Jürgen, Professor – Hanover | Germany
The one thing you don’t want to live without is..?
…a collection of various, even contradictory stories about human experiences from different periods of history: a bible in a pocket-book edition.
Since when do you have your “one thing” and where did you get it from?
I bought it in 1986 in a bookstore in Münster/Germany. I was about to fly to Israel in order to work in a kibbutz.
What does it mean to you?
I have always been interested in religions in general. I bought this edition of a Luther Bible, even though I studied Catholic theology. At this time I met my current wife. We discussed a lot about religions and philosophy, among other things. This bible remembers me in addition of my stay in the kibbutz in the middle of the 1980s which has influenced my life deeply. In the kibbutz I became acquainted with survivors of the Holocaust. Their stories challenged me to read the biblical narratives from another perspective.
How often do you use it?
From time to time I take this bible with me when I travel.
What is your name? Where do you live? What is your profession?
My name is Jürgen Manemann. I live in Hannover/ Germany and I’m the director of the Hannover Institute of Philosophical Research.
