The Moscow workshop, a revealingly frank and intimate exchange of viewpoints regarding the role religion plays in contemporary Russian society, concentrated primarily on the influence of the Russian Orthodox and Muslim faiths. Religion and nationalism over the country's long history and religious ideas in post-Soviet society were the main themes examined, featuring questions of human rights, gay rights, freedom of expression, as well as the limited role of NGOs in Russian society. This workshop was hosted by the Dean of the Faculty of Global Processes at Lomonosov Moscow State University and consisted of a small group of scholars, experts in sociology, politics and history, an archpriest of the Russian Orthodox Church with a PhD in mathematical sciences, the director of the Institute for Religious and Social Studies of the Russian Academy of Science, an expert on Muslim Studies, and input from a student audience.