Since becoming a pulpit rabbi in the Phoenix suburb, Kaplan has worked closely with Cantor Baruch Koritan and educator Andre Ivory to build a thriving, multi-generational Reform congregation that would span the entire West Valley.
This geographical area has seen tremendous growth in recent years, and Kaplan has endeavored to reach out to the predominantly unaffiliated Jews in this region, as well as non-Jews who might be interested in exploring Jewish religious wisdom for the first time.
In 2007, Boyden was asked by the city of Hod Hasharon to recite the prayer for fallen soldiers and victims of terror during the annual memorial ceremony (Yom HaZikaron), in part because his son Jonathan was killed in battle in Lebanon almost 15 years earlier.
Kaplan focused on issues of religious pluralism in the State of Israel under the direct supervision of Rabbi Uri Regev, the director of the center at that time.
[5] He interviewed for the position in January 1994 and took up his role in July of that same year, just three months after the democratic elections of April 26–29, which were the first in which South African citizens of all races were allowed to participate.
Against such a historic backdrop, Kaplan advocated for redefining Jewish doctrine and behavior in terms of modern thought so that Judaism could become a relevant mode of belief for South Africans in the post-apartheid era.
[6] Kaplan argued that South African Jews need to grapple with the real social, economic, and political issues facing their country, and then develop a meaningful spiritual response to them.
We need to allow for interpretation, while rejecting rigid and lifeless legality.” Kaplan reported that the South African Jewish community swung between feelings of jubilation that the transition to majority democratic rule had been achieved so peacefully and fear that the new society might not have a place for them.
“Only if Judaism can be presented as a religion with a strong theme of social justice can Jews retain their prominent role in society as critics and commentators.”[7] As rabbi, Kaplan invited a number of high-profile speakers to events that were hosted by the temple and open to the public.
The Archbishop remarked that if he and his fellow Anglicans took the ethical message of scriptures seriously and applied it to the struggle against apartheid, the “real fault” lies with the Jews for having given such morally inspiring sentiments to the world.
[8] Kaplan wrote a number of articles during his time in South Africa in which he argued that the process of reconciliation and healing that the country was then undertaking could be greatly bolstered by the wisdom from Jewish teachings.
Synagogue Vice President Stephen Henriques told the Times of Israel, “The need for a rabbi was really to pull the congregation together and increase the knowledge and awareness of Judaism in the community after being without this level of leadership for so many years.”[13] Kaplan wanted to raise the profile of the synagogue among Jamaicans by organizing events that would engage the public, including a Jewish reggae concert and speeches by prominent non-Jewish public figures.
His best-known prayer - one for the welfare of the country - references the Bob Marley song “One Love” and was reprinted in a number of Jamaican textbooks on religion in the Caribbean.Adonai, may all the people of our beautiful island nation live happily and prosper.
As he wrote in the Washington Post, “I have never before been in a country where so many people express an admiration for Jews and Judaism and want to draw closer to Jewish spiritual wisdom.
We are truly fortunate that there is so much interest in our religion.”[17] Kaplan felt there was tremendous potential to revitalize the community in part by encouraging the conversion of highly motivated Jamaicans, many of whom had Jewish ancestry.
In the proposal for the grant, city leadership identified areas with high vacancy rates, which historically had enticed drug dealers and criminals to gravitate to the neglected and abandoned houses.
Temple President Marvin Berris suggested that Kaplan arrive a few weeks before his official starting date of July 1 to work with retiring rabbi Sheldon Moss to make the transition as seamless as possible.
We want to be warm, welcoming and spiritually meaningful and we’ll be continuing to reach out to everyone we can to serve them.”[25] Shortly after his arrival in Arizona, Kaplan was interviewed for an article on how Phoenix's rabbis were preparing their High Holy Day sermons.
This bystander found his pulse racing at times; he could only picture what will be going on in the minds of those for whom the future of Reform Judaism is of more than passing importance.”[28] In the afterword, Rabbi W. Gunther Plaut seems to agree, writing that a common streak lies in the issue-oriented nature of the articles in the book.
Kaplan writes that “while many people applauded the tone and substance of the proposed platform, others were distressed by what they felt was an abrogation of the historical positions of the Reform Movement.”[31] He explains that, since the Age of Enlightenment, forward-thinking Jews have sought to understand Judaism as a modern religion, in an intellectual context equivalent to that of Christianity.
The book was influenced by a number of sociological studies which suggested that Reform Jews were expressing a greater openness to tradition while at the same time insisting on complete individual religious autonomy.
Kaplan insisted that the concept of religious autonomy, while admirable in theory, had produced a negative cycle of apathy and alienation in Reform temples throughout the United States.
The American Jewish religious denominations are no longer as important as they had been in the thirty or thirty-five year period following World War II and are increasingly irrelevant in a time of post-denominationalism.
He posits that in order to remain vibrant and active, the movement will need to develop convincing justifications for maintaining the Jewish people as an ethno-religious group in an era where boundaries and borders of all kinds are fading if not disappearing entirely.
When it was finally published in 2018, A Life of Meaning: Embracing Reform Judaism's Sacred Path[49] included 56 articles written by 58 authors from a wide, diverse range of viewpoints, and speaks to virtually every important topic of relevance to religion today.
It is our covenantal responsibility to undertake the task of interpreting the Jewish religion in the light of who we are today.”[50] Kaplan has written numerous essays and articles for a diverse range of publications, spanning newspapers, magazines, journals, and academic periodicals.
Many are widely-read locally or around the globe, such as the Washington Post, HuffPost, AL.com (Alabama, United States), The Sunday Independent (South Africa), and the Jamaica Observer.
[55][56] Kaplan wrote his PhD dissertation at Tel Aviv University - titled “Conversion to Judaism in America: 1760-1897” - under the supervision of Professor Lloyd Gartner.
Those interested in embracing the Jewish religion should do so in the expectation that people will be warm and welcoming.”[57] Kaplan stressed that the ultimate goal of converting to Judaism is to build a close relationship with God as full members of the covenantal bond.
The article was included in the feature “From All Their Habitations” (a title pulled from the biblical verse found in Ezekiel 37:23), a selection of reports highlighting Jewish religious, intellectual, and communal life from various parts of the world.