Johnson, William A.
Biographical Note
Reverend William A. Johnson (1900-1995), preacher, missionary, author, and educator.
He was born in Washington, D.C. to William A. and Missouri Elliott Johnson. His father served in the US Navy for 31 years, rising to the rank of petty officer. His mother was a housewife. Orphaned at the age of 4, he and his sister were reared by their maternal Aunt Delilah Elliott Nelson. She instilled in them the value she placed on faith and education. He graduated from Armstrong Vocational High School furthering his hopes of becoming a construction engineer by enrolling in Freeling Hisley University.
During World War I, he was able to obtain Federal employment. Johnson, along with many others, was forced to give up this employment upon the homecoming of soldiers from overseas to which employment had been promised. Fortunately, he was able to find a good paying job in private business.
In 1921, he met and married Orphelia Virginia, a trained vocal musician who was very supportive of his pastoral career. It at a point in his life, that Rev. Johnson felt that he should return to school and study law. He envisioned himself as a great lawyer who would defend the downtrodden. His wife did not share his vision. She believed that Rev. Johnson was born to preach.
After struggling against it, Rev. Johnson accepted God's call to the ministry. To prepare for his calling, he attended Washington Baptist Seminary in Washington, D.C. Based on the training, his Christian experiences and his Sunday School knowledge of the Bible, he was ordained in 1926.
At various intervals Rev. Johnson continued his formal education. He earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree from Bloomfield College and Seminary in 1936. In 1944, he received his Master of Arts Degree from the Divinity School of the University of Chicago. For his many years of distinguished service, he was awarded the honorary Divinity Degree from Northern University and the Doctor of Letters Degree from California Graduate School of Theology.
Rev. Johnson's preaching career began in 1926 when he preached his first sermon at Pisgah Baptist Church in Washington, D.C. He assumed full pastoral responsibility of the church for three and half years. For the next three and half years, he served as pastor of Pilgrim Baptist Church in Nyack, NY. He then accepted the pastoral call to Shilo Baptist Church in Plainfield, NJ, where he worked diligently in the development of the church. It became a model of what an urban church should be to its surrounding community. He taught and preached the social gospel, which moved the membership to work for the common good of the church and its community.
In January 1940, Rev. Johnson accepted a pastoral call from Greater St. John Baptist Church in Chicago. Here he again faced the challenge to develop an urban church. He discovered that the building, called the Little Red Church, was leased from the Southside Hebrew Congregation. By November, Johnson had helped arrange for the Little Red Church to be purchased for $3000, with a down payment of $50. By 1949, the church had been completely remodeled, supplying an environment supporting worship and actions keeping with Christian principles.
The growth of St. John Baptist Church can be accredited to Rev. Johnson's ability to organize the growing membership. All individuals felt they had a voice in what was happening and therefore an obligation to be supportive of the many proposals for growth. When needed, committees became boards and task forces became standing committees - the congregation was involved in more than forty varied groups.
Rev. Johnson took his obligation to preach the gospel very seriously. His sermons were Biblically centered with a social gospel application to everyday life. Through his travels to 29 countries under the auspices of the World Baptist Alliances, he was committed to the Great Commission, "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations."
Music was very important to Rev. Johnson. Hymns were closely related to the topics of his sermons. He himself composed, "O God, Hope of Our Lives," and "Potter and Clay."
Much of the spiritual and social leadership in the Midwest was developed under the administration of Rev. Johnson. He led as an instructor, Dean and President of the Chicago Baptist Institute. Wherever his leadership would improve the quality of life for others, he willingly served. One author noted that Rev. Johnson was a, "courageous and undauntable spokesman for social justice over more than a generation on the Chicago scene, where his steadiness and wisdom have been constantly sought by movements of civic advance and ecumenical developments."
For his life's work, Rev. Johnson was honored with the highest awards granted by civic, religious and academic organizations and institutions. These include: Industrial Community Award; United States War Trade Board; Silver Beaver, Boy Scouts of America; Baptist State Convention of Illinois; Women's Division, Chicago Urban League; Overton Schoo Chicago, for community service; Chicago Baptist Institute; Baptist Pastors' Conference; Southside Community Committee; Alumnus of the Year, The Divinity School, University of Chicago; United Council of Christian Men's Club.