Protestant origins of Marxism: continuity and negation

Background. Marxist doctrine is traditionally viewed as an alternative to any religion, including Christianity. This view has its own prerequisites, including statements by the classic Marxists themselves. However, Ludwig Feuerbach already rightly pointed out that atheism contains the mystery of religion. The Protestant origins of Marxism are an understudied topic in Russian philosophical literature. Therefore, the aim of this article is to attempt a systematic justification for the presence of Protestant prerequisites in the Marxist worldview. Materials and methods. The article em-ployed a historicist approach, allowing it to examine the stated problem in its development. The systems approach allowed for a comprehensive analysis of the Protestant origins of Marxism from various perspectives. Historical materials were also used, revealing the close connection between Marxism and Protestantism. Results. The following results were obtained during the study. The sources of Marxism (classical German philosophy, utopian socialism, and English political economy) were analyzed in terms of their connection to Protestantism. Intellectual and social continuity between these sources and Protestantism is demonstrated. Similarities are also evident in economic issues; in particular, the economic ethics of Protestantism is in many ways close to the socialist work ethic. Just as attitudes toward labour differ in the Old and New Testaments, two concepts of labour developed in Marxism. Points of convergence between Protestantism and Marxism also exist in their approach to the eschatological problem. In both cases, human actions are programmed either by divine will or by the social environment. The ideological component of both teachings has a certain similarity, related to the "disenchantment of the world." Conclusions. Significant similarities between Protestantism and Marxism can be traced both in their historical development and in their ideology. The rationality of Protestantism and Marxism has both similarities and differences. This is evident in their attitudes toward Ortho-doxy and Confucianism.