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Office of the President

"This Seminary is a Spiritual Formation Journey into Torah-Pursuancy."

Lyell was first established by my ancestors in 1858 and closed in 1904  with the death of the founders. I reopened Lyell in 2004 but sadly, after Hurricane Katrina, we suspended operations in 2006. Now twenty years later, Lyell Seminary will reopen with it's first cohort of students in 2026.

Lyell is a community shaped by Torah, prayer, formation, and slow, careful scholarship. It exists to help students grow into the kind of people who can carry wisdom without pride, knowledge without arrogance, and leadership without self-exaltation.

Our Calling as a Seminary

Lyell exists for a simple, sacred purpose: to form Torah-pursuant disciples who walk with honesty, courage, and intimacy with God—and who write, teach, and lead with clarity and compassion.

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We are building a generation of:

  • careful scholars

  • humble teachers

  • spiritually stable leaders

  • Torah-shaped thinkers

  • gentle shepherds

  • emotionally grounded disciples

  • truth-bearing voices

  • writers and researchers who speak with weight

  • servants who love the Father with כל־לֵבָב / kol-levav (all the heart)

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We believe in the Shema. We are to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. The Intimacy with the Father will form the soul. Academics will shape the mind. And the Torah will give structure to the whole life.

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This is our way.

The Heart of the Seminary: Formation

At Lyell, spiritual formation is not a department. It is the center of everything.

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Every student walks through:

  • the Individual Encounter Plan (IEP)

  • monthly mentoring

  • resistance → breakthrough → integration

  • Torah rhythms

  • prayer rhythms

  • emotional honesty

  • deep reflection

  • steady practice

 

We do this because a scholar without formation is fragile. But a scholar formed by Torah, humility, and the Spirit can carry great truth with great gentleness.

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Formation from the Torah that leads to Intimacy with the Father is our foundation.

Our Torah-Pursuant Vision

We teach Torah because it is life.
We honor the Scriptures because they reveal the heart of God.
We seek the Jewish context because it anchors the Apostolic Witness.
We practice Shabbat because rest is holy.
We guard our speech because words shape the soul.
We walk in compassion because justice is central to righteousness.
We hold fast to Yeshua because He reveals the Father’s heart.

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This is a Seminary for those who want Torah not as an idea, but as a way of life.

Our Commitment to Academic Excellence

Lyell Seminary is academically serious.


We expect students and faculty to:

  • read deeply

  • write clearly

  • think carefully

  • cite honestly

  • handle languages responsibly

  • engage with Jewish context faithfully

  • avoid shortcuts

  • use AI with integrity

  • pursue truth with humility

 

We honor scholarship because it strengthens the community of faith.

 

We pursue academic excellence because careless study harms people.

 

This is a place where scholarship grows slowly, steadily, and with reverence.

A Word to Prospective Students

If you are considering Lyell Seminary, I ask you to pause and pray.

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Ask the Father:

  • Do you desire to shape me?

  • Am I ready for honesty?

  • Am I willing to walk in Torah?

  • Do I hunger for truth?

  • Is this the right season?

 

We select students carefully, not because we are exclusive, but because formation requires readiness.

 

We want you to thrive.

 

If you desire slow, deep, honest formation—welcome.
If you long for Torah, wisdom, and clarity—welcome.
If you want to be shaped, not only taught—welcome.

A Word to Prospective Faculty

If you feel drawn to join the faculty of Lyell Seminary, understand the weight of the calling.

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We are not assembling just great academics; We are gathering a small fellowship of:

  • scholar-mentors

  • Torah-pursuant teachers

  • spiritually mature voices

  • emotionally grounded leaders

 

We seek faculty who write with depth, teach with gentleness, and walk with integrity.

 

Your scholarship is very important—we must build the Torah-Pursuant Academia, but your formation matters more. If you desire to shape a Seminary through Torah, prayer, and humility, we welcome your application to the Council.

Our Commitment to Community

Lyell is built on:

  • honor

  • kindness

  • patience

  • humility

  • honesty

  • unity

  • gentleness

  • respect

  • Torah rhythms

  • shared prayer

  • mentoring

  • accountability

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We believe community is shaped not by rules, but by character. We invite you into a community made strong by spiritual maturity.

A Final Word from My Heart

Lyell Seminary exists to guide a small community into a life of:

  • truth

  • compassion

  • holiness

  • clarity

  • courage

  • rest

  • humility

  • and deep intimacy with the Father

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If your heart resonates with these words, and you have a call for scholarship, then perhaps Lyell is calling you.

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