If you like the Dead Sea Scrolls,...

If you like the Dead Sea Scrolls, you’ll love “Text Discoveries That Have Changed Religious History,” promises the organizer of the lecture series that begins next week.

Although designed for “the intelligent, interested lay person,” the six-part program features prominent scholars who will discuss texts discovered in the past 150 years that have shed new light on how religion has been viewed. Each lecture will be delivered on a Monday evening at the Mudd Theater in Claremont and repeated on a Tuesday evening at the Gindi Auditorium in West Los Angeles.

“Rarely does one have the opportunity to enter the scholar’s workshop and observe just how they solve the mysteries of their texts,” said Sheila Spiro, executive director of the Ancient Biblical Manuscript Center, which is presenting the series in cooperation with the School of Theology at Claremont and the University of Judaism.

But these speakers, she noted, will be offering just such an opportunity by gearing their talks to a non-academic audience, showing slides and answering questions.

The manuscript center, founded in 1979 by the late Elizabeth Hay Bechtel and housed on the Claremont theology school campus, has a dual mission, Spiro explained: to preserve the information in the fragile texts that are the cornerstone of Western religion and culture, and to provide access to that information.

Its climatized vault houses one of the world’s largest photographic archives of manuscripts of and related to the Old and New testaments, including the largest single collection of Dead Sea Scroll images.

Thanks in part to Bechtel’s early involvement, the center is an “official holding institution” of negatives of the scrolls. The Dead Sea Scrolls contain the oldest fragments of some books of the Old Testament and have been extremely important in yielding information about the life and beliefs of the apocalyptic Jewish sect of Essenes between the 2nd Century BC through about 70 AD.

But Spiro said “they pale in comparison to other great archeological discoveries,” such as the 1929 discovery of inscribed tablets from the city of Ugarit on Syria’s northern coast. “The ancient Canaanites throughout the Bible stand as Israel’s primary symbol of wickedness and depravity, and these tablets open an extraordinary window onto what their culture and religion were like,” she said.

On Feb. 6 and 7, Wayne Pitard, associate professor in the Program for the Study of Religion at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, will take a fresh look at these “bad guys” of the Bible, using newly developed photographic and lighting techniques.

Tammi Schneider of the Claremont Graduate School will offer examples of the early “propaganda” by historians in her talk, “Unearthing the History Within the Text: The Annals of Shalmeneser III,” on Jan. 30 and 31.

Other talks will be given by Bruce Zuckerman of the University of Southern California, Shalom Paul of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and Gabriele Boccaccini of the University of Michigan--all speaking on “hot topics in Biblical scholarship,” said Spiro.

But the series’ most controversial lecture, she says, may prove to be “Fragments From the American Dead Sea: Reconstructing the Original Text of the ‘Book of the Mormon,’ ” by Royal Skousen of Brigham Young University on March 13 and 14.

Spiro said she has “taken a lot of heat for including” the lecture. “But a religion doesn’t have to be ancient to present problems of textual criticism and restoration,” she said.

The lectures will take place at 8 p.m. on six Mondays between Jan. 23 and March 20 at Claremont’s Mudd Theater and on six Tuesdays between Jan. 24 and March 21 at the University of Judaism’s Gindi Auditorium. Individual tickets are $17; the series is $90.

At the Claremont location, sponsor series tickets offered for $125 provide reserved, premium seating and a pre-lecture reception with the speaker. One hour before each lecture, Cokesbury Bookstore will offer books by series speakers, as well as other books on topics related to the series. For information, phone the Ancient Biblical Manuscript Center at (909) 621-6451.

For registration at either location, phone the University of Judaism Continuing Education Department at (310) 476-9777, ext. 246.

DATES

* The Muslim Public Affairs Committee will hold a conference entitled “Civil Rights Crisis: The Hate Campaign Against Islam” from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. today at the Islamic Center of Southern California. Sessions include: “Islamic Stand Against Terrorism” by Maher Hathout, former chairman of the Islamic Center; “Civil Rights Awareness” by Michael Linfield, former ACLU board member, and John McClurg, FBI special agent, and a roundtable of national Muslim-American leaders. 434 S. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles. Registration is $10. (213) 383-3443.

* Nine Whittier-area Protestant churches will sponsor a Community Prayer Seminar from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Jan. 28 at the Whittier Area Baptist Fellowship. Evelyn Christenson, the author of “What Happens When Women Pray” and “Lord, Change Me!” will speak on “What Happens When People Pray.” Reservations are $9, excluding lunch, and can be made by phoning the fellowship at 310/945-3921.

* Guest speakers will take up such topics as “Family Violence Among Jews: The Shocking Truth,” “For Those Who Can’t Believe: Overcoming Obstacles to Faith” and “Will There Be American Jews in 20 Years?” in a public forum sponsored by the University of Judaism and the Jewish Spectator from 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. on eight Mondays beginning next week. For registration information, phone (310) 476-9777.

* California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks will hold its WinterBreak Theological Conference on Wednesday and Thursday. Principal speakers will be Krister Stendahl, retired Lutheran bishop of Stockholm, Sweden, and the very Rev. Alan Jones, dean of Grace (Episcopal) Cathedral, San Francisco. Both will join in a panel discussion about the status of the dialogue between Lutherans and Episcopalians. The conference will also include a faculty lecture series. For registration information, phone (805) 493-3236.

* The 1995 Lazarus Award will be presented to the Rev. Mel White, dean of the Metropolitan Community Church Cathedral of Hope in Dallas at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 28 at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. The Lazarus Project is a mission of the Presbyterian Church to bring about reconciliation between gay and lesbian people and the broader community. White will speak and the West Coast Singers will entertain. Admission is $40. (213) 262-8019.

* Alicia Appleman-Jurman, a Polish-born Holocaust survivor who has received acclaim for her literary ability as well as her heroism, will speak at Kehillat Ma’Arav /The Westside Congregation in Santa Monica at 10:30 a.m. Sunday. Her autobiography, “Alicia--My Story,” has been translated into seven languages and is used as a textbook in history classes throughout the United States and Canada. It will be available for purchase and autographing during a bagel breakfast before the author’s presentation. Admission is $10; reservations are suggested. 1715 21st Street. (310) 829-0566.

* Hollywood United Methodist Church will hold a special service at 10:30 a.m. Sunday to celebrate its status as a “Reconciling Congregation,” one of a network of churches in the denomination that publicly affirm their welcoming of lesbians, gay men and bisexuals into their community of faith. Both homosexuals and heterosexuals will actively participate in the service, at 6817 Franklin Ave., Hollywood. (213) 874-2104.

BRIEFLY

* People who are out of work due to the recession or last year’s earthquake can get help through a program sponsored by Lutheran Social Services of Southern California. The program, Helping Achieve Confidence and Employability, will provide job referrals, advice on conducting a job search and preparing for interviews, and entrepreneurial training to jobless persons--particularly black and Latino job seekers. For information, phone (818) 785-2114.

* Native American United Methodist Church will hold its next Fifth Sunday Singing from noon to 5 p.m. Jan. 29. (310) 929-3710.

* A 12-Step Worship Service will be held at 7 p.m. Friday at Culver-Palms United Methodist Church, 4464 Sepulveda Blvd., Culver City. (310) 390-7717.

* The Reform movement of Judaism sponsors “Introduction to Judaism” classes for intermarried couples and those contemplating such a marriage. (213) 653-9962. The University of Judaism’s 18-week “Introduction to Judaism” program for Jews and non-Jews begins Feb. 2 at locations around Southern California. (310) 476-9777, ext. 273.

Southern California File welcomes submissions by mail c/o Religion Editor, Los Angeles Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles, CA 90053, or by fax to (213) 237-4712. Items must be brief and arrive at least three weeks in advance of the event announced. Please include a phone number, date, time and full address.