Our Minister

Our minister, Rev. Jonathan Dobrer, is a native of Southern California and studied at the University of Southern California (USC) and at the University of Vienna and the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley where he specialized in and later taught comparative religion. He holds degrees in International Relations, Philosophy and Religion.

Jon has been with us in Fullerton since 1994. Before coming to us, he served at the UU Church of Studio City and at Starr King UU Church in Hayward California.

He has a special interest in the birthing of the Christian gospels from the mating of Jewish stories with Greek mystery cults. Additionally, he has taught Islam, its origins and beliefs, both at the Graduate Theological Union and at the American Jewish University. His interest in Islam springs from his Peace Corps service in Tunisia (1967-9) and his study with the Imam of Nabeul.

He writes a syndicated column called “Out of My Mind” that appears in the Fullerton Observer and is a regular contributor to the Los Angeles Daily News— as well as to their Op-ed blog, FriendlyFire. Dobrer was selected by the Los Angeles Times as one of the ten most compelling speakers in Southern California. No doubt this is owed to having worked his way through USC as a standup comedian.

Jonathan lives in Encino with his wife Helene in an empty nest vacated by three wonderful boys, now men. He is frequently visited by his sons, his daughters-in-law and his 5 amazing, gorgeous, and brilliant grandchildren.