Robert L. Lindsey Memorial Library Established in Jerusalem

On June 21, 2006, at the closing session of the "Jerusalem Perspective 2006" Conference, a third Robert L. Lindsey Memorial Library was established in Jerusalem. As Ken and Lenore Mullican (HaKesher) and David Bivin (Jerusalem Perspective) stood with him on the platform, Dr. E. William Bean (Centre for the Study of Biblical Research) made the announcement on behalf of the three organizations.

Robert L. Lindsey Memorial Libraries already exist at CSBR (Redlands, CA) and HaKesher (Tulsa, OK). With the founding of the new Lindsey memorial library in Jerusalem, the three libraries will function as branches of one unified library. They will coordinate programs and events, and catalogue together their holdings on the Internet. They also will coordinate their attempt to collect all printed works of Jerusalem School of Synoptic Research members, especially those of David Flusser and Shmuel Safrai, colleagues of Lindsey.

Each of the three branches has unique holdings. For example, in the Tulsa library, which holds about 1,500 volumes, there is Lindsey's personally annotated copy of Albert Huck's Synopsis of the First Three Gospels, and Lindsey's annotated copy of the Moulton and Geden Concordance to the Greek New Testament. Both volumes have voluminous handwritten notes in the margins of the pages.

The Jerusalem library, holding about 2,000 volumes, contains, for instance, Lindsey's copy of Vincent Taylor's The Gospel According to St. Mark, which is covered throughout with Lindsey's hand-written marginal notes. The Jerusalem library contains a first edition (two volumes; 1684) of The Works of John Lightfoot. It also contains manuscripts of Lindsey published and unpublished books and articles.

In the Redlands library (approximately 2,500 volumes), there is found, for instance, the thirty-seven published volumes of Oxford University Press' Discoveries in the Judean Desert, the official publication of the Dead Sea Scrolls. The Redlands library is a member of the American Library Association and the Association of College and Research Libraries.

Funding is now being sought to rent or purchase a facility in which to house the Jerusalem library.