Joseph Andrew Johnson Jr. (1914 – September 29, 1979) was an African-American theologian. He was a professor of New Testament at the Interdenominational Theological Center and

Fisk University Fisk University is a private historically black liberal arts college in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1866 and its campus is a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1930, Fisk was the first Africa ...

, and a bishop of the

Christian Methodist Episcopal Church The Christian Methodist Episcopal (C.M.E.) Church is a historically black denomination within the broader context of Wesleyan Methodism founded and organized by John Wesley in England in 1744 and established in America as the Methodist Episcopal ...

in Mississippi and Louisiana.

Early life

Johnson was born in 1914 in

Shreveport, Louisiana Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the third most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, respectively. The Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area, with a population of 393,406 in 2020, is t ...

. He grew up poor in a shotgun house. Johnson was educated at the Monroe Colored High School. He attended Texas College in Tyler, Texas, followed by the Iliff School of Theology. He graduated from Vanderbilt University's Divinity School, where he earned a bachelor's degree (B.D.- bachelor of Divinity which today is a Masters of Divinity)in 1954 and a PhD in 1958, at age 44. He was the first African American to graduate from the university. He returned to the Iliff School of Theology, where he earned a master's degree and a second PhD.

Career

Johnson was a professor of New Testament at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, Georgia. In 1969, he became a professor of New Testament at

. He later became a professor and eventually the president of the Phillips School of Theology in Jackson, Tennessee. Johnson became a bishop of the

in 1966. By 1979, he was the presiding bishop of the Fourth Episcopal District in Mississippi and Louisiana. Johnson served on the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches. He was also the chairman of the commission on theology of the National Committee of Black Churchmen and the commission on worship of the Consultation on Church Union. Johnson authored six books. In ''The Soul of the Black Preacher'', he argued that Christianity was a liberating factor for African Americans. Johnson worked on a new translation of the New Testament for two decades. Johnson was the second African American to serve board of trust of his alma mater, Vanderbilt University, from 1971 to 1979. He also served on the boards of Tyler College and the Iliff School of Theology. Bishop Johnson Center

Personal life, death and legacy

With his wife Grace, Johnson had two sons and a daughter. One of his sons, Joseph Johnson III, was a physicist and Professor at the Florida A&M University. Johnson died on September 29, 1979, in Shreveport, at age 65. He was buried in Lincoln Memorial Park, Shreveport. In 1984, the Afro House on the campus of Vanderbilt University was renamed in his honor. In 2018, his portrait by

Simmie Knox Simmie Lee Knox (born August 18, 1935) is an American painter who painted the official White House portrait of former United States President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton. He was the first black American artist to receive a presiden ...

was added to Kirkland Hall, the administration building.

Selected works

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Joseph A. Jr. 1914 births 1979 deaths People from Shreveport, Louisiana Vanderbilt University alumni Interdenominational Theological Center faculty Fisk University faculty American Christian theologians People of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church