In October 1947 he took up an open scholarship in modern languages that he had previously won at Emmanuel College, Cambridge five years earlier.
In his second year he switched to Moral Science which comprised philosophy, logic, ethics and psychology and graduated in 1950 with First Class Honours.
In his sixth year Rayner began working as a research student on a thesis about Maimonides' conception of Revelation.
[1] He wrote books on diverse topics including halakha, marriage, ethics, Zionism, theology and Jewish-Christian relations.
They compiled the Sabbath and Festivals and High Holidays liturgy used by all Liberal Synagogues, Service of the Heart and Gates of Repentance, continuing their editorial partnership to co-edit Siddur Lev Chadash.