GAIDZ-USA Program Announcement 2024

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PROGRAM ANNOUNCEMENT

GAIDS-USA

Program: Biblical Heritage Research Initiative (BHRI)

 

 

July 30, 2023

 

Introduction:

 

GAIDS-USA, a registered U.S. 501(c)(3) charity, is launching the “Biblical Heritage Research Initiative” (BHRI), designed to make early Christian commentaries from the Middle East accessible to English-speaking audiences worldwide. This Initiative will utilize advanced technologies to ensure the efficient digitization and accurate translation of manuscripts. We will employ state-of-the-art digitization techniques to systematically identify, locate, and preserve these early Biblical commentaries, which are primarily written in Arabic, Armenian, and Syriac. Following digitization, these texts will be translated into English, accompanied by scholarly introductions and commentaries.  The BHRI aims to transform these crucial theological resources into published books and online materials, making them widely available to students, educators, researchers, and missionaries. This initiative will not only preserve and disseminate invaluable historical texts but also support educational projects for children, youth, and adults, enriching Christian education globally.

 

Our charity has already secured commitments from several scholars specializing in Biblical studies and Classical Armenian language to participate in the BHRI. These scholars, proficient in the relevant languages, will translate the commentaries, prepare introductions, and analyze their content, emphasizing their contribution to Biblical study and everyday life. The final outputs will be published in English as books and online resources, accessible to the public. 

 

The initial phase of our program (Phase I), for which we are seeking financial support, will focus on commentaries preserved in the Classical Armenian language, dating from the 7th to the 16th centuries. These manuscripts are located in various repositories worldwide, including Armenia, Lebanon, Jerusalem, Italy, the UK, and the USA.

 

Currently, we are in contact with repositories of Armenian manuscripts containing Biblical commentaries, both in the USA and worldwide, to secure access and negotiate digitization rights. Additionally, the charity is in negotiations with digitization companies to ensure these manuscripts are digitized and made available on our website for further study. 

 

 

Program Components (Phase I):

     1. Manuscript Identification and Digitization:

     Identify and locate manuscripts of Biblical commentaries in Classical Armenian across diverse global repositories and         collections, and secure access to them.

                 o Objective: Identify manuscripts of interest to the program, and digitize the ones containing commentaries on                        the Bible to preserve them to provide global access to all interested.

                 o Activities:

                       ▪ Identify manuscripts and their locations, preparing a master list. 

                       ▪ Prioritize manuscripts for digitization.

                       ▪ Contact and collaborate with libraries, museums, and institutions worldwide.

                       ▪ Utilize advanced technology for high-quality digital archiving.

 

     2. Research:

           Engage theologians and scholars proficient in classical Armenian, granting them access to the digitized version of               a selected commentary, to translate into English. Each translation will be accompanied by scholarly introductions               providing historical context and theological analysis, highlighting the importance of the commentary and its                         relevance for contemporary preaching, teaching, and research.

 

                o Objective: Secure academic research in manuscripts containing non-published early commentaries on the                             Bible in the Classical Armenian language, including their assessment, translation and preparation of their                             contents for public access.

                o Activities:

                        ▪ Identify and classify the manuscripts to prepare a diplomatic version of the commentary in Classical                                    Armenian.

                        ▪ Translate the text of the diplomatic version of the commentary into English.

                        ▪ Secure the academic services of scholars in the Classical Armenian language and Biblical theology, to                                evaluate and prepare introductions and commentaries to the works.

 

     3. Educational Outreach and Dissemination:

           Publish translated works with their introductions and commentaries through professional publishers as books and               articles in journals, and digitally to ensure global accessibility.The program will also develop educational resources             and workshops to elucidate theological and doctrinal insights from early Christian commentaries, and their                           contribution to pastoral and outreach programs

              o Objective: make results of the scholarly works concerning the early commentaries on the Bible available to                         the English-speaking public.

              o Activities:

                  ▪ Publication of books and articles in journals.

                  ▪ Publish research papers, journals, and books to disseminate 

                  ▪ Organize annual research symposiums and conferences for presenting and discussing findings.

                  ▪ Finance the designing of an interactive website, to share the results of BHRI with the public.