Rabbi Emeritus Gerald M. Kane, D.D., R.J.E.

Gerald M. Kane is the Rabbi Emeritus of Temple Beth-El,  Las Cruces, New
Mexico’s only synagogue.

Rabbi Kane was ordained from  Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of
Religion in Cincinnati in 1970.   He has served pulpits in Portland, Oregon, New
Orleans, Louisiana, Phoenix,  Arizona and Kansas City, Missouri before coming to
Las Cruces in December, 1998.

He retired following a distinguished thirty-seven year career in the Reform rabbinate on June 30, 2007, and is assisting the congregation as needed until a  successor is named.  He and his wife Cyrille will remain in Las Cruces and
he will serve as the congregation’s Rabbi Emeritus.

In Kansas City,  Rabbi Kane was responsible for the administration and development of the entire  educational programming of The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah, a 1900 family  Reform Jewish congregation, the largest synagogue in the greater Kansas City  area

He also developed innovative work through the integration of  aspects of Jewish Renewal worship (meditation, guided meditation, chanting,  spontaneous prayer)  into mainstream Reform worship.  His work was  recognized by the Union of American Hebrew Congregation (now the Union for  Reform Judaism) who invited him to present a service at their 1987 Biennial in  Dallas, Texas, and articles about his work appeared throughout the  country.

As Executive Director of the Jewish Education Council in Phoenix  from 1975 to 1983, Rabbi Kane developed a community-wide High School of Jewish  Studies, established a community-wide Jewish School Directors Forum, and founded  a Jewish Resource Center, an adult education lecture series and an Israel study fellowship.

Rabbi Kane is a member of the Central Conference of American  Rabbis and served as C.C.A.R. representative on the Joint Commission on Jewish  Lifelong Learning of the Union for Reform Judaism. He was a member of the  National Association of Temple Educators, and a former member of its Board. He  is one of the founding members of CAJE, the Coalition for the Advancement of  Jewish Education.

For his work in the field of Reform Jewish Outreach,  Rabbi Kane and Temple Beth-El were recipients of the prestigious UAHC’s  Department of Outreach 2001 and 2003 Belin Awards for innovative programming in  the areas of Outreach and
Synagogue Membership. He currently serves as one of  the CCAR representatives on the URJ - CCAR National Joint Commission on Outreach  and Synagogue Membership.  .  He and Temple Beth El are recipients of  the prestigious 2005-2007
URJ Congregation of Learners award for innovative  Lifelong Jewish Learning programming.

Rabbi Kane received his B.A. from  the University of Buffalo, his BHL and MAHL from Hebrew Union College and was  awarded the special title Reform Jewish Educator for his efforts in the field of  Jewish Education by the Union of American Hebrew Congregations (now called the  Union for Reform Judaism), the Central Conference of American Rabbis, the  National Association of Temple Educators and Hebrew Union College. In March of  1995 he was awarded a Doctor of Divinity degree from Hebrew Union College in  recognition of his twenty-fifth year of service in the Reform  rabbinate.

Over the past nine years Rabbi Kane developed strong ties with  students, faculty and administrators at New Mexico State University.  He is  immediate past president of the NMSU InterFaith Council, a position he has held  for five of his nine years in Las Cruces.  He will continue to serve as  Executive Advisor of the group and one of its members until a full time rabbi is  hired at Temple Beth-El. He will continue to serve on NMSU’s Institutional  Review Board for Research with Human Subjects as community representative, and  the Student Success Advisory Cluster, an appointment by the Dean of  Students.  He is a
member of the NMSU Honors Speaker Selection Committee,  and has served as guest lecturer in the Departments of Music, History,  Anthropology, Theatre and Agriculture. He has served as a Board Member for the  American Southwest Theatre
Company at NMSU and assists in on air fund  raising  for the Las Cruces NPR station, and pitched on-air for the  KRWG-TV, the PBS affiliate..

He and Cyrille served as  docents at  the NMSU Art Gallery.

In October, 2002 Rabbi Kane was invited by Senator  Jeff Bingaman and Representative Joe Skeen to serve as Guest Chaplain at the  United States Senate and House of Representatives. He is the only clergyman in the United States to have offered prayers on the floor of the House and Senate on two consecutive days.  In April of 2007, at the invitation of Rep. Jeff  Steinborn, he served as guest chaplain at the New Mexico House of  Representatives.

Together with Bishop Ricardo Ramirez he convened a “Repairing the World” conference – an effort to work together to solve community challenges in Dona Ana County. He also served on the Mental Health Work Group of the Dona Ana County Health Council. Following the September 11 attacks, Rabbi Kane, together with other religious leaders issued a statement of unity and support held at the  Mosque in Las Cruces.  He coordinated clergy participation in this years Las Cruces Remembers 9/11 commemoration, directed by Mark Medoff, and worked with Bishop Ramirez in the community Interfaith Sunrise Prayer Commemoration.  He was most recently invited to offer an interfaith  reflection at the Twenty-Fifth Anniversary Mass of Thanksgiving of the Diocese  of Las Cruces.

He established ongoing interfaith commemorations in  observance of Thanksgiving and  Martin Luther King Day in Las  Cruces and developed a biennial Interfaith Holocaust Commemoration which  has drawn recognition from all areas of the local community.  He  participates in a monthly liberal clergy task force. In 2006 He served as  on site advisor to Rev. Jeanne Lutz of Peace Lutheran Church and participated in  a highly successful dialogue session, “Walking God’s Path.”

Rabbi Kane's  interest in theatre began when he was growing up in Paterson, New Jersey.   He performed in local productions throughout his youth, and became an expert in  the history of the American Musical Theatre.  Living close to New York, he  attended theatre regularly and continued his interest and scholarship through  college and rabbinical seminary. His rabbinical thesis in American Jewish  History was entitled "The Image of the Jew on the Broadway Stage from 'The Diary  of Anne Frank' to 'Fiddler on the Roof.'" Rabbi Kane served as host to  "Everything's Coming Up Broadway," on National Public Radio stations
in New  Orleans and Phoenix.  He was theatre critic for KCUR-FM, Kansas City's  National Public Radio station, and is a member of the American Theatre Critics  Association. In the summer of 1999 he hosted “Everything’s Coming Up Broadway”  on KRGW-FM.

For the past four years, Rabbi Kane has reviewed the  productions of the Santa Fe Opera for the “Las Cruces Bulletin.”

Rabbi  Kane and his wife Cyrille have four children and nine  grandchildren.