Our Mission
New Lehrhaus brings students and teachers together in dynamic dialogue to explore Jewish sources, traditions, and arts, sustaining and enriching the vibrant spirit of Jewish civilization.
As the Bay Area's non-denominational lifelong Jewish learning institution, we are dedicated to academic excellence, open inquiry, contemporary relevance, and cultural and religious pluralism.
We embrace what Franz Rosenzweig, the original founder of the Lehrhaus (House of Study), called "new learning." He advanced an approach that begins wherever you are, with whatever knowledge and curiosity you bring, and moves from the periphery toward deeper understanding. In our community, historians learn alongside physicists, artists alongside engineers, newcomers alongside seasoned scholars, all contributing their unique perspectives to our shared exploration of Jewish thought and culture.