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.
Sunday, July 13, 2025 Make a Joyful Noise: The Power of Music in Difficult Times
Ethnomusicologist and St. Bart's parishioner Margaret Farrell reflects on how music can lift spirits in difficult times. Please post your questions in the comments section on Facebook or YouTube, or email the Reverend Peter Thompson at
Upcoming Speakers at The Forum
July 13Make a Joyful Noise: The Power of Music in Difficult Times
Ethnomusicologist and St. Bart's parishioner Margaret Farrell reflects on how music can lift spirits in difficult times.
Watch or listen to The Forum from previous weeks below.
The Reverend Dr. Mihee Kim-Kort, co-pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Annapolis, Maryland and author of Outside the Lines: How Embracing Queerness will Transform Your Faith, reflects on how practices of reading and listening might open us up...
As we celebrate our country on this Independence Day weekend, Stephen Lean, Director of The American Family Immigration History Center on Ellis Island, discusses the ways in which immigration has enhanced the nation’s life.
Join us in...
Beloved actress Jane Lynch, currently starring in the Broadway revival of Funny Girl, visits St. Bart’s to reflect on her life as an openly lesbian public figure and share stories from her long and acclaimed career.
In 2021, Juneteenth became America’s 11th national holiday, a day to commemorate slavery and emancipation. Emily Blanck, Associate Professor of History at Rowan University, an overview of the process through which Juneteenth...
Tuesday, June 14 | 7:30 p.m. on the Website, Youtube, and Facebook Live
Dr. Catherine Meeks, Executive Director of the Absalom Jones Center for Racial Healing and the Reverend Canon Stephanie Spellers discuss the meaning of Juneteenth...
Kathryn O'Neal-Dunham, CEO of Philanthropy New York, speaks about how philanthropic organizations and individuals enact love through the skillful exercise of their power.
As we celebrate the Church’s birthday, our Rector, the Right Reverend Dean E. Wolfe, reflects on the current state of St. Bart’s and progress that has already been made on our strategic plan.
Frank Collerius and Crystal Chen, co-hosts of New York Public Library’s podcast The Librarian Is In, return to St. Bart’s to offer suggestions for summer reading. Please post your questions for our speaker in...
The Right Reverend Mary Glasspool reflects on the role that technology should play in the life of the Church as it emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic. Please post your questions for our speaker in the comments section...
The Great Organ of St. Bartholomew’sDays before a St. Bart’s Conservancy gala concert featuring our celebrated Great Organ, Dr. Paolo Bordignon, Organist and Choirmaster, outlines the history and characteristics of the instrument and...
Funeral Planning for Invincible People (Who Have No Time to Die)
Amy Cunningham, Owner of Fitting Tribute Funeral Services, helps us think about a topic we often avoid--our own deaths--and guides us in the important work of preparing...