John is jealous and worries that Jack will take over his family when John is dead. John distrusts Jack based on his previous behavior and thinks he is a threat to his family. Jack arrives in Gilead and throws John into a state of irritation and frustration. John does not like sharing a name with Jack or having him as a godson. John is named after his father and grandfather: all three have the name John Ames, as does ne’er-do-well Jack Boughton. John’s father gave him some ash-covered biscuit, and John likens it to communion. Another vital memory for John was a rainy day when he and his father helped pull down a church that was struck by lightning. During this time, John’s father told him more about his grandfather’s life. They traveled through drought-stricken Kansas with little water and food. One of John’s formative memories comes at age 12, when he and his father spent a month or so searching for the grandfather’s grave. John’s father and grandfather disagreed over the use of religion to justify war, and the grandfather left Iowa and returned to Kansas, where he died. He supported John Brown’s skirmishes in Kansas before the Civil War, then served in the war himself as a Union Army chaplain, where he lost his right eye. John’s grandfather saw a vision of the Lord that inspired him to move to Kansas in the 1830s and become a militant abolitionist. John’s father and grandfather were both ministers, although very different kinds. John, however, is unable to forgive Jack. Boughton loves Jack most of all his children and forgives him everything.

John knows that Jack has caused his family a lot of heartache: Jack got a young girl pregnant and then disavowed her and his infant daughter. Jack is the black sheep of the family, and John is not thrilled that he is returning. Both are excited that Boughton’s son Jack is returning home after many years away. Now Boughton is old and dying, and his daughter Glory is home helping care for him. John’s best friend, Robert Boughton, is also a minister. This letter is a chance to communicate all the things he will not have a chance to tell his boy in person. John deeply regrets that he will not see his son grow to manhood. John suffers from heart trouble and doesn’t have much longer to live. Finally having a family of his own fills John with joy. John met and fell in love with her one rainy Sunday when she first walked into his church. Now John lives with his much younger wife, Lila, a serious woman who bears a hidden sorrow. John’s first wife, Louisa, died in childbirth along with the baby, and John spent a long time alone.

He still preaches at the same church and has over 50 years’ worth of his written sermons saved in boxes. Gilead is a small town that has endured hardships and tragedies, and looks like it has seen better days, but John loves it.

The novel takes place in Gilead, Iowa, in 1956, where Reverend John Ames has lived for 74 of his 76 years.

Gilead home lila jack