Matt Gaventa

Pastor, preacher, writer.

I’m senior pastor and head of staff at University Presbyterian Church in Austin, Texas, where I’ve served since 2017. Before Austin, I was pastor of Amherst Presbyterian Church in Amherst, Virginia, and chaplain to Sweet Briar College.

In addition to actually preaching, I also like thinking about preaching. If you’d like to think about preaching with me, drop me a note.

Selected Sermons

University Presbyterian Church keeps a full archive of my sermons, with audio. Here are a few recent ones I particularly like.

“Will You Be Checking Out Today?”September 6, 2026 · Matthew 6:7–15. Groundhog Day & “Our Daily Bread.”
“Another Drawn by the Sword”June 21, 2026 · Matthew 5:21–26. Lincoln’s Second Inaugural & the challenge of reconciliation.
“The Risen Christ”May 3, 2026 · Acts 7:51–60. Why is Jesus standing up?
“And It Was Night”March 22, 2026 · John 13:21–30. Lenten monsters, Satan, and the Last Supper.
“So Do All Who Live to See Such Times”January 4, 2026 · Matthew 2:1–12. Epiphany & The Lord of the Rings.
“The Future”September 7, 2025 · Jeremiah 32:6–15. Jeremiah roots for the home team.

Selected Writing & Publishing

“The Church’s Crisis of Vocational Theology”The Christian Century, 2026. More of my writing is on my contributor page.
“The Joke’s On Me: Comedy and Vulnerability in the Pulpit” and “Tragedy Plus Time: Preaching Laughter in the Presence of Death”Jones Lectures, Midwinter Lectures at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, 2022
“Looking Into the Lectionary”The Presbyterian Outlook, 2025: Transfiguration Sunday, Sixth Sunday of Easter, and Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost
“Unprotected Migrants”The Christian Century, 2019. Winner of an Associated Church Press Award for opinion writing.
“Five Things that Captain America: Civil War Gets Right About Church Conflict” and “Finding Dory, Finding Church”Working Preacher, 2016
Sunday Morning MatineePodcast co-host for The Christian Century, 2015–2021

Contact

Email me at matt [dot] gaventa [at] gmail [dot] com.