Peale, Norman Vincent

(born May 31, 1898, Bowersville, Ohio, U.S.—died Dec. 24, 1993, Pawling, N.Y.) U.S. Protestant clergyman. The son of a Methodist preacher, he attended Ohio Wesleyan University and was ordained a pastor in the Methodist Episcopal church. After leading congregations in Brooklyn and Syracuse, N.Y., in 1933 he became pastor of Marble Collegiate Church in New York City, where he remained for the rest of his career. In 1937 he cofounded the Religio-Psychiatric Clinic, which combined religion and psychiatry in the interests of mental health. He gained fame through radio and television sermons and through his books, including the best-selling Power of Positive Thinking (1952). In 1969 he was elected president of the Reformed Church in America.

Peale, Norman Vincent (1898–93) Protestant religious leader, author; born in Bowersville, Ohio. The son of a pastor-physician, he graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University in 1920 and was ordained a Methodist Episcopal minister two years later. He held pastorates in Rhode Island and New York before beginning his long association with Marble Collegiate Reformed Church in New York City, where he was pastor from 1932 to 1984. In 1937 he established a psychiatric clinic, the American Foundation of Religion and Psychiatry, as part of his ministry. Known in later years for a somewhat Pollyannish version of Christianity, he authored many best-selling books, including The Art of Loving (1948), The Power of Positive Thinking (1952), and The Tough-Minded Optimist (1962), and was an influential lecturer, radio broadcaster, syndicated newspaper columnist, and host of the television program What's Your Problem? In 1969 he became president of the Reformed Church in America. He directed his many pastoral activities from his Foundation for Christian Living in Pawling, N.Y.