Secrets, Lies, and Consequences: A Great Scholar's Hidden Past and his Protege's Unsolved Murder

Ioan Culianu, a renowned scholar, was murdered in 1991, and the mysterious papers he entrusted to a colleague may hold the key to solving the case. The papers, English translations of articles written by Culianu's mentor Mircea Eliade, reveal Eliade's support for Romania's anti-Semitic Iron Guard movement. Culianu had sought to publish these articles but faced resistance from Eliade's widow. The author explores Eliade's past, his attempts to conceal it, and the possible motives for Culianu's murder in this book.

Format: Hardback
Length: 352 pages
Publication date: 01 March 2024
Publisher: Oxford University Press Inc

In the early 1990s, Ioan Culianu, a renowned scholar, was on the brink of a remarkable academic career. At just forty-one years old, he had fled his native Romania and established himself as a highly respected scholar at the University of Chicago Divinity School, where he was considered the successor to his mentor, Mircea Eliade, a fellow Romanian expatriate and the founding father of religious studies. However, Culianu's path took a tragic turn when he began receiving menacing messages. As his fears escalated, he entrusted a colleague with holding onto some crucial papers for safekeeping. Tragically, just a week later, Culianu was in a Divinity School men's room when someone fired a bullet into the back of his head, instantly killing him. Despite extensive investigations, the case remains unsolved, with the prevailing theory suggesting that Culianu was targeted by the Romanian secret police due to his critical articles written after the fall of dictator Nicolae Ceausescu.

The mystery surrounding the contents of those enigmatic papers and their potential connection to Culianu's death continues to captivate. The papers eventually found their way into the hands of Bruce Lincoln, and their story forms the core of this captivating book. The documents in question were English translations of articles that Eliade had written in the 1930s, during a period when he expressed support for Romania's virulently anti-Semitic mystical fascist movement, known as the Iron Guard. Culianu had attempted to publish some of these articles but faced fierce resistance from Eliade's widow, who vehemently opposed their publication.

In this book, author Bruce Lincoln delves into the revelations contained within the articles, shedding light on Eliade's past, his subsequent efforts to conceal that past, his complex relationship with Culianu, and the possible motives behind Culianu's shocking murder. Lincoln explores the intricate web of relationships between Eliade, Culianu, and the Romanian academic community, unearthing hidden truths and uncovering the complexities of a man who was both admired and controversial. Through meticulous research and compelling storytelling, Lincoln paints a vivid portrait of a scholar who left an indelible mark on the field of religious studies, but whose life was tragically cut short by a senseless act of violence.

Weight: 440g
Dimension: 242 x 164 x 19 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780197689103