The National Library of Malta and Malta Libraries are organising two back-to-back public lectures in the ‘Liber Librorum: Texts, Translations & Exegesis’ programme of events at the national library on Thursday at 6.30pm.

‘The Bible in Malta at the time of the Knights’ by Judge Giovanni Bonello will be followed by ‘Reading the Gospel of John: Text, Translation and Exegesis’ by Rev. Dr Martin Micallef. 

In the first part of the lecture Bonello will expand on how after having gone through all the available evidence he has come to a shocking conclusion: that in Malta, a country ruled for over 250 years by a religious order, it would follow that the Bible would be central to the religious life of the rulers and of the people. However, research establishes how irrelevant the Holy Scriptures were considered to be in practice. 

Micallef will then argue how the application of the historical critical method as an attempt to unfold the genesis of the Gospel of John’s tradition gave grounds for a further consideration that this gospel is not an instant writing, but one that was edited over a period of years. 

On the other hand, the emergence and development of a number of competing paradigms helped to undermine the authority of the historical-critical method and its results which lead the reader back into the world of reconstruction.

Following the lecture the public is invited to have a look at the exhibits on display in the Reading Room of the National Library. All Malta Libraries/National Library of Malta public lectures are free and no prior booking is required. For more information e-mail events.library@gov.mt or visit www.facebook.com/events/567653770426647