The EC-Chronoi is proud to provide support for the exhibition titled “The Babel/Bible Conflict: Politics, Theology and Science at the Turn of the 19th Century” which is open to the public from November 5th 2019 through March 28th 2020. On November 4th, the Einstein Center Chronoi participated in and helped organize the opening ceremony at the Pergamonmuseum. Following the ceremony, attendees were invited to enjoy refreshments before the spectacular Ishtar Gate and explore the exhibition.
The Babel/Bible Conflict exemplifies the social and political upheavals in the period of the German Empire (1871-1918). It ignited a series of lectures by the Assyriologist Friedrich Delitzsch, in which he postulated the historical origins of biblical texts in Mesopotamia. In pointing to a Babylonian origin of the Bible, this approach has been massively criticized by not only theologians but others as well. Popular media took up the argument and stylized Delitzsch as a figurehead of a heroic struggle against conservative religious forces. In the end, the reformist forces were silenced. The exhibition picks up on this dispute in its various facets, arranges it historically, introduces the protagonists and outlines the knowledge of Babylon at that time and the cultures of the ancient Middle East on the basis of archaeological and historical sources.
The exhibition is located at the Pergamonmuseum, Bodestraße 1-3, 10178 Berlin. For more details, please visit this page of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin’s website.
November 4th also marked the beginning of a three-day conference, “Der Babel-Bibel-Streit Und Die Wissenschaft Des Judentum,” organized by the EC-C’s Prof. Dr. Eva Cancik-Kirschbaum and Dr. Thomas Gertzen of Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. The Conference was held at the historical Heilig-Geist-Kapelle in Berlin’s central district and offered a range of presentations connected to the topic of the Babel-Bibel Conflict.
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