At the heart of this patrimony lies Aramaic, the language of the Targum, the Talmud, and of Jesus. Aramaic is not an exotic relic. It is heard in the Kaddish in every Jewish community worldwide; it shapes Passover hymns, the Zohar, and the daily liturgy of Jews from Iraq and Syria. In Israel today, Aramaic is not perceived as foreign but as a part of Hebrew’s own breathing space. This proximity has encouraged a quiet but significant revival of interest: Bar-Ilan University, Hebrew University, Haifa, and Ben-Gurion University now study Jewish and Christian Neo-Aramaic dialects together. Researchers map the speech patterns of former communities from the Hakkari mountains, the Nineveh plain, and northern Iran, rediscovering a shared Semitic past in which Jewish and Syriac Christian bilingualism was common and natural.A wide-ranging essay on the status of living Aramaic in Christian and Jewish communities worldwide on the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea. Well worth a read.
Likewise, the Syriac Press has a long article on the current efforts of the Syriac Church (Catholic and Orthodox) to preserve and digitize Syriac manuscripts, including mention of the Department of Syriac Studies based in the Syriac Orthodox St. Aphrem Clerical School, currently in Damascus:
Syriac Manuscripts: Delving into a Rich Human Legacy.
In preserving, photographing, and digitizing these manuscripts, the Syriac Church is safeguarding its religious and spiritual legacy alongside a vast cultural, linguistic, and scientific heritage. Each manuscript offers a window into the intellectual life of past centuries, reflecting the dedication of scribes, scholars, and Church leaders who meticulously recorded knowledge for future generations. Through modern technology, these treasures are no longer confined to the walls of monasteries or patriarchal libraries — they can now be accessed, studied, and appreciated worldwide, ensuring that the wisdom, artistry, and history they contain continue to inspire and inform. In this way, the Church’s commitment to its manuscripts bridges the past and the present, transforming fragile pages into enduring sources of learning and cultural memory for generations to come.Again, informative and well worth a read.
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