Review article
https://doi.org/10.31823/d.27.1.7
Discovering the significance and meaning of the chosen themes and motifs of the biblical-theological work of Adalbert Rebić
Dafne Vidanec
; University of Applied Sciences Zaprešić
Abstract
In the philosophical expression of the prominent names of the philosophical hermeneutics of the 20th century (Heidegger and Gadamer) the paper discusses the meaning and significance of Judaism and the closely related Hebrew language in view of the insights of the biblical-theological work of Adalbert Rebić. Adalbert Rebić was a famous Croatian theologian, Bible scholar, polyglot, Hebraist, university professor, and Roman Catholic priest. In academic, as well as in wider cultural circles in the country and abroad, Adalbert Rebić is remembered as an expert on Hebrew language and Judaism. Everyday people and the media remember the name of Adalbert Rebić thanks to his selfless engagement in the field of public services in the early 1990s in the Government Office for Displaced Persons and Refugees. Dozens of generations of students at the Catholic Faculty of Theology at the University of Zagreb remember the moment when Adalbert Rebić »introduced them to the secrets of the Hebrew language« – the language in which God spoke to people; the language that played a key role in understanding the history of salvation and the New Testament message of Jesus’ resurrection. And, perhaps, his name is best remembered by pilgrims whom Adalbert Rebić had taken countless times to the Holy Land. The Hebrew language, Judaism, Jesus’ resurrection, and the Holy Land are just some of the motifs and themes that will be discussed in the content of this work, which is conceptually divided into three parts (though it methodologically includes six parts): in the first part of the work, in a way that is inherent only to poets – the author uses metaphors to focus on understanding Adalbert Rebić as a writer, where the key role, as the author observes, belongs to his personal identity, i.e. the character consistency manifested in all his expert works. The second and largest part of the paper covers the topics of language, the classification of Rebić’s works with emphasis on the issue of the Hebrew language and Judaism. The third part brings the author’s personal reflection on the »Rebićly« understood ontology of a pilgrimage, that is, the synopsis of main themes and motifs in the »Guide through Holy Land«, since this work, according to the author’s personal opinion, besides the »Resurrection of Jesus«, is crucial for understanding Adalbert Rebić, and his life and work.
Keywords
Adalbert Rebić; identity; Judaism; Hebrew language; Holy Land
Hrčak ID:
218827
URI
Publication date:
9.4.2019.
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