Józef Milik: Difference between revisions

'''Józef Tadeusz Milik''' (Seroczyn, [[Poland]], March 24, 1922 – [[Paris]], January 6, 2006) was a Polish [[biblical scholar]] and a Catholic priest. Besides his native [[Polish language|Polish]], he was fluent in, [[Russian language|Russian]], [[Italian language|Italian]], [[French language|French]], [[German language|German]], and [[English language|English]] plus many ancient languages Hebrew, Greek, Latin, Aramaic, Syriac, Old Church Slavonic, Arabic, Georgian, Ugaritic, Akkadian, Sumerian, Egyptian, and Hittite. Milik published more texts of the [[Dead Sea Scrolls]] (DSS) than any other original team member.

He was born into a peasant family in a small village in central [[Poland]]. His father, despite being a farmer, was interested in science, educated himself and gatherdgathered a rich library. He influenced his son, who finished athe gymnasium in [[Siedlce]] and later entered the theological college in [[Płock]] in 1939. When the college was closed by Germans after they invaded Poland, he moved to Warsaw. After the [[World War II]], he was studyingstudied at [[Catholic University of Lublin]] and in 1946 was ordained a priest.

Józef Milik deciphered hundreds of the texts of the [[Dead Sea Scrolls]] as a member of the publication team. He started translating and publishing them in the early 1950s while a student at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome. <ref>http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-artifacts/dead-sea-scrolls/cast-of-characters/</ref>

Then he joined the [[Roland de Vaux]]’s team and helped to discover Cave 3, excavated and unearthed hundreds of fragments from Cave 4, and took part in the discovery and excavations of Caves 5 and 6. He would later become one of the most essential participants of the translation and publication team.