David Elliot Johnson (April 17, 1933 – January 14, 1995) was the 14th
Bishop of Massachusetts
The Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts is one of the nine original dioceses of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America.
History
Massachusetts was founded by Puritans who did not accept such aspects of the Church of England as bish ...
in
The Episcopal Church
The Episcopal Church, based in the United States with additional dioceses elsewhere, is a member church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. It is a mainline Protestant denomination and is divided into nine Ecclesiastical provinces and dioces ...
.
Early life
Johnson was born in
Newark, New Jersey
Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area. His parents were Frances Lysett (née Wemore) and Theodore Eames Johnson.
He graduated from
Trinity College Trinity College may refer to:
Australia
* Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales
* Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...
in Hartford with a
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
in 1955. There, he was a member of St. Anthony Hall. After college, he spent three years in the U.S. Air Force Strategic Air Command as a pilot.
He then went to Virginia Theological Seminary, where he received a
Master of Divinity
For graduate-level theological institutions, the Master of Divinity (MDiv, ''magister divinitatis'' in Latin) is the first professional degree of the pastoral profession in North America. It is the most common academic degree in seminaries and divi ...
degree in 1961.
Career
After ordination to the diaconate in 1961 and the priesthood in 1961, he served as rector of the Church of the Good Shepherd in
Little Rock, Arkansas
(The Little Rock, The "Little Rock")
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, leader_name = Frank Scott Jr.
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from 1961 to 1965. From 1965 to 1972, he was the vicar of St Martin's Church in
Fayetteville, Arkansas
Fayetteville () is the second-largest city in Arkansas, the county seat of Washington County, and the biggest city in Northwest Arkansas. The city is on the outskirts of the Boston Mountains, deep within the Ozarks. Known as Washington until ...
. He served as rector of Calvary Church in
Columbia, Missouri
Columbia is a city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It is the county seat of Boone County and home to the University of Missouri. Founded in 1821, it is the principal city of the five-county Columbia metropolitan area. It is Missouri's fourth ...
from 1972 to 1976. He was called to the Diocese of Southwest Florida in 1976 to become Next, he was rector of St. Boniface in Sarasota, Florida in 1976, serving there until 1985.
Johnson was elected Coadjutor Bishop of Massachusetts on May 18, 1985. He was consecrated on October 5, 1985 by presiding Bishop
John Allin
John Maury Allin (April 22, 1921 – March 6, 1998) was an American Episcopalian bishop who served as the 23rd Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church from 1974 to 1985.
Early life
Allin was born in Helena, Arkansas. He graduated from the Un ...
in the Cathedral of the Holy Cross. Johnson became Bishop in 1986 of the largest diocese in the Episcopal Church.
As Bishop, he regularly preached about world peace, the arms race, and AIDS and was traditionally known to visit two parishes on Sundays. He was also a supporter of the ordination of women as priests and bishops but did not support ordaining gay and lesbian persons.Barbara Harris became the first female suffragan bishop of the Episcopal Church under his tenure. He founded the DoveMass program which recruited volunteers to work in public schools.
His episcopacy was characterized with a number of clashes with some congregations, notably in 1993 when he was involved in a public dispute with
Emmanuel Episcopal Church, Boston
Emmanuel Episcopal Church, a historic church at 15 Newbury Street in Boston, Massachusetts, was founded in 1860 as part of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts.
History
Designed by architect Alexander Rice Esty and constructed in 1861, it was t ...
over their music program. He was also in conflict with the Church of the Advent after criticizing the means how the church was governed. In return the church filed suit asking for a court injunction to keep him from interfering.
In November 1994, Johnson announced that he intended to retire in June 5, 1995.
Death
Johnson married Joyce Joanne Evans in 1958. They had three children: Stephanie, Scott, and Elizabeth. In 1994, they sold their house in Framingham, Massachusetts, and had purchased a retirement home in Kansas.
On January 15, 1995, Johnson was found dead at the age of 61 years in his apartment in Framingham, Massachusetts. It was revealed that he died from a single gunshot to the chest. It was concluded that Johnson committed suicide using a .22-caliber rifle. There was no suicide note. However, the church confirmed that Johnson suffered from depression and had attempted suicide on another occasion. His funeral took place in Trinity Church in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
and was presided over by Presiding Bishop Edmond L. Browning on January 19, 1995.
Two weeks after his death, the Episcopal Church revealed that Johnson was involved in several extramarital affairs throughout his ministry. These findings were based on reports by women who came forward. Bishop Browning's statement indicated that some of the relationships "appear to have been of the character of sexual exploitation." One challenge for the women was that Johnson was the person who was supposed to handle such cases in his district. No formal charges against Johnson were pressed by the church.