Each week, guest speakers from a variety of backgrounds and disciplines join the Reverend Peter Thompson and other St. Bart's clergy for deep and insightful conversations about topics that matter to our lives as responsible citizens and people of faith. Speakers in recent years have included winners of the Tony Award, the Emmy Award, the MacArthur Fellowship, and the Pulitzer Prize, professors from prominent universities like Yale, Harvard, Princeton, and Columbia, and journalists from New York, The New Yorker, and The Atlantic.
In an age of information overload and political polarization, how do we discern what truly serves the common good? CUNY Law professor and St. Bart’s parishioner Ally Coll explores the promises and pitfalls of both evidence-based and intuition-led decision making—in our public life and our personal faith. Please post your questions in the comments section on Facebook or YouTube, or email the Reverend Peter Thompson at
With Dr. Daisy Khan
Watch or listen to The Forum from previous weeks below.
Have you wondered why the lines for food have gotten so long? Patrick Bergquist, Interim Executive Director of Crossroads Community Services, discusses the increasing prevalence of food insecurity within our city.
The Reverend Canon Stephanie Spellers, Assisting Priest, draws on the experiences of those at the Church’s periphery in her effort to chart a future for faith itself.
David Blankenhorn, co-founder of Braver Angels, discusses the problem of political polarization
Karla Cornejo Villavicencio, author of The Undocumented Americans, reads from her new novel Catalina and reflects on what immigrants are experiencing in the present American moment.
The Reverend Lucy Winkett, Rector of St. James’s Piccadilly in London, reflects on the ongoing relevance of the Bible in modern times.
The clergy of St. James’s Piccadilly, our partner parish in London, talk with the clergy of St. Bart’s about their remarkable community and their link with St. Bart’s.
Flora Ferrara, Keith Reinhard, and the Reverend Meredith Ward speak about recovering from loss and the grief group held under the auspices of St. Bart’s.
Bob Kiely, Ray Vandenberg, and The Reverend Meredith Ward, co-leaders of the St. Bart’s retirement group, discuss retirement as a major life transition.
Julie Ross, Executive Director of Parenting Horizons and author of How to Hug a Porcupine: Negotiating the Prickly Points of the Tween Years, draws on over three decades of experience working with children and families to offer insights about the...
St. Bart's parishioner Janina Sajka reflects on significant moments of change that continue to bring challenges to her life.
Psychotherapist Trish Tidwell reflects on the process of change and offers strategies for navigating through it successfully.
