The Arabist and Explorer Alois Musil (1868–1944) and His Unfulfilled Career as a Biblical Scholar

The Olomouc diocesan priest Alois Musil attained the greatest renown among Czech Catholic experts in exegesis. His fame was, however, not specifically in Biblical studies but in another related field, namely Near Eastern languages and literature, also known as Oriental studies, where he went on to become a significant figure. His initial interest, however, lay in Biblical scholarship and source evidence exists to document the fact that he never really abandoned the idea of going back to the Bible as a research scholar. The present article would like to focus on Alois Musil as a Biblical scholar, introduce his ideas, and demonstrate why he felt he had to abandon the sphere of exegesis and devote all his energy to Oriental studies.