Robert Carroll Johnson Jr. (July 18, 1938 – January 3, 2014) was

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

of the

Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina The Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina is a diocese of the Episcopal Church within Province IV that encompasses central North Carolina. Founded in 1817, the modern boundaries of the diocese roughly corresponds to the portion of North Caroli ...

from 1994 to 2000.

Early life and education

Johnson was born on July 18, 1938, in

Columbus, Georgia Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee County, with which it o ...

and was raised as a

Southern Baptist The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. The wo ...

. He was educated at Mercer College from where he earned 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 yea ...

in 1960. He also studied at

Yale Divinity School Yale Divinity School (YDS) is one of the twelve graduate and professional schools of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Congregationalist theological education was the motivation at the founding of Yale, and the professional school has ...

and graduated with 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 ...

in 1964. He also received a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. ...

from

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The universi ...

in 1973.

Ministry

Johnson was ordained as a Baptist minister but shortly later joined the Episcopal Church while in Yale and sought ordination. He was ordained deacon in 1964 by Bishop Richard H. Baker and priest in 1965 by Bishop Thomas Fraser of North Carolina. He served as assistant priest of St Peter's Church in

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont (United States), Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Meckl ...

from 1964 till 1966. In 1966 he was appointed rector of St Paul's Church in

Smithfield, North Carolina Smithfield is a town in and the county seat of Johnston County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2010 census the population was 10,966, and in 2019 the estimated population was 12,985. Smithfield is home to the Ava Gardner Museum and ...

and in 1969 priest-in-charge of St Christopher's Church in

Garner, North Carolina Garner is a town in Wake County, North Carolina, United States and a suburb of Raleigh. The population is 31,159 as of the 2020 Census. The city limits are entirely within Wake County, though portions of unincorporated Wake County, as well as th ...

. In 1975 he became rector of St Luke's Church in Durham, North Carolina.

Bishop

Johnson was elected Bishop of North Carolina on December 4, 1993, during a special convention held at the then conference centre of the Diocese in

Browns Summit, North Carolina Browns Summit (sometimes called Brown Summit) is a small unincorporated community in Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. The community remains rural, consisting of wooded areas and a mixture of open meadows and rolling farmland, ho ...

.Journal of Proceedings of the Special Convention to Elect a Bisho

Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina, 4 December 1993. Retrieved on 31 December 2018. He was consecrated bishop on May 14, 1994, by Presiding Bishop

Edmond L. Browning Edmond Lee Browning (March 11, 1929 – July 11, 2016) was an American bishop. He was the 24th presiding bishop and primate of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. Education, ordination, early ministry Browning received his s ...

Duke Chapel Duke University Chapel is a chapel located at the center of the campus of Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, United States. It is an ecumenical Christian chapel and the center of religion at Duke, and has connections to the United Metho ...

. During his episcopacy he promoted the inclusion of all baptized Christians, including gay members. He was also vocal against racism and capital punishment. He was also a member of the Ecclesiastical Court which heard charges against Bishop

Walter C. Righter Walter Cameron Righter (October 23, 1923 – September 11, 2011) was a bishop in the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. He served the Diocese of Iowa from 1972 to 1988. He then served as assistant bishop for the Diocese of Newark ...

after he ordained an openly lesbian priest. The charges were later dismissed. Johnson retired in 2000 and died in 2014.

References

1938 births 2014 deaths Episcopal Church in North Carolina Converts to Anglicanism from Baptist denominations People from Columbus, Georgia Mercer University alumni Yale Divinity School alumni North Carolina State University alumni 20th-century American Episcopalians Episcopal bishops of North Carolina {{US-Anglican-bishop-stub