Michael Langlois

The invention of writing profoundly changed mankind’s relation to the divine. It enabled religions to develop and adopt sacred Scriptures, with a varied status in different places or eras.
This relationship between writing and Scriptures will be the focus of a conference entitled:

Origin of Writing—Origin of Scriptures

Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 8:15 PM, Robertsau Protestant Parish, 86 rue Boecklin, 67000 Strasbourg

We will also discuss the “religions of the book,” and especially the relationship of various Jewish and Christian communities to the “Bible.”

The organization committee of the “Bible, Heritage of Mankind” exhibition, in Orleans on Jan. 14 – Feb. 5, asked me to give a conference on:

The Bible Facing Archaeology

What do archaeological discoveries teach us on the Bible? Do biblical narratives convey historical reality?

If you are interested, come Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2012 at 8:30 PM at the Auditorium of the Orleans Media Library (1 place Gambetta, 45043 Orléans).

In the meantime, you can watch the video of the interview I gave when the exhibition was created!

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Update: Article in Republic of the Center newspaper • New conference
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After a year-long gestation, the new series I submitted to Éditions du Cerf is ready to be born!

Sous la plume de biblistes, philologues, épigraphistes et historiens des religions, cette collection nous invite à un voyage au Proche-Orient antique, à cette époque énigmatique et fascinante où le scribe est aussi rédacteur, où le texte est encore fluide, et le canon, indéterminé.

Siècles après siècles, les traditions du judaïsme ancien et du christianisme naissant sont partagées et enrichies. Leurs textes évoluent au gré du temps, transmis en d’anciennes langues sur des manuscrits évanescents. Leur autorité varie selon les communautés : certaines les qualifieront de bibliques, d’autres, d’apocryphes.

Ils s’offrent à nous aujourd’hui : voici « L’écriture de la Bible ».

Stay tuned for the announcement of the first volume…

L’écriture de la Bible (PDF)

Update: The first volume is out!

• Mystères et connaissances cachées à Qumrân (Valérie Triplet-Hitoto, édité par Michael Langlois)

I will be in San Francisco on November 19-22, 2011, for the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL) Annual Meeting, which gathers every year some of the best Bible scholars.

This meeting immediately follows the ASOR meeting, which I will also attend. These two meetings combine complementary disciplines: Bible and Ancient Near East!

More information on the SBL website.

“Generations in Unison“: this is the theme of the 2011 Protes’temps forts in Strasbourg. But what does the Bible say about it? Isn’t the Bible the theater—even the source—of a true clash of generations?

Come on Nov. 2 at 6:30 PM to the University Palace, room 44, for a conference entitled:

“Bible and Generations: Clash or Unison?”

More information on the Protes’temps forts website.