A Librarian's Calling

Last Semester, Drs. Harlan and Buchanan suggested subscribing to Library Link of the Day. Today's post - The Monk Who Saves Manuscripts from ISIS - made me think of the breadth of responsibility of information specialists. At my high school, I'm focused on collaborating with teachers, guiding library practice students on how to maintain the library and navigate through our databases, building a culturally competent collection, and getting students to exercise more scrutiny when conducting internet research. Reading of Father Columba Stewart's efforts made me see the other end of the spectrum. He is committed to preserving artifacts that are at risk of being destroyed. What I enjoyed reading about is how being a monk puts him in a position of trust:

Many of the communities Stewart approaches have been scarred by years of war, persecution or displacement, and are wary of outsiders. Some are especially skeptical about granting Westerners access to cultural treasures, given the tens of thousands of manuscripts looted during the colonial period and now housed in various museums and libraries around Europe. This is where Stewart’s reputation as a monk comes into play.

“Everybody knows about the Benedictines—manuscripts and learning, this is part of our identity, a brand which is somehow universal,” he said. Indeed, his involvement with manuscripts began almost accidentally when, in 2003, he was asked to join an HMML preparatory field trip to Lebanon due to his monastic connections. “Being a monk puts me in a very different category. People understand I am not representing a big business or an imperialist cultural agency."

There are certain jobs that seem to be an extension of who one is. I know a lot of people in public service and those jobs would certainly qualify. I think that's why we are especially shocked when those in public service have been found guilty of certain acts in their personal lives. Librarians are the same for me. I've been told that I look like a librarian. I hope that means, among other things, that I look helpful and kind, smart and thoughtful, professional and efficient.

Back to the article - Stewart's work reaches India, where his organization photographed palm-leaf (!) manuscript. Those in Jerusalem worked on preserving a manuscript dating back to the 10th century!
The article ends with this beautiful quote by Stewart, who hopes that beyond benefiting scholars, the manuscripts will bring a better understanding between Christians and Muslims:

“If we don’t find deeper affinities, we will always be stuck on our superficial differences. We will remain afraid and suspicious of each other," Stewart said. "Relations were not always easy in the past, but if we learn from places where they lived together, we might learn how to live together.”