The article deals with the problem of methodological description of legal knowledge. There are two types of legal methodology: philosophical and legal. The paradigm parameters are determined of legal and philosophical meta-theory according to which alternative concepts can be one-order in meta-theoretic sense. It is proved that the topic of naturalistic and culture-centered research programs competition is secondary for legal and philosophical paradigm of the meta-theory. The author proposes some criteria for unambiguous interpretation of law at a theoretical level of legal knowledge and identifies the limited and sufficient grounds of law interpretation.

The article proves that philosophy emerges in the ancient world as a response to challenges and threats of social chaos and disintegration of personality. This kind of role philosophy has been playing throughout the history. The author reveals anti-philosophical nature of sophistry in which the subjects of modern global chaos have a stake. It is concluded that the confrontation of philosophy and neosophistry in the modern global world is a realization of mankind’s struggle for the opportunity to exist.

Аbstract. The article analyzes the axiological foundations of social leader’s potential which includes leader’s values and his will to acquire them. The author concludes that the result of leadership training should be focusing leader’s mind on positive values-goals and values-means of management. The responsibility of leader-managers is socially determined by their orientation to positive values, which poses the problem of forming and developing leader’s personal potential. Furthermore, social responsibility generates creative tension within a social organization, which allows of carrying out various changes in it.

The article describes the nature and content of the phenomenon of patriotism in contemporary Russian society. It focuses on the analysis of diverse interpretations of patriotism existing in the spiritual space of modern Russia. It is shown that the patriotic idea has always played a significant role in providing power and security in Russia. The author argues the necessity of forming a new patriotic unity without which a truly sovereign Russia may not be possible.

The article reveals the basic philosophical aspects of the concept of “information society” which can act as its paradigm. The premises, signs of the information society development are analyzed. Particular attention is paid to the identification of threats and challenges of the information society to various aspects of social reality. It is stated that the current stage of the information society development is characterized by “the power of communication” and the emergence of a knowledge society.

The article studies the ontological aspects of the Russia-West misunderstanding. Adoption of Christian values became logical continuation of Russia’s spiritual and philosophical search. The humanistic character of Christian morality is revealed in recognition of the absolute values standing above material interests of the Western civilization. The article analyses the exceptionality and degeneration of the Western soul and civilization. The article describes the roots of misunderstanding and ignorance concerning Russia. The author analyses the ideological opposition of the spirit of human reason (the West) and the spirit of Christian values (Russia). The author also argues the necessity for radical (Christian) rethinking of the accepted values of the modern Russia and the West and makes a conclusion that Russia-West relationships should avoid emotions and be based on a continuous dialog of civilizations for the sake of peace and prosperity in the world.

The article reveals the purpose, essence and peculiarities of the social ideal as a value of sociocultural development of the society. A number of methodological principles were identified to examine the role and importance of the social ideal in the modernization of Russia in the conditions of globalization, namely: continuity, integrity, anthropocentrism, principle of activity, phenomenological principle, etc. It is emphasized that the social ideal as a spiritual phenomenon can and should be formed and function in accordance with the principles of a science-oriented philosophical system.

The article analyzes the socio-philosophical concept of Islamic (Salafi) State historically developed within the ummah and its use by the banned in Russia Islamic State terrorist group (ISIS) to attract new supporters and self-positioning in the ummah, as the only currently existing “true caliphate”, perfect Salafi state. The author detects the similarities and differences between the ideal model of Islamic state articulated by Muslim theologians and jurists based on the Quran and the hadith on the one hand and the real political practice of ISIS known to general public through eyewitnesses’ evidence as well as from the documents. The author concludes that the popularity of the ISIS terrorist group and its quasi-state is due to the skillful use of socio-philosophical concept of Islamic state and ideal Islamic state model by terrorists.

This article is an attempt to reveal and trace the genesis of the concept of power through the prism of the history of social relations within European culture interpreted in such works by the French postmodernist Michel Foucault as “Discipline and Punish. The Birth of the Prison” and “Omnes et Singulatim: Towards a Criticism of ‘Political Reason’” to show the philosopher’s specific vision of the concept. This vision can be related to a certain tradition of thinking that determines it. Based on the analysis of the above mentioned works the author of the article comes to the conclusion that Foucault’s vision of power is quite uncertain and rendered nominalistically through power relations.

The article presents an experience of the philosophical portraying of the great Russian thinker Alexey Losev in respect to his mental growth in the Cossack environment. In the study the author uses a methodology of the Russian philosophical-psychological school (P. Florensky, A. Lazursky, S. Frank, M. Bakhtin, G. Shpet, L. Karsavin, M. Rubinstein, S. Rubinstein, N. Trubetskoy, A. Ukhtomsky) and proves that the features of Losev’s philosophical personality were formed under the influence of the Cossack mentality.

The article considers the need for increasing the importance of morality in the society. It is focused on the growing demand to restore the role of professional ethics of the subjects of government management, compulsory accounting ethical standards during the implementation of economic reforms in modern conditions. Similarities and differences of moral permissibility and moral justification in management subjects in economics and business are analyzed. The conclusion about the need for moral revival of the Russian society is made.

The paper presents a special antinomical analysis of the modern phenomenon of liberal fasсism based on J. Goldberg’s “Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left from Mussolini to the Politics of Meaning”. The author of the article reveals ‘anti-fascist’ elements of this paradoxical event directly connected with the ideology of consumption. The topic is considered relevant for modern Russia, but some alternatives should be searched to pave Russia’s way to spirituality.