Lastly in our little review of ‘Kaplanian Values,’ we come to the issue of creativity – the arts for Kaplan were a source of inspiration and, in shifting the focus to human activity, he expanded the traditional view of God as Creator. He viewed artists as "creators par excellence," asserting that art enriches Jewish experience and reveals the divine. To that end, I am privileged to have a congregational ‘poet laureate,' who writes for us, and a ‘house composer,’ who creates small and memorable melodies for texts we have traditionally read, not sung, in the liturgy. I highly suggest every congregation consider this – it is wonderful to hear a new poem, or to sing a special anthem for the High Holidays created in house.

Of course, the physicality of art is as important as the end result, and so the process of creation becomes the backdrop to the final product. I am thinking of this wonderful clip of a time-lapse painting by Picasso: you see the initial concept all the way through, but it gets darker in both tone and intent, settles, shifts. One has the impression that the evolution could continue, that the artist's final painting is perhaps only ending where it does because of some arbitrary time or resource constraint.

Good art, in the Kaplanian sense, must engage the viewer and satisfy the artist, while urging them both to explore more deeply the act and results of creation. I make custom tallitot for myself and others, and as we near the start of the month of Elul, I hold this notion – what is the art I wish to create in my upcoming year? What is the evolving religious conversation I am having in relation to my past work, to my future skills, to the needs and wishes of those who commission my pieces? How can I truly express the Eternal in my particular way as I create, and how can I use that spark of divinity to inspire others? As Picasso says: we must get to the depths of things, we must take risks - it’s the danger that I am seeking. May you all be blessed with the opportunity to create meaningfully in this coming year.

If you weren't able to attend, here’s a recording of the Haberman Institute for Jewish Studies webinar Mordecai Kaplan’s Reconstructionist Vision: What Panned Out? What Fell Short? presented by Rabbi Dr. Bradley Shavit Artson, American Jewish University Goldstine Distinguished Scholar: