Peter Gomes

Professor, Harvard Divinity School; Reverend, The Memorial Church at Harvard

Peter Gomes is an American Baptist minister who has served in The Memorial Church at Harvard University since 1970. Gomes is also the Plummer Professor of Christian Morals and is the Pusey Minister in The Memorial Church. Gomes is commonly regarded as one of the most distinguished preachers in America. He was named Clergy of the Year in 1998 by Religion in American Life and offered prayers in the inaugurations of Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush.

Educated at Bates College and the Harvard Divinity School, Revered Gomes alsoholds thirty-six honorary degrees. He is the author of numerous books on the Bible, including the national best-sellers TheGood Book: Reading the Bible with Mind and Heart and Sermons:Biblical Wisdom for Daily Living.

Everything Videos

The Legacy Of Peter Gomes

“He made us think” would be a very nice epitaph.

Peter Gomes On Language

How a “literate preacher” crafts his sermons.

When did the ministry first spark your interest?

“Well I had grown up with everybody else’s expectations. And so when you reach a certain age, you decide whether you own those expectations or you reject them.”

How did your childhood shape you?

“Most of the black people that I knew growing up looked and sounded and talked just as I do.”

Whom would you like to interview?

T.S. Eliot and the Pope.

What gives you hope?

Peter Gomes distinguishes between hope (a long view) from optimism (the short view).

Peter Gomes Talks About America’s Youth

No matter where they go after college, young people discover there’s no there there.

Are faith and reason incompatible?

The Russian cosmonauts did not find God up there.

Religion in a Modern World

Science hasn’t found an explanation of spirituality.

Peter Gomes On Christianity Today

Christianity is not a religion that has been tried and failed.

Peter Gomes’ Favorite Books

Don Quixote and others.

Peter Gomes Translates the Bible

If you come up with an easy solution to the text, you’re probably close to the wrong thing.

Peter Gomes On The Craft of the Sermon

How to get that “Aha!” moment.

What is your question?

Gomes has a question he thinks talented people should ask themselves.

What is your counsel?

You think you’re Job? Get off it.

What is your outlook?

To be hopeful is to be ultimately realistic in the face of every reason for despair.

Why is America’s youth turning to religion?

We are driven by a search for value and meaning.

What do you believe?

Gomes believes we live in a fallen world.

What inspires you?

Gomes serves the Word.

Learn from the world's biggest thinkers.

© Copyright 2007-2026 & BIG THINK, BIG THINK PLUS, SMARTER FASTER trademarks owned by Freethink Media, Inc. All rights reserved.