About
Esmé Lily Katherine Partridge is a researcher and writer working at the intersection of religion, philosophy and politics. She holds a BA in the Study of Religions from SOAS, University of London and an MPhil in the Philosophy of Religion from the University of Cambridge. Currently, she is a Researcher at Theos Think Tank and a Fellow of Civic Future.
Esmé’s research interests include Platonism, Renaissance philosophy, and Christian humanism. She wrote her MPhil on the 16th Century jurist Jean Bodin’s theory of religious pluralism, focusing on his Colloquium Heptaplomeres and its conception of harmony as a political ideal. She is currently working on the question of whether ancient Platonic, Stoic and Christian notions of universal brotherhood can be reconciled with our need for particular places and forms of belonging, towards an alternative paradigm of universalism.
Esmé is also interested in the place of faith in contemporary society. At Theos, she is researching the “quiet revival” of Christianity among Gen-Z and the rise of Christian nationalism. She previously authored a report for the think tank Civitas on “Restoring the Value of Parishes: The Foundations of Welfare, Community and Spiritual Belonging in England”, which investigates the decline of the Church of England’s parish system and makes the case for its revival, receiving acclaim in The Telegraph and The Spectator.
Before joining Theos, Esmé worked as a Parliamentary Researcher in the House of Commons. Prior to that, she was Consultant for the Good Faith Partnership where she worked on a range of interfaith and religious freedom initiatives, including the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Christianity in the Holy Land. She also authored a report on UK Freedom of Religion or Belief policy and the Marrakesh Declaration.
Esmé has written for publications including The Critic, Church Times, First Things, Renovatio, Times Literary Supplement and UnHerd. Her academic work has appeared in publications including the Temenos Academy Review, Renovatio: The Journal of Zaytuna College, and La Règle d'Abraham. She is also a regular speaker, panelist, and interviewer, appearing on Times Radio, The Spectator podcast, and at The UnHerd Club.