Urbanus Holzmeister
Urbanus Holzmeister (1877–1953) was a Jesuit scholar and author of several works, including Chronologia vitae Christi and De sancto Joseph quaestiones Biblicae.
Life and Work
- Born: 1877
- Died: 1953
- Profession: Jesuit scholar
- Notable works:
- Chronologia vitae Christi
- De sancto Joseph quaestiones Biblicae
- Historia aetatis Novi Testamenti He did not author a new translation of the New Testament, but rather published scholarly works of biblical analysis, most notably his Historia Aetatis Novi Testamenti Quam Accommodavit Privato Auditorium.
His work is not a biblical text itself, but an academic study of its historical and cultural context.
Holzmeister’s key contributions
- Focus on historical context: A Jesuit professor at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome, Holzmeister was deeply concerned with the historical and cultural factors surrounding the New Testament.
- Scholarly work: His writings were academic and primarily intended for theological students. These texts helped to contextualize the New Testament and inform interpretations of its meaning.
- A “harmonizing” solution: In a notable scholarly contribution, Holzmeister proposed a solution to the apparent contradiction between the genealogies of Jesus in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. He suggested that Luke’s genealogy traced the line through adoption, reconciling the two accounts.