If you haven’t seen it yet, don’t miss the “Sacred: Discover What We Share” resources online at the website of the British Library (http://www.bl.uk/sacred). The “Sacred” exhibition has been ongoing throughout the summer and concludes Sept. 23. Through this exhibition, the British Library has been presenting and discussing some of the world’s earliest-surviving, most important and beautiful religious texts from the Jewish, Christian and Muslim faiths.
Rare and exquisite examples from the Library’s collections — considered to be one of the greatest in the world — are being presented alongside treasures on loan from other institutions. These include three Qur’ans from Morocco’s Royal Library in Marrakech, as well as other loans from its national collections. Many of the lavishly illustrated or decorated books and manuscripts have never, or seldom, been on public display, while others are being shown for the first time in the UK.
The exhibition is being presented as a contribution to the greater understanding of these three faiths, their historical roots and their significance in the world today. In the exhibition, priceless examples of the Torah, New Testament and Qur’an are mounted beside each other — not individually in separate zones. The texts are treated thematically, exploring points in common, looking at the ways in which they have been produced, interpreted and used. By integrating material in this way, it is hoped that visitors will learn more about all three faiths.
The exhibition is supported by extensive online resources. These allow the viewer to explore 67 sacred texts from the exhibition, including zoomable images. Videos, slideshows, podcasts and a blog all complement the texts on display. The videos, “Illuminating the Page” and “Sacred Places,” are quite beautiful to see. Podcasts include: Alison Ohta on “Sultan Baybars’ Qur’an,” “What Does It Mean to Live With Faith in 2007,” “Healing Through Medicine and Faith” and “Holy Lands, Unholy Wars.”
Special Online Learning Activities are of interest to schools and students. “Sacred Stories” invites students to “open the books” and explore 12 stories from six different religions. All 12 stories have been animated using images from the British Library’s collection. Users are able to discover the origins of the tales and to investigate the crossovers and contrasts between them. “Understanding Sacred Texts” is an interactive that investigates the Abrahamic scriptures by posing a range of questions to a panel made up of faith leaders, educators, young people, theologians and an atheist philosopher. The activity reminds users that the meanings within the texts are complex, multifaceted and endlessly fascinating. All activities are accompanied by teachers’ notes.
