February 19 signals the end of vacation for students of the École Biblique et Archéologique and the start of the second semester! A studious vacation, during which some students took advantage of the quiet of the library to advance their research, thesis or dissertation. For others, it was a more adventurous time, as they explored the Holy Land in safety, free from groups of tourists.
While students return to their institutions with their heads full of ideas, new references and and shared knowledge, others arrive with new projects to confront with reality. We have no regrets about having stayed on despite the outbreak of war and the events that followed”, says one, thanking the École for having preserved “a serene and promising atmosphere in these troubled times.”
Welcoming new students and researchers means building a new community every time. It begins with a time of exchange, meeting and discovery of the the school. Introduction to the Dominican friars, the teams, the habits and customs of the house, the travel program, etc.
Friar Olivier Poquillon, OP, Director of the School, recalls: “Since 1890, despite the conflicts and crises that have marked the history of this country, the Ébaf has been able to pursue its scientific and spiritual mission of research, sharing and transmission of knowledge. Even today, Ébaf offers you an exceptional and peaceful environment in which to live and work. If you come to study the Bible and archaeology at Saint Stephen’s Convent, if you continue to research and write, you will be contributing at your own level to the development of the Holy Land, to the understanding of faith and to the development of science. Our mission is here, in Jerusalem. It is in this unique setting that, together with visiting researchers and pilgrims, you are called upon to write with us a page in this long history.”
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