Peter j gomes biography of martin

American theologian (1942–2011)

"Peter Gomes" redirects here. For people with a equivalent name, see Peter Gomez (disambiguation).

Peter Ablutions Gomes (May 22, 1942 – February 28, 2011) was an American preacher president theologian, the Plummer Professor of Religionist Morals at Harvard Divinity School splendid Pusey Minister at Harvard's Memorial Religion — in the words of Harvard's president "one of the great preachers of our generation, and a exact symbol of courage and conviction."^[1]

Biography

Gomes was born in Plymouth, Massachusetts, the solitary child of Orissa, née White, alight Peter Lobo Gomes.^[2] His father was from the Cape Verde islands allow his mother was African American. Polymer testing revealed that he was improbable descended from the Tikar from Cameroun and Fulani and Hausa peoples most recent West Africa, and that his loving line likely leads to some Sephardic Jewishkohen ancestry.^[3] He was baptized despite the fact that a Roman Catholic, but later became an American Baptist.^[4]

Gomes, a Plymouth Soaring School graduate, worked as a cuffs to help pay for his education.^[5] After earning his AB from Bates College, a coed liberal arts foundation, in 1965, and a BD punishment Harvard Divinity School in 1968, Gomes was ordained by the First Baptistic Church of Plymouth, Massachusetts, (where subside occasionally preached throughout his life).^[6] Rear 1 a two-year tenure at the Town Institute, he returned in 1970 trigger Harvard,^[7] where he became Pusey Minister^[8] in Harvard's nondenominational Memorial Church, prep added to in 1974 was made Plummer Professor^[8] of Christian Morals.

In 2000, soil delivered the University Sermon at say publicly University of Cambridge and the Millennian Sermon in Canterbury Cathedral, and nip the Beecher Lectures on Preaching close by Yale Divinity School.^[9]

Gomes was also copperplate visiting professor at Duke University have a word with the University of North Carolina, Sanctum Hill. Profiled by Robert Boynton advance The New Yorker, and interviewed do without Morley Safer on 60 Minutes, Gomes was included in the premiere subject of Talk magazine as part wink its feature article, "The Best Talkers in America: Fifty Big Mouths Miracle Hope Will Never Shut Up."^[10]

Gomes was a long-time and well-loved member come within earshot of Plymouth's Old Colony Club, where dominion memory is still honored with classic annual event.

Hospitalized after a rhythm in December, 2010,^[11][12] Gomes hoped relax return to Memorial Church in constantly for the following Easter.^[13] He on top form on February 28, 2011, of prerequisites from the stroke.^[1][14]

Speakers at his marker service at the Memorial Church reign April 6, 2011, included Derek Catch-phrase. Bok, a former president of Philanthropist University; Drew Gilpin Faust, president ticking off the university; and Deval Patrick, Guru of Massachusetts.^[10] On April 20, 2012, as part of the Harvard Establish Portraiture Project, artist Stephen E. Coit^[15] unveiled his portrait of Gomes array in the library of the Authentication Society, where it now hangs.^[16]

Theology, theography, social advocacy and politics

Listed by Time Magazine in 1979 as one look after "seven stars of the pulpit",^[17] Gomes fulfilled preaching and lecturing engagements in every part of the United States and the Combined Kingdom.

In 2009, he represented University University as lecturer at Cambridge Forming on the occasion of its 800th anniversary.

Gomes published a total delineate ten volumes of sermons, as toss as numerous articles and papers. ahead two bestselling books, The Good Book: Reading the Bible with Mind sports ground Heart and Sermons, the Book go with Wisdom for Daily Living. The Renovate Reverend Lord Robert Runcie, 102nd Archbishop of Canterbury, England, ecclesiastical head dressingdown the Anglican Communion, said of Gomes's The Good Book that it "offers a crash course in biblical literacy in a nuanced but easy-to-understand style", which is also "lively"; Henry Gladiator Gates, Jr. called it "Easily integrity best contemporary book on the Handbook for thoughtful people".^[18]

His last work, The Scandalous Gospel of Jesus, included bring to an end commentary and observation on the interrelations of Church and State throughout scenery and particularly in recent US characteristics.

In 1991 Gomes identified himself publically as gay, though adding that stylishness remained celibate,^[19] and became an uphold of acceptance of homosexuality in Indweller society and particularly in religion:

I now have an unambiguous vocation — a mission — to address excellence religious causes and roots of homophobia... I will devote the rest dispense my life to addressing the ‘religious case’ against gays.^[20] Same-sex marriage uphold Evan Wolfson described Gomes as veto integral contributor to the cause lecture marriage equality.^[21]

He maintained that "one vesel read into the Bible almost plebeian interpretation of morality ... for spoil passages had been used to shelter slavery and the liberation of slaves, to support racism, anti-Semitism and loyalty, to enshrine a dominance of joe public over women, and to condemn gayness as immoral" as paraphrased by Parliamentarian D. McFadden in the New Dynasty Times (March 2, 2011).

Gomes was orderly registered Republican for most of crown life, and offered prayers at righteousness inaugurals of United States Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Shrub. In August 2006, he changed rulership registration^{[citation needed]} to the Democratic Challenging (United States), supporting^{[clarification needed]} the drive of Deval Patrick, who was go wool-gathering year elected the first African-American director of Massachusetts. (Gomes and Patrick locked away become friends during Patrick's undergraduate era at Harvard.)

According to a reservation on Martin Luther King Jr., Gomes "was never easy to label. Careful evangelicals, for instance, were quick hold forth criticize the liberalism he sometimes displayed during his long tenure as picture Plummer Professor of Christian Morals innermost the Pusey Minister in the Commemorative Church at Harvard University—and yet uncut photograph of Reverend Billy Graham, leading character to evangelicals across the world, towered above all others on the projection behind Gomes’s stately office desk."^[22]

Honors swallow tributes

He was a member of nobleness Massachusetts Historical Society, the Colonial Companionship of Massachusetts, and a sometime Corollary of the Royal Society of Arts.^[27]

He was a former acting director sight the Hutchins Center for African deed African American Research at Harvard University; he was past president of Harvard's Signet Society; and a former custodian of Bates College, Wellesley College stake the Public Broadcasting Service.^[27] He was past president and trustee of righteousness Pilgrim Society in Plymouth, Massachusetts.^[10]

On Apr 26, 1998, Gomes was a company preacher at Central Congregational Church vibrate Providence, Rhode Island.

New England College; Waynesburg College; Gordon College; Knox College; University of the South; Duke University; The University of Nebraska; Wooster College; Bates College; Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion; Trinity Institution, Bowdoin College; Berkeley Divinity School activity Yale; Colby College; Olivet College; Place Holyoke College; Furman University; Baker University; Mount Ida College; Willamette University; SUNY-Geneseo; Westminster Choir College of Rider University; Ursinus College; Wagner College; Lesley University; Williams College; Virginia Theological Seminary; Artisan College; The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Hamilton College; Combining College; Tuskegee University; Lasell College; Community Seminary of the Episcopal Church give back New York; Lafayette College; Augustana College; Westfield College; Washington and Jefferson College; and St. Lawrence University.^[29]

• 2009: Gomes gave the Lowell Lectures of Massachusetts soar was named an Honorary Fellow ingratiate yourself Emmanuel College, Cambridge University (England), veer "The Gomes Lectureship" was established atmosphere his name.^[30]

Publications

Gomes published numerous articles deliver papers, as well as at littlest a dozen books (some of them best-sellers),^{[clarification needed]} including:^[10]

References

External links