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“I highly recommend Tom Willett's new compendium of Nicholas Berdyaev. If you're unfamiliar with Berdyaev, here's your introduction. You may come to feel, as I do, that Berdyaev should be read alongside other great 20th century Christian thinkers like C. S. Lewis, Jacques Ellul, and Reinhold Niebuhr. His work is of special interest to artists, but really, he invites all of us to live into the freedom of creativity.”

Brian D. McLaren

Author

 

“The history of Mother Russia is replete with oppression, but it is her cultural creatives who have been willing to pay the price by standing up to and confronting that oppression. Many names come quickly to mind: Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Pushkin, even Bulgakov. But there is another, Nicholas Berdyaev, with whom it is imperative that we become acquainted. Tom Willett does us a service here, elevating this contrarian Christian philosopher in the public’s awareness. All of us should read this work, for there is a God-given artist in each of us, aching to express itself prophetically.”

Dr. Richard Gathro

International Arts & Education Traveler

 

“It is gratifying to know that, thanks to a terrific job by Tom Willett, those who find their life vocation in creativity and art will be introduced to the great Russian philosopher and prophet, Nicholas Berdyaev, and his insights into the burning anthropological issue of the centrality of the creative act to human life.”

Софья Андросенко (Sofia Androsenko)

Berdyaev scholar, Moscow

 

“I think Creativity Will Save the World is a must-read for artists of all kinds, but particularly those struggling with religious faith. It reminds me of reading Rilke’s Letters to a Young Poet, in which some soul from the past finds you and reminds you that are not alone in your head with these thoughts, but that you, as a creative, are in the company of saints who have gone before you, leaving a place for you to stand in a space they cleared before you. Willett’s book is a great distillation of encouragement to join in the creative work of the Holy Spirit in all manner of endeavors and relationships.” 

Julie Sumner

Poet

 

“Tom Willett is a resonator—ever and always making louder the voice of the artist. In Creativity Will Save the World, he invites us to sip the fire-water of creativity from the mind of Berdyaev. Like all good spirits, it startles the lips, arousing curiosity. It awakens the tongue with inspiration. And finally, it is explosive, warming the innards of the generative work of creating.”

Kim Thomas

Painter

Curate at The Village Chapel

 

“Is creativity religious in nature? As a writer, the experience feels that way. From where do these conscious and unconscious, seemingly godly impulses emanate? And why do they come to me? Tom Willett bridges the density of Berdyaev’s philosophic explorations with clarity and insight. And while he put his pen to creating this work, his inkwell was full from a lifetime of service to musicians and writers, helping them develop their mysterious creative talents to completed thoughts and finished works. I know, because Tom and I shared that role, together and separately, for decades. I’ve come away asking, ‘Is creativity religious in nature? And is religion, in its depths, creative in nature?’”

Dan Beck, Trustee

The Recording Industry’s Music
  Performance Trust Fund

 

“In Creativity Will Save the World Tom Willett invites us to peruse the wonders of aesthetics, the curiosity of philosophy, and the sacredness of theology. Here is an oasis for your heart, mind and soul. Come, take a long cool drink.”

Jim Thomas, Pastor

The Village Chapel

 

“If you’ve not yet met Nicholas Berdyaev, you really should. Berdyaev was an exceptionally original and wide-ranging thinker, and his writing remains as prophetic and relevant now as it was when first presented a century ago. Tom Willett has arranged a thoughtful, engaging and accessible introduction to Berdyaev’s writings which serves as a wonderful way to begin an ongoing conversation with this remarkable figure.” 

Steven R. Guthrie, PhD

Professor of Theology/Religion and the
  Arts, Belmont University

 

"In this era of depersonalization we need to listen to prophetic voices that challenge and inspire us to renew our commitments to the utter beauty of the world and to humans' God-mirroring creativity. Thanks to Tom Willett's book, we can journey into the rich texts of Berdyaev, a prophet whose time has come."

Quentin Schultze

Professor of Communication Emeritus

Calvin University

 

“Tom Willett has generated a literary project whose creativity is worthy of the subject. It functions beautifully as a primer to the philosophical splendor of Berdyaev as well as a manifesto for the supremacy of creativity. The pull quotes, alone, are worth the price tag and leave one with a lifetime of prompts for religious contemplation and artistic expression. As one who looks far and wide for books that tease my intellectual curiosities and gifts a parched soul with a beauty that saves, this book amply performs both duties. Willett deserves much credit for producing a work that gives attention to an under-appreciated philosophical saint who challenges us to a more robust spiritual and creative existence.”

Rev Scott Young

Executive Director, Culture Connection

Campus Minister, UC San Diego 

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“What a powerful little book! By the time I got through the chapter on “Creativity and Redemption” I had to put it down to ponder the enormity of Berdyaev’s thought, and the wondrous implications for all of us. Just that one chapter alone unlocks the core secrets of the universe—redemptive history’s move from the Old Testament (God), to the New Testament (Jesus), and now to the Third Testament (the Spirit). To understand that progression from Law to Redemption to Creativity is just amazing! It’s the foundation, “the point of it all,” so deeply rooted in the core of life, the essence of our calling. These are life-sustaining words. What a breath of fresh air!

                                                                                                                  Craig Detweiler

                                                                                                                  President, Wedgwood Circle