Join us for a special online conversation with The Very Rev. Dr. David Monteith, the dean of Canterbury Cathedral--England's first cathedral. 

Canterbury Cathedral is a unique place of worship, a major pilgrimage destination, a masterpiece of art and architecture, and one of the UK's most-visited historic sites. It is the principal seat of the Archbishop of Canterbury who now leads the Church of England and the worldwide Anglican Communion.  

What is the role of the cathedral in times like these? Cathedrals have a distinctive capacity and calling to bring people of all spiritual and political backgrounds together to pray, mourn, learn, and act in times of crisis and change. Dean David Monteith and Dean Malcolm Clemens Young of Grace Cathedral will reflect together on the cathedral’s unique role and the ministry of cathedrals in our time.  

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About the Guest 

The Very Reverend Dr. David Monteith was appointed Dean of Canterbury in December 2022.  Previously he was Dean of Leicester (from May 2013), and before that served as Canon Chancellor and Acting Archdeacon of Leicester. David grew up during ‘The Troubles’ in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. He studied Zoology at Durham University and Theology at Nottingham University, after which he served as a priest in the Diocese of Birmingham, in London where he was Associate Vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields, and as a Team Rector and Area Dean in Wimbledon, Diocese of Southwark. During his time at Leicester, David oversaw work on reordering the Cathedral and the establishment of Cathedral Gardens, and the Leicester Cathedral Revealed Project which, with NLHF funding, will complete the re-ordering work and provide a new Chapter House. The reburial of the remains of King Richard III, which were rediscovered in the nearby Leicester car park overlaying the remains of a medieval Franciscan Friary, was another major project completed successfully. David was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of Leicester in 2016 acknowledging his service and leadership in the community. Until 2018 he served as Chair of the St Philips Centre for Interfaith Dialogue. In 2020 he was elected as Chair of the College of Deans and is an ex-officio member of the AEC Executive. 

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.  More about Grace Forum Online:  gracecathedral.org/the-forum.