Matlins had grown up in a Jewish home, but through his marriage had been exposed to a wide variety of various Christian traditions.
We all want to do what is expected of us.”[3] In 1996, he wrote How to Be a Perfect Stranger: The Essential Religious Etiquette Handbook with Arthur J. Magida to help "well-meaning guest[s] to feel comfortable, participate to the fullest extent possible, and avoid violating anyone's religious principles-while enriching their own spiritual understanding.
[5][6] His book How to Be a Perfect Stranger: The Essential Religious Etiquette Handbook went through multiple editions, with a second volume being added and then later combined into the original.
[citation needed] Matlins co-founded an "innovative" synagogue in rural Vermont with his wife,[7][8] and served as its lay leader for nineteen years.
[8] Matlins believes "There's no such thing as being too respectful of other people's traditions" he told The Salt Lake Tribune.