[5] Altmann's justification for the activities of the institute was given in a 1957 lecture to the Hillel Foundation of London (Ivry, Wolfson & Arkush 1998): Being connected with our past, at home in our literature, and in sympathy with ourselves as it were, we shall find it easier to approach the ultimate questions.Victor Mishcon became chairman of the institute in 1959.
[6] The institute organises public lectures, symposia and seminars throughout the academic year, where leading scholars from Europe, Israel and the United States communicate the results of their research to scholars, students and the public, thereby creating the opportunity for regular exchange of ideas and interests.
[7] The institute also hosts one or more major international conferences annually, which focus on significant themes relating to Jewish civilisation, and bring together eminent scholars from different countries working in the same or allied fields of research.
[7] The institute regularly sponsors research projects by postgraduates and scholars in important academic fields.
The institute sponsors the publication of its conference proceedings and other academic works in co-operation with publishers, including Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, and the Littman Library of Jewish Civilisation.