The Temple Library contains approximately 9,000 volumes and serves as a valuable resource to the congregation, the religious school, and the larger Jewish community. The collection, which focuses on American Jewish history, spirituality, and liturgical subjects, ranges from picture books for young children to a wide selection of fiction and non-fiction for students and adults. Click here to search The Temple Library Collection.
The extensive holdings cover Judaic topics including history, Jewish law, rituals and holidays, ethics, philosophy, family and life cycle events, music, art, Israel and current political issues, cookbooks, travel, the Holocaust, and biographies. The Temple maintains the largest collection in the community of books on American Jewish history, and a variety of primary sources, encyclopedias and dictionaries are available in the Reference section.
The library also provides books of Jewish content on tape and in large print as well as subscribing to periodicals of interest to the Jewish community. Currently, books in the Temple library, as well as books in other Jewish institutions in Nashville can be found using a joint card catalog. However, in the very near future a searchable catalog accessible in the library, as well as through the Temple web site will be available to locate selections.
The logo for the library link is a bronze medallion designed by A. Raymond Katz representing the transition from the Tablets of the Law to the Scrolls of the Torah into the book, with the Tree of Life in the background. The medallion originally decorated the Ark, but following the renovation of the Temple was moved to the doors entering the sanctuary.
Our Archives
The Temple maintains a collection of documents, books, and letters documenting the history of The Temple and the people of the Nashville Jewish community. The Archives of The Temple are located in the Library, supplementing the Jewish Federation Archives are housed at the Gordon Jewish Community Center. The Archives are open by appointment.
You may view an inventory of the Temple Archives as well as the inventory of the Jewish Federation Archives.
If you would like to access the archives or need library help, contact the Community Archivist, Lynn Fleischer, 615-354-1655.
The library is open during regular Temple hours:
Monday-Thursday: 9:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Friday: 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
Saturday: Before and after Chevrah Torah Services
Sunday: 9:30 a.m.-11:30 a.m., during Religious School yearFor information contact: Cheryl Guyer.