through Russian Cosmism’s Orthodox inheritance or the eternal materialism of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Ultimately, the talk clarifies misunderstandings of transhumanism as individual escape from finitude or technological self-deification, showing instead that its aim remains universal resurrection and human kinship.
About the speaker
Emile Alexandrov is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy and visiting scholar at Waseda University, Tokyo. His research focuses on metaphysics across Eastern and Western traditions. He earned his PhD in Philosophy from the University of Notre Dame Australia, and has extensive research and teaching experience in areas ranging from contemporary American and post-Kantian German philosophy to classical metaphysical traditions in the Graeco-Arabic world, Buddhism, and Daoism. Dr. Alexandrov has held academic appointments at the University of Erfurt in Germany, Novosibirsk State University and the University of Tyumen in Russia, and National Taiwan University in Taiwan. He is the author of The Other Platonist Beginning: Heidegger and Neoplatonism and the forthcoming Metaphysics and Ineffable. With Dr. O’Neill, he co-directs the biennial International Symposium on Buddhism and Neoplatonism. Alongside Dr. Steve Stakland, he also co-leads the American Philosophy Series at Routledge.