Conférence - Louis Jonker : Reforming History: The Book of Chronicles and Its Reception in Post-Apartheid South Africa

Thomas RömerMilieux bibliquesCollège de FranceAnnée 2025-2026Changing Biblical Interpretation?Conférence - Louis Jonker : Reforming History: The Book of Chronicles and Its Reception in Post-Apartheid South AfricaLouis JonkerFaculté de théologie de l'université de Stellenbosch, Afrique du SudRésuméThe second lecture will focus on the book Chronicles as a rewriting of older historical traditions in changed and changing imperial-political environments. It will be shown that Chronicles was (and is) "reforming history" that contributed immensely to the identity negotiation processes of the communities in the Persian province of Yehud where returnees from the Babylonian exile lived together with remainees who have never gone into exile. It will be shown how this book responded to the new political dispensation on different levels: on the overarching imperial level, on provincial level, on the level of tribal memories of old, on cultic level at the temple in Jerusalem, and on the level with diasporic Jews who never returned to the land after the exile.