Rabbi Jack Shlachter surrounded by books in his home library. Courtesy/LAJC
Los Alamos Jewish Center News:
The Jews have been called “The People of the Book” but more aptly, we should be called the People of the Books! And what better place to learn about many of the books associated with the Jewish people than Los Alamos’s Mesa Public Library?
Rabbi Jack Shlachter will be facilitating a three-part series on consecutive Monday evenings at the library, starting on June 15, highlighting books in the Jewish canon. For all three sessions, the first 15 minutes will be refreshments and informal socializing, followed by an interactive hour of exploring a different sub-genre of the massive Jewish corpus.
Monday, June 15, 6-7:15 p.m. This first class will be a whirlwind overview of the Jewish Bible, commentaries, the Talmuds, the Midrash, the Zohar, and Responsa literature. What exactly is the Jewish Bible? Which books are “in” and which are “out?” What is the Torah? Is it a compliment to say that someone has used Talmudic logic? Where do we learn about Abraham smashing his father’s idols and other stories that can’t be found in the Jewish Bible? What is Jewish mysticism? And when should the Sabbath be observed by a Jewish astronaut circling the Earth every 90 minutes?
Monday, June 22, 5:30-6:45 p.m. During the second session, the emphasis will be on fiction written by Jews throughout the Diaspora and in Israel. While linked to the Land of Israel for well over 3500 years, the dispersion of the Jews from their ancestral homeland by the Romans nearly 2000 years ago resulted in Jewish communities in every corner of the globe. Class participants will look at a sampling of Jewish short stories, novels, and poems composed in many languages, including Yiddish, Hebrew, English, Spanish, etc. **Note: this class will start and end a half-hour early on June 22 to allow people to get to the annual J. Robert Oppenheimer Memorial Committee lecture at 7 p.m.
Monday, June 29, 6-7:15 p.m. In the final session, the focus will be Jewish thought, philosophy, history, and other non-fiction writings. Among other influences, participants will look at how Greek ideas were adapted to fit Jewish sensibilities and learn about the interaction of Arabic concepts on Jewish understanding of our role in the world. Some of the authors will have been introduced in the first class, but each of these three evenings will be free standing.
Come to one or more of these evening events and learn why Jews have been called “The People of the Book”. No charge for the sessions, but RSVPs are requested via the Los Alamos Jewish Center website: https://www.lajc.org/event-details/the-people-of-the-book-s-with-rabbi-jack-2026-06-15-18-00.
Rabbi Jack Shlachter has a personal library of more than 7,000 books, many of which are Judaica…and a fair amount of which are science related. He can be reached at rabbi@lajc.org. The Los Alamos Jewish Center is the community’s resource for Jewish worship, education, and life cycle events. LAJC is at 2400 Canyon Road, just down the street from PEEC Nature Center. For more information about the Los Alamos Jewish Center, go to www.lajc.org, call 505.662.2140, or email losalamosjewishcenter@lajc.org.