Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
Grace Cathedral, San Francisco
“One of the people I respect most on this Earth and whose winsome company I enjoy most is Fr. John Dear. In this short, valuable, and practical book, John shares his conversations with a young spiritual seeker named Will who came to him seeking spiritual guidance. As I read each chapter, I felt like I was meeting with John for coffee, sharing my struggles, and receiving his wisdom and encouragement. This book is a treasure.” — Brian McLaren, author of Faith After Doubt and The Last Voyage
Rev. John Dear’s new book Universal Love: Surrendering to the God of Peace arose from a young man’s request that John serve as his spiritual director. He did not believe in God, but he believed in “love and truth and compassion.” John replied that those are all names for God, and they agreed that they would speak of Universal Love. From this beginning, John discovered a new understanding of spirituality, and his own life of peacemaking as an exercise in “surrendering to the God of Peace.”
Join Malcolm Clemens Young, Dean of Grace Cathedral, for a conversation with John about how these reflections might lead us more deeply into the meaning of discipleship in a world of violence and conflict.
Recorded at Grace Cathedral on April 19, 2026.
Give to Grace
You can help us bring the arts to life at Grace with a gift today to The Forum. gracecathedral.org/give
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Love engaging dialogue? We offer a special cultural membership program, GraceArts, focused exclusively on the arts and well-being. GraceArts allows a wider community to belong to and support Grace, with discounts and benefits on a robust schedule of events. Learn more and join at gracecathedral.org/join.
About the Guest
Rev. John Dear is a priest, long time peace activist, lecturer, and author of 40 books including The Gospel of Peace. He is the founder and director of www.beatitudescenter.org and offers a weekly podcast, “The Nonviolent Jesus Podcast.” Visit www.johndear.org.
About the Moderator
The Very Rev. Dr. Malcolm Clemens Young is the dean of Grace Cathedral. He is the author of The Spiritual Journal of Henry David Thoreau and The Invisible Hand in Wilderness: Economics, Ecology, and God, and is a regular contributor on religion to the Huffington Post and San Francisco Examiner.
About The Forum
The Forum is a series of stimulating conversations about faith and ethics in relation to the important issues of our day. We invite inspiring and illustrious people to sit down for a real conversation with the Forum’s host and with you. Our guests range from artists, inventors and philosophers to pop culturists and elected officials, but the point of The Forum is singular: civil, sophisticated discourse that engages minds and hearts to think in new ways about the world. Learn more about The Forum here:
gracecathedral.org/the-forum
Grace Cathedral, San Francisco
“One of the people I respect most on this Earth and whose winsome company I enjoy most is Fr. John Dear. In this short, valuable, and practical book, John shares his conversations with a young spiritual seeker named Will who came to him seeking spiritual guidance. As I read each chapter, I felt like I was meeting with John for coffee, sharing my struggles, and receiving his wisdom and encouragement. This book is a treasure.” — Brian McLaren, author of Faith After Doubt and The Last Voyage
Rev. John Dear’s new book Universal Love: Surrendering to the God of Peace arose from a young man’s request that John serve as his spiritual director. He did not believe in God, but he believed in “love and truth and compassion.” John replied that those are all names for God, and they agreed that they would speak of Universal Love. From this beginning, John discovered a new understanding of spirituality, and his own life of peacemaking as an exercise in “surrendering to the God of Peace.”
Join Malcolm Clemens Young, Dean of Grace Cathedral, for a conversation with John about how these reflections might lead us more deeply into the meaning of discipleship in a world of violence and conflict.
Recorded at Grace Cathedral on April 19, 2026.
Give to Grace
You can help us bring the arts to life at Grace with a gift today to The Forum. gracecathedral.org/give
Become a GraceArts Member
Love engaging dialogue? We offer a special cultural membership program, GraceArts, focused exclusively on the arts and well-being. GraceArts allows a wider community to belong to and support Grace, with discounts and benefits on a robust schedule of events. Learn more and join at gracecathedral.org/join.
About the Guest
Rev. John Dear is a priest, long time peace activist, lecturer, and author of 40 books including The Gospel of Peace. He is the founder and director of www.beatitudescenter.org and offers a weekly podcast, “The Nonviolent Jesus Podcast.” Visit www.johndear.org.
About the Moderator
The Very Rev. Dr. Malcolm Clemens Young is the dean of Grace Cathedral. He is the author of The Spiritual Journal of Henry David Thoreau and The Invisible Hand in Wilderness: Economics, Ecology, and God, and is a regular contributor on religion to the Huffington Post and San Francisco Examiner.
About The Forum
The Forum is a series of stimulating conversations about faith and ethics in relation to the important issues of our day. We invite inspiring and illustrious people to sit down for a real conversation with the Forum’s host and with you. Our guests range from artists, inventors and philosophers to pop culturists and elected officials, but the point of The Forum is singular: civil, sophisticated discourse that engages minds and hearts to think in new ways about the world. Learn more about The Forum here:
gracecathedral.org/the-forum
