Ukubebeta Ifyuma fya kwa Chester Beatty

RICHARD J. HAYES uusunga amayanda ya babenye alondolwele laibrare wa Chester Beatty Library uwaba mu Dublin, ku Ireland mu mashiwi fye ayanono ayatila: “Mwaba ifyuma ifingi nga nshi ifya kale, . . . ifikope ne fyo balenga ifyayemba nga nshi.” Muli uyu laibrare mwaba ifintu ifingi ifyauma umutengo, ifikope balenga ifisuma, na mabuuku na ba manyuskripiti abaumo mutengo kabili abashaseeka muno nshiku. Lelo, bushe uyu wine Chester Beatty ali ni nani? Kabili fyuma nshi alonganike?

Alfred Chester Beatty, afyelwe mu 1875 mu New York, ku U.S.A. Ifikolwe fyakwe fyafumine ku Scotland, ku Ireland, na ku England. Ilyo alekumanya imyaka 32, ali ne fyuma ifingi sana pantu ali umukalamba wa mikoti iingi mu Amerika. Lintu ali umumi, abomfeshe ifyuma fyakwe ifingi ku kulonganika ifintu ifisuma kabili ifyayemba. Beatty afwile mu 1968 ilyo aali ne myaka 92, kabili ashilile abena Ireland ifintu fyonse ifyo alonganike.

Finshi Alonganike?

Beatty alonganike ifintu ifingi kabili ifyalekanalekana. Pa fintu alonganike, finono sana ifyo balangishapo ku bantu. Alonganike ifintu fya mutengo ifishaseeka muno nshiku kabili afifumishe mu fyalo fyapusanapusana. Ifi fintu fyalembelwe imyaka iingi nga nshi iyapita—ifyo afumishe ku Bulaya fyalembelwe ukutendekela mu myaka ya ba500 C.E. ukufika mu myaka ya ba1500 C.E. ukusanshako fye na fimbi ifingi ifyo afumishe ku fyalo fya ku Asia na mu fyalo fya mu Afrika. Ku ca kumwenako, batila ifyalembwa fya kufwatika ifya ku Japan ifyo alonganike e fisuma pa fyalembwa fya musango yu mu calo conse.

Pa mbali ya kulonganika ifya kulembalemba ifisuma, alonganike ne fipaapaatu fya cina Babiloni ne fya cina Sumeri ifyalembwapo ifilembo fya kale sana. Abantu baleikala mu Mesopotamia imyaka 4,000 iyapita balembele ifilembo ifinono ifilanda pa mikalile yabo pa fipaapaatu fye bumba. Lyena baumike ifi fipaapaatu ku mulilo. Ifingi e po fyaba na leelo, kabili fitulangilila bwino bwino ifyo abaikeleko kale balelemba.

Ukupoosa Amano ku Fitabo

Cimoneka kwati Chester Beatty alitemenwe sana ifyo balelemba amabuuku yasuma. Alonganike amabuuku ayengi ayalanda pa fya mapepo e lyo na yashilanda pa fya mapepo, ukusanshako na baKoran. Kalemba umo atile, “alitemenwe sana ifyo abena Arabia balelemba, . . . kabili alitemenwe ne fyo baleyemfya ifilembo na golde na silfere nelyo amabwe yambi ayamoneka bwino.”

Chester Beatty alitemenwe sana yaspi kwati fye ni fintu ishamfumu sha mu China ishaikeleko mu kubangilila shalitemenwe. Ishi shamfumu shalemona kwati yaspi iyalopololwa bwino e yaumine sana umutengo ukucila amabwe ayengi, ukucila fye na golde. Kabili shaebele abaume baishiba sana ifya kubasa ukubasa bwino aya mabwe no kuyapanga aya kulembapo. Lyena aba baume baishiba ukubasa balelemba ifyebo no kulenga fikope fya golde pali yaspi no kupanga amabuuku ayapapusha abantu icine cine. Aya mabuuku Beatty alonganike yalitemwikwa sana mu calo conse.

Bamanyuskripiti ba Baibolo Abaumo Umutengo

Ku batemwa Baibolo, ifintu fyauma sana umutengo ifyo Chester Beatty alonganike ni bamanyuskripiti ba Baibolo aba kale sana e lyo na ba mu myaka yaba 500 C.E. ukufika kuli ba 1500 C.E. Bamanyuskripiti  basuma abayemfiwa bwino bwino balangilila ukuti bakalemba bakopolwele aba bamanyuskripiti bali abatekanya kabili balishibe sana ukulemba. Amabuuku yapulintwa yalangilila ukuti aba kale balishibe sana ukupulinta no kupanga amabuuku. Ku ca kumwenako, Anton Koberger apulintile Biblia Latina mu 1479. Anton aikeleko pa nshita imo ine na Johannes Gutenberg kabili alondololwa ukuti “ali umo uwa bakapulinta ba kubalilapo abalepulinta sana ifitabo kabili abacindama.”

Manyuskripiti wa mpapa ya nama uwakopolwelwe na Ephraem, umusambi wa ku Suria, mu myaka ya ba300, e manyuskripiti waibela uusangwa fye mu Chester Beatty Library. Ephraem wena ayambwile sana mu calembwa ca Diatessaron ica mu myaka ya ba100. Muli ici calembwa, kalemba Tatian ayambwilile Amalandwe yonse yane ayalanda pali Yesu Kristu mwi buuku limo fye. Pa numa, bakalemba abengi baleyambula muli Diatessaron. Lelo muno nshiku ici calembwa tacabako. Abasambi bamo abaikeleko mu myaka ya ba1800 baletwishika no kutwishika nga ca kuti ici calembwa e ko cali. Lelo, mu 1956, Beatty asangile ifyalembwa fya kwa Ephraem ifilanda pali Diatessaron iyo Tatian alembele. Ifi fyalembwa filapeela ubushininkisho bwalundwako ubwa kuti Baibolo ya cine.

Bamanyuskripiti ba Macinda Abaumo Mutengo

Beatty alonganike na ba manyuskripiti ba macinda abengi, abalanda pa mipepele na bashilanda pa mipepele. Amacodex ya macinda ukucila 50 yakopolwelwe ilyo imyaka ya ba300 C.E. ishilafika. Yamo pali aya bayafumishe pa mina ya macinda—e kutila pa cishala ca mapepala—icali mu matololo ya mu Egupti pa myaka iingi nga nshi. Amabuuku ya macinda ayengi yalyonaike sana pa nshita baleyashitisha. Abaleshitisha baleisa ne fibokoshi ifyaisulamo fye amabuuku yaonaika aya macinda. Charles Horton, uusunga amayanda ya babenye aya Western Collections of the Chester Beatty Library atile: “Abatemenwe ukushita amabuuku ya macinda balesalaula fye mu fibokoshi no kubuulamo ibuuku ilikalamba ilyaleba na mabula ayengi.”

Charles Horton atile “ifyawamisha nga nshi ifyo [Beatty] asangile,” macodex ya Baibolo “ayasanshamo amakope yamo aya kale sana aya Cipingo Cipya ne Cipingo ca Kale ayalebomfya Abena Kristu ba kubalilapo.” Bakashitisha abaishibe ifyo macodex yali aya umutengo limbi baleyalekanya mu fiputulwa fyalekanalekana pa kuti bayashitishe pa ndalama ishingi. Na lyo line, Beatty alikumanishe ukushita amacodex ayengi. Lelo, bushe aya yene macodex yacindama shani? Shimucindikwa Frederic Kenyon atile ukutula apo Tischendorf asangile Codex wa Sinaiticus mu 1844, ukusanga aba bacodex “kwalicindamisha icine cine.”

Aba bacodex bakopolwelwe pa kati ka myaka ya ba100 C.E. ne ya ba300 C.E. Pa Malembo ya ciHebere ayaba muli Septuagint wa ciGriki paba na makope yabili aye buuku lya Ukutendeka. Kenyon atile aya macodex yalicindamisha “pantu iciputulwa icikalamba ice buuku [lya Ukutendeka] tacabamo muli bamanyuskripiti ba Vaticanus na Sinaiticus,” abakopolwelwe pa mpapa sha nama mu myaka 300. Amacodex yatatu yakwata amabuuku ya Malembo ya ciGriki aya Bwina Kristu. Codex imo yakwata mupepi na malandwe yonse e lyo ne ciputulwa cikalamba ice buuku lya Imilimo. Codex ya bubili, ukusanshako na mabuuku ayo Beatty ashitile pa numa, yakwata amakalata ya kwa Paulo mupepi na yonse, ukubikako fye na kalata alembele abaHebere. Iya butatu yakwata iciputulwa cikalamba ice buuku lya Ukusokolola. Ukulingana na Kenyon, aya macinda “yalikosha sana ukushininwa kwesu—ukwakosa  ukutula na kale—ukwa kuti Icipingo Cipya ico twakwata muno nshiku caba fye nga filya fine cali ilyo calembelwe.”

Amacinda ya Baibolo aya kwa Chester Beatty yalangilila ukuti Abena Kristu balekele ukubomfya ifimfungwa no kutendeka ukubomfya amacodex, nelyo ifitabo fya mabula, kale sana nalimo ilyo imyaka ya ba100 C.E. ishilapwa. Na kabili amacinda yalangilila ukuti pa mulandu wa kwafya kwa fya kulembapo, bakalemba balebomfya amacinda ayo balembapo kale. Ku ca kumwenako, manyuskripiti ya ciputulwa ce Landwe lya kwa Yohane iya mu ciCoptic yalembwa pa “cimoneka kwati libuuku ilyalembwapo insamushi sha mu ciGriki.”

Kwena aya mabuuku ya macinda tayayemfiwa, lelo yalyumo mutengo. Yaba bushininkisho bwa cine cine ubwa fyo ubuKristu bwatendeke. Charles Horton atile: “Muli aya mabuuku ya macinda mulemona apa kuti mwasangamo umusango wa mabuuku yalebomfiwa na bamo aba mu Bena Kristu ba kubalilapo—amabuuku ayo bacindamike icine cine.” (Amapinda 2:4, 5) Mwandini mukomfwa bwino sana nga ca kuti mwaba ne shuko lya kubebeta ifi fyuma mu laibrare wa Chester Beatty Library.

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Ififwati fya mu ciJapanese ifyapulintilwe na Katsushika Hokusai

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“Biblia Latina” yali pa maBaibolo babalilepo ukupulinta

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Ifyalembwa fya kwa Ephraem ifilanda pali “Diatessaron” iyo Tatian alembele, filakosha ubushininkisho bwa kuti Baibolo ya cine

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Codex imo payakokwesha mu calo iya Chester Beatty P45, yakwata Amalandwe mupepi na yonse ne ciputulwa cikalamba ice buuku lya Imilimo mwi buuku fye limo

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Abatusuminishe ni ba The Trustees of the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin

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Ifikope fyonse: Abatusuminishe ni ba The Trustees of the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin