The Forum with John Macaskill
Grace Cathedral, San Francisco
For nearly a thousand years, the Order of St. John has carried forward a simple but radical commitment: to care for the sick and vulnerable, regardless of faith, background, or ability to pay. What began in Jerusalem as a hospital for pilgrims has evolved into an international humanitarian organization, combining an ancient tradition of service with some of today's most innovative medical and charitable work.
Among the Order's most important endeavors is the St. John of Jerusalem Eye Hospital Group, which provides sight-saving and restorative care throughout the Holy Land, including through mobile clinics reaching communities where medical services are difficult to access. In the United States, members of the Order serve their own communities through the St. John Volunteer Corps, working with organizations that support people in need.
Join Malcolm Clemens Young for a conversation with John Macaskill, Prior of the U.S. Priory of the Order of St. John, about the remarkable history of an institution that has survived for nearly a millennium, the humanitarian work it undertakes today, and what it means to carry an ancient tradition of service into a rapidly changing world. What can a thousand-year-old commitment to healing and hospitality teach us about service—and about what we owe one another?
Recorded at Grace Cathedral on October 4, 2026.
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About the Guest
John Macaskill, KStJ. Mr. Macaskill has spent the last forty-four years in the financial services industry in New York and London. John qualified as a Chartered Accountant in Edinburgh, and upon qualifying moved to London where he worked for five years with Chemical Bank, which transferred him to New York – supposedly for eighteen months. He has now been in the United States for over 44 years! John worked at Bankers Trust and finally at JP Morgan before starting his own investment bank as one of the founding partners in 2003. John retired his partnership in 2017. John remains President of his family investment firm. Mr. Macaskill has served on the boards of the Edinburgh International Festival American Board, and the American Board of the National Museum of Scotland. He currently chairs his village's Zoning Board of Appeal, is retired from the vestry of his local St John's church. John has been a member of the Order of St John since 2012, and has served on the Board of Trustees of the St John Eye Hospital Group since 2018. In June 2026 John became Prior of the U.S. Priory of the Order of St John. John and his wife Bridget reside in Long Island, and they have two sons, both appointed to the Order of St John in 2023, and four grandchildren.
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:
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