William R. Johnson (sometimes referred to as Bill Johnson) was the first openly

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

minister to be ordained in a historic protestant denomination. He received his

ordination Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorization, authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominational ...

through the

United Church of Christ The United Church of Christ (UCC) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination based in the United States, with historical and confessional roots in the Congregational, Calvinist, Lutheran, and Anabaptist traditions, and with approximately 4 ...

(UCC) on June 25, 1972 in San Carlos,

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Education and ordination

Johnson first received his

undergraduate degree An undergraduate degree (also called first degree or simply degree) is a colloquial term for an academic degree earned by a person who has completed undergraduate courses. In the United States, it is usually offered at an institution of higher e ...

in May 1968 from

Elmhurst College Elmhurst University is a private university in Elmhurst, Illinois. It has a tradition of service-oriented learning and an affiliation with the United Church of Christ. The university changed its name from Elmhurst College on July 1, 2020. Hist ...

(now University) with a BA in English. He then held two summer student pastoral positions in Iowa before beginning his

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

in the following fall at

Pacific School of Religion The Pacific School of Religion (PSR) is a private Protestant seminary in Berkeley, California. It maintains covenantal relationships with the United Church of Christ, the United Methodist Church, and the Disciples of Christ, ensuring the schoo ...

Berkeley Berkeley most often refers to: *Berkeley, California, a city in the United States **University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California * George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher Berkeley may also refer ...

, California. He attended seminary from 1968–1971 and during that time he also held church positions as a youth minister, student pastor,

chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a Minister (Christianity), minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a laity, lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secularity, secular institution (such as a hosp ...

, and Interim Associate Pastor. In 1970, The

Graduate Theological Union The Graduate Theological Union (GTU) is a consortium of eight private independent American theological schools and eleven centers and affiliates. Seven of the theological schools are located in Berkeley, California. The GTU was founded in 1962 ...

organized a support group in Berkeley for gay seminarians. Johnson, having recently embraced his identity as a gay man that year, became an active member of the group. That year the group hosted a public forum at Graduate Theological Union on the topic of

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...

and the church. The event drew in around 400 attendees. During the public forum, Johnson came out as a gay

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

and made clear his intentions of receiving an ordination through the United Church of Christ. As a requirement for ordination, Johnson worked as a coordinator for a house church development ministry within the United Church of Christ from January 1971 until his ordination in San Carlos on June 25, 1972. He later returned to school to receive his Doctor of Education degree at the Institute for Advance Study of Human Sexuality in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

in May 1977. His ordination is the subject of the documentary film "A Position of Faith" directed by Michael Rhodes.

Career as a minister and LGBT activist

Some of Johnson's accomplishments in

LGBT activism Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) movements are social movements that advocate for LGBT people in society. Some focus on equal rights, such as the ongoing movement for same-sex marriage, while others focus on liberation, as in the ...

include founding the UCC Gay Caucus (now called UCC Coalition for LGBT Concerns) and co-founding

P-FLAG PFLAG is the United States' first and largest organization uniting parents, families, and allies with people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+). PFLAG National is the national organization, which provides support ...

/San Francisco. He has also planted UCC churches in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

and

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

. An annual lecture at Elmhurst University called The William R. Johnson Intercultural Lecture was named after him, along with The William R. Johnson Scholarship which was set up in 1999 for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender United Church of Christ seminarians. In 1974 Johnson co-authored the book ''Loving Women/Loving Men: Gay Liberation and the Church'' with

Sally Miller Gearhart Sally Miller Gearhart (April 15, 1931 – July 14, 2021) was an American teacher, feminist, science-fiction writer, and political activist. In 1973, she became the first open lesbian to obtain a tenure-track faculty position when she was hire ...

. After moving to New York City in 1977, Johnson founded Maranatha: Riversiders for Lesbian/Gay Concerns at

Riverside Church Riverside Church is an interdenominational church in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, on the block bounded by Riverside Drive, Claremont Avenue, 120th Street and 122nd Street near Columbia University's Mornings ...

the following year which was the first parish-based LGBT ministry within the United Church of Christ.

Retirement

Johnson retired during the 29th United Church of Christ General Synod on July 1, 2013. In his retirement, he continues to give talks about his experiences as a gay Christian

activist Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fro ...

and minister.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, William R. LGBT Protestant clergy 1946 births United Church of Christ ministers Elmhurst College alumni Pacific School of Religion alumni People from Houston People from Manhattan Living people

Education and ordination

Career as a minister and LGBT activist

Retirement

See also

References