Passage: The Rev. Peter J. Gomes

Compiled by TPC

The Rev. Peter J. Gomes, lauded by peers and admirers as one of America's strongest symbols of Christian moral courage, died Feb. 28 from complications of a stroke suffered in December 2010. The Harvard University educator, preacher, and author was 68.

A memorial service celebrating his life and ministry will be held in at 11:00 a.m. Wednesday, April 6th at The Memorial Church on the Harvard campus. The service is open to all.

Listing his many accomplishments is like reading the kind of résumé once reserved for America's rich, white elite, demonstrating what a groundbreaker Rev. Gomes was. An American Baptist minister, Rev. Gomes was Plummer Professor of Christian Morals and Pusey Minister in the Memorial Church at Harvard University. He was a member of both Harvard's Divinity School faculty and the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. He received 39 honorary degrees and was an Honorary Fellow of Emmanuel College, University of Cambridge, according to a release from Harvard Divinity School.

Highly regarded for his oratorical skills, in 1979 Time magazine called Rev. Gomes “one of the seven most distinguished preachers in America.” Last year performance artist Anna Deavere Smith impersonated Gomes'  distinctive personal mannerisms in her one-woman play, "Let Me Down Easy," about people facing illness or death. A release from the National Council of Churches noted: "Folding her arms in an uncannily familiar fashion across her chest, Smith vividly channeled Gomes on stage when she asserted his advice to people at funerals: don't be afraid of death. 'I tell them, stay at the grave as long as you can,' Smith said imitating Gomes' resounding voice. 'I say, cherish the moment.' "

Rev. Gomes also authored many books, including two best sellers The Good Book: Reading the Bible with Mind and Heartand Sermons: Biblical Wisdom for Daily Living. Among his numerous academic papers and popular articles was a 2003 essay for Sojourners magazine, "Patriotism Is Not Enough," a reflection on Christian conscience in a time of war. In it he argued:

" … What do you do when your country is headed where you think your faith and your God don't want you to go? … Must the first casualty of patriotism always be dissent, debate, and discussion? This is a frightening time, and if one cannot speak out of Christian conscience and conviction now, come what may, then we are forever consigned to moral silence. We hear much talk of 'moral clarity,' but it sounds more to me like moral arrogance, and it must not be met with moral silence."

His stance against the morality and legality of the Iraq war drew him much media coverage, including being part of a 2003 panel on Krista Tippett's NPR program then named "Speaking of Faith" (now known as "Being"). Together with conservative ethicist Jean Bethke Elshtain and New York Times war correspondent Chris Hedges, author of the best seller War is a Force That Gives Us Meaning, Rev. Gomes gave encouragement to those protesting the war and suffered harsh retaliation from those who backed it.

Rev. Gomes' moral courage extended to his sexuality. He came out as a gay man in November 1991 after a student magazine published an issue condemning homosexuality. He said to the Harvard community: "I am a Christian who happens as well to be gay ... These realities irreconcilable to some are reconciled in me by a loving God."

Among the many remembrances issued at Rev. Gomes' death was one from the Rev. Gilbert H. Caldwell, a retired United Methodist clergyman who co-founded Black Methodists for Church Renewal and is now active in organizations attempting to convince The United Methodist Church to drop its anti-gay doctrines. Rev. Caldwell recounted this anecdote for The Progressive Christian:

"I became the first African American pastor of the Bryantville and West Duxbury Methodist Churches in the summer of 1958. Peter Gomes' mother, who lived in nearby Plymouth, Massachusetts, was a close friend of one of the white [church] members. They spoke frequently and the member shared with Mrs. Gomes that although a few members were upset with having a black pastor, most members were pleased with me. To my surprise, the first time I spoke with Peter Gomes, he told me that the conversations between his mother and our church member about my ministry encouraged him to believe that a black minister could be successful in a predominantly white church."

Rev. Caldwell said that Rev. Gomes returned the favor of inspiration through his book, The Good Book: Reading the Bible with Mind and Heart. "The eighth chapter in the book is titled 'The Bible and Homosexuality: The Last Prejudice,' " Rev. Caldwell said. "It was his 'last prejudice" idea that prompted me to write [about the UMC's ongoing struggle with anti-LGBT doctrines]."

Saying the academic community was deeply saddened by Rev. Gomes' death, Harvard President Drew Faust commented: “Peter Gomes was an original. For 40 years, he has served Harvard as a teacher in the fullest sense — a scholar, a mentor, one of the great preachers of our generation, and a living symbol of courage and conviction."