Advocating for the Jewish mission of tikkun olam (repairing the world), the synagogue underwent an eco-friendly renovation and expansion in 2009 and houses a ner tamid (eternal flame) powered by solar energy.

[12] In 2007, he received a Doctor of Divinity honoris causa from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in recognition of his 25 years in the rabbinate.

It's a time to cast a broad net, to explore options rather than to rule things out, and to recreate a Movement which will be as meaningful in the future as it has been in the past.”[21]Jacobs' formal installation, the first in 16 years, was held at Congregation Beit Elohim in Brooklyn, New York on June 9, 2012.

In his address, Jacobs promised to turn the Reform Jewish movement into a “movement undergoing renovation that will renew Jewish life.” He called on Reform Jews to “stand up for Israel” against its critics while fighting to ensure that Israel preserves the democratic and liberal ideals dear to the Reform Movement at the same time, and expressed the hope that “one day soon the State of Israel will live in peace side by side with the State of Palestine.”[22] Rabbi Jacobs visits and speaks frequently throughout the Jewish world.

[23] At the URJ 2013 Biennial convention, he spoke extensively about key themes in the organization's work to re-imagine Jewish life: youth engagement, partnerships, inclusion, Israel-Diaspora relations, and religious pluralism.

In 2016 at government hearings on non-Orthodox prayer space at the Western Wall, MK And tourism Minister Yariv Levin slammed Reform Judaism, a small denomination in Israel but the largest Jewish movement in the United States, saying egalitarian prayer space at the Wall is unnecessary based on his opinion that Reform Jews will "be all but gone in three generations.

Rabbi Gilad Kariv, head of the progressive movement in Israel, called on his American partners to refuse access to Levin.

Jacobs told Israeli Army Radio: "There’s no reason to give him a platform in Jewish communities and organizations in the United States.

His remarks on the supposed waning presence of U.S. Reform Jews reveal a bias against a religious movement that includes over a million and a half people.

His office announced: “The tourism minister stands by what he said, and he would likely say it again.”[28] Jacobs is married to Susan Freedman, president of the Public Art Fund.