Stone was ordained as a rabbi at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in 1979, and proceeded to serve congregations in Seattle and Philadelphia while also teaching at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America and the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College.
He served as rabbi of Temple Beth Zion-Beth Israel in Philadelphia from 1988 until his retirement in 2015.
His book A Responsible Life: The Spiritual Path of Mussar[4] draws on the thinking of Emmanuel Levinas in developing a contemporary vision of Musar.
Stone has also proposed that a dedication to Musar should be central to the approach of Conservative Judaism.
[5] Rabbi Ira Stone serves as the Rosh Yeshiva of the Center for Contemporary Mussar.