L.A. Public Offered Insights on Dead Sea Scrolls : History: Scholars from across U.S. will discuss the ancient writings in unprecedented lecture series aimed at making findings accessible to average lay person.

In what is being called an unprecedented Los Angeles lecture series on the Dead Sea Scrolls, scholars from throughout the nation will discuss the latest developments and insights into the meaning and significance of the ancient documents.

The lectures, which begin Wednesday at the University of Judaism, are aimed at the public and come at a time of heightened interest in the 2,000-year-old writings that have intrigued the world since they were discovered more than 40 years ago. Several lecturers have recently published books on the subject--some of which are controversial.

Debates on the scrolls’ contribution toward understanding early Christianity and Judaism have been particularly fascinating. The scrolls speak of a “teacher of righteousness,” and the restoration of the Temple. There has also been speculation that John the Baptist was a member or was at least influenced by a Qumran sect. Qumran is the region where the scrolls were found in 1947 by Bedouin shepherds.

“There have been a number of very important scholarly conferences in Jerusalem, Madrid and New York,” said Jerome Berman, executive director of the California Museum of Ancient Art, which is co-sponsoring the series with the University of Judaism. “But these were not geared to the average lay person who doesn’t have a tremendous amount of background in ancient history and archeology. This is probably the most comprehensive series ever put together, certainly on the West Coast and maybe in the United States for the general public.”

The opening lecture will offer an overview by Hershel Shanks, founder and editor of Biblical Archeology Review, who was among those who broke the scholarly monopoly on access to the writings in 1991. Shanks published a bootlegged computerized reconstruction of the texts, opening the floodgates for other scholars. Shanks is the author of the recent book “Understanding the Dead Sea Scrolls.”

Other lectures include:

* J. Edward Wright, assistant professor of Near Eastern Studies at the University of Arizona, on “The Search for Salvation in the Qumran Era” (April 26).

* Michael O. Wise, co-author of “The Dead Sea Scrolls Uncovered,” published last year. His topic is “The Dead Sea Scrolls, Masada and Josephus” (May 3).

* David Noel Freedman, a leading Dead Sea Scrolls author, scholar and editor in chief of the six-volume Anchor Bible Dictionary, on “The Hebrew Bible at Qumran: The Oldest Biblical Texts in the World” (May 11).

* Lawrence H. Schiffman, professor of Hebrew and Judaic studies at New York University, on “Sacred Time, Sacred Space: The Enigma of the Temple Scroll” (May 17).

* Rabbi Joseph M. Baumgarten, professor of Rabbinic literature at Baltimore Hebrew College, and the Rev. Joseph A. Fitzmyer, professor emeritus of biblical studies at Catholic University of America, on “A Rabbi and a Priest: Two Views of the Dead Sea Scrolls’ Contribution to Judaism and Early Christianity” (May 24).

* Kyle McCarter, chairman of the Near Eastern studies department at Johns Hopkins University, and Bruce Zuckerman, associate professor at the USC School of Religion, and a pioneer in advanced photographic and computer technologies used to record ancient inscriptions, on “The Mysterious Treasure of the Copper Scroll” (June 1).

Lectures are $17 each on a space-available basis, or $104 for the seven-lecture series. All lectures will be at 7:45 p.m. at Gindi Auditorium, University of Judaism, 15600 Mulholland Drive, Los Angeles. Call (310) 476-9777 or (818) 762-5500.