Vanderbilt Trailblazer

 by Cynthia Johnson-Oliver

Vanderbilt Unveils New Bishop Johnson Portrait


–

We are excited to announce that Vanderbilt University unveiled a new portrait of Bishop Joseph A. Johnson, Jr., along with the portraits of other Vanderbilt trailblazers during Homecoming weekend on October 13, 2018. Chancellor Nicholas S. Zeppos unveiled four portraits as part of a new “Vanderbilt Trailblazers” portrait series to honor members of the Vanderbilt community who broke barriers at the university and in society at large. The other portraits feature Perry Wallace, the Rev. Walter R. Murray Jr., and the Rev. James Lawson.

Commissioned by Chancellor Zeppos, the portraits were painted by world-renowned artist Simmie Knox, who has painted portraits of Oprah Winfrey, Muhammad Ali, Justice Thurgood Marshall and Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and the official White House portraits of President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton. 

The portraits are part of Vanderbilt’s campus-wide effort of “creating welcoming, inclusive and accessible spaces that recognize and celebrate the diversity of the Vanderbilt community.” The portraits are currently on display in the parlor of the Mary McClure Taylor Lobby in Kirkland Hall, Vanderbilt University’s administration building. They will remain in Kirkland Hall until they are dedicated in their permanent locations across campus next year. 

Bishop Joseph A. Johnson, Jr. was the first African American to graduate from Vanderbilt University, (Bachelor of Divinity, 1954), the first to receive a PhD (1958), and the first to serve as a full member of the Vanderbilt Board of Trust. The Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center honors his legacy on the Vanderbilt campus. He was also the 34th Bishop of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, noted scholar and theologian, and the author of The Soul of the Black Preacher and Proclamation Theology. The Bishop Joseph Johnson History Project is telling his life story through a biography and documentary film currently in progress.

Also featured, Perry Wallace enrolled at Vanderbilt in 1966, was an engineering student and the first African American varsity basketball player in the Southeastern Conference. Rev. Walter R. Murray Jr. was founder of the Association of Vanderbilt Black Alumni and was a was a founder of the Afro-American Student Association. He was elected a young alumni trustee in 1970, becoming the first African American to serve on the Vanderbilt University Board of Trust. Rev. James Lawson’s civil rights activism in Nashville led to his expulsion from Vanderbilt in 1960. Eventually, Lawson and Vanderbilt reconciled and, in 1996, he received the Divinity School’s first Distinguished Alumni/ae Award. Lawson returned to Vanderbilt to teach as a Distinguished University Professor in 2006.

 

Vanderbilt University Trailblazers Portrait Unveiling - Bishop Joseph A. Johnson, Jr. - at Kirkland Hall.(Vanderbilt University/Joe Howell)
Vanderbilt University Trailblazers Portrait Unveiling - Rev. James Lawson - at Kirkland Hall.(Vanderbilt University/Joe Howell)
Vanderbilt University Trailblazers Portrait Unveiling - Perry Wallace - at Kirkland Hall.(Vanderbilt University/Joe Howell)
Vanderbilt University Trailblazers Portrait Unveiling - Walter Murray - at Kirkland Hall.(Vanderbilt University/Joe Howell)
Vanderbilt University Trailblazers Portrait Unveiling at Kirkland Hall.

–

The Bishop Joseph Johnson History Project is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization dedicated to preserving the legacy of Bishop Joseph A. Johnson, Jr. and meeting the continuing demand for his books, sermons, and papers that persists 40 years after his death. Biography and documentary film in progress.

in Biography Project / Documentary Project / Vanderbilt Trailblazer 0 comments
 by Cynthia Johnson-Oliver

#OTD – April 12, 1984 – Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center Dedicated at Vanderbilt University

Panel Discussion on Legacy of Bishop Joseph A. Johnson, Jr., held at the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center at Vanderbilt University L. to R.: Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver, Dr. Riggins Earl, Bishop Paul Stewart, Dr. Evelyn Parker, and Dean Emilie Townes
L to R: Dwayne Johnson, Patricia Johnson-Powell, Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver, Dr. Riggins Earl, Bishop Paul Stewart, Dr. Evelyn Parker, Dean Emilie Townes, Bishop Lawrence L. Reddick, and Dr. Frank Dobson
Banner Celebrating 30th Anniversary of the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center at Vanderbilt University
Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver ready to interview for documentary film about Bishop Johnson
Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver interviewing Vanderbilt Associate Dean Frank Dobson for documentary film at Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center
Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver interviewing Vanderbilt Dean of Students Mark Bandas for documentary film at Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center

On this date 34 years ago, on April 12, 1984, the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center was dedicated at Vanderbilt University to honor Bishop Joseph Andrew Johnson, Jr. the first African American to graduate from the university. Bishop Johnson was also my grandfather, and I remember the day well as family members gathered in large numbers at the Sarratt Student Center a mere five years after my grandfather’s untimely death. In attendance were his widow, Grandmother Grace; his children Joseph III, Charles DeWitt (my father), and Patricia Ann; along with numerous great aunts and uncles, cousins, university dignitaries, church leaders, and many family friends.

Up until that day, I knew him only as “Granddaddy,” but at the age of nine, I was old enough to read the biographical sketch and listen to the program speakers. It was then that I learned about my grandfather’s quadfecta of firsts: that he was the first African-American to attend Vanderbilt University, the first to graduate, receiving the Bachelor of Divinity in 1954, the first to receive a PhD from the university in 1958, and the first African American elected to serve as a full member of the university’s Board of Trusts in 1971. I would later learn that when he enrolled at Vanderbilt, he also became the first African American to attend a private, white university in the south.

He was also the thirty-fourth bishop of the Christian Methodist Church, the first dean and president of Phillips School of Theology, and a New Testament professor at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta. He was a pioneer in the field of black theology and biblical interpretation, authoring five books, including The Soul of the Black Preacher and Proclamation Theology. As a bishop, he became a civil rights advocate and an international speaker at universities and conferences throughout the world.

At the dedication, the book program contained printed remarks from former Vanderbilt University Chancellors, Harvie Brandscomb and Alexander Heard, as well as William S. Vaughn, former president of the Board of Trusts. Heard described my grandfather as a man who was never self-conscious about being the first black member of the Board and never hesitant to speak on topics that interested him. Vaughn described him as a “skillful advocate on behalf of blacks” who spoke “out of the deep currents of his own racial experience.” The speakers all agreed that the dedication of the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center was a worthy tribute to his legacy. Brandscomb, who participated in the decision to admit my grandfather in 1953, noted that it was “especially fitting that it should be a center where young men and women are following in his footsteps.”

Today, thirty-four years after the dedication, the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center is a cultural hub on Vanderbilt’s campus, hosting speakers, guest lecturers, student organizations, and academic opportunities focused on African and African American culture. According to its website, the center is “a gathering place, a home away from home for students who study in the BCC, gather there for meetings, and learn about African and African American culture through the center’s programs.” The center’s mission includes cultural and educational programming, student support and development, and community outreach and service. Its roster of renowned speakers includes Angela Davis, Julian Bond, the late Negro Leagues Legend, Buck O’Neil, Afeni Shakur (mother of the late Tupac Shakur); and Dr. Eugene Richardson of the Tuskegee Airmen. In the almost forty years since his death, Bishop Johnson’s legacy continues to live in the generations of Vanderbilt students who attend meetings, cultural events, panel discussions, and seminars at the Black Cultural Center. They do so knowing that the barrier was broken and the door was opened by Johnson’s courageous decision to apply, attend, and persevere at Vanderbilt University.

But Bishop Johnson’s impact extends beyond one campus. In the Fall of 2015, when the #BlackonCampus movement sparked protests by African American students at university campuses across the country, many student activists invoked the names and stories of their universities’ first African American students. In doing so, they demonstrated that the campus protests were not new, but were grounded in a decades-long struggle for diversity and equality in higher education. The life story of Bishop Johnson takes place at the heart of this historical struggle and represents generations of freedom fighters who struggled for the right to read, to study, to learn, and eventually to be admitted to the nation’s best institutions. Thus, Bishop Johnson’s life story provides historical context and inspiration for today’s generations of students, advocates, people of faith, and others still engaged in the struggle for justice, equality, and inclusion today.

Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver is writing a biography and filming a documentary about Bishop Joseph A. Johnson, Jr. For more information, visit www.bishopjosephjohnson.org.

Follow on social media: @BishopJJHistory and @CJohnsonOliver.

Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver interviewing Vanderbilt Associate Dean Frank Dobson for documentary film at Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center

in Biography Project / Documentary Project / Vanderbilt Trailblazer 1 comments
 by Cynthia Johnson-Oliver

Bishop Joseph Johnson Posthumously Receives Distinguished Alumni Award, Vanderbilt Divinity

 

Dean Emilie Townes presents award; Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver accepts award for Bishop Johnson
Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver delivers acceptance speech
Dean Emilie Townes pictured with Distinguished Alumni/ae Honorees. L. to R.: Rev. Becca Stevens, Dean Emilie Townes, Rev. Dr. Thomas Ogletree, and Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver
Honorees and Presenters
Distinguished Alumnus certificate
Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver and Dr. Evelyn Parker
Banner Celebrating 30th Anniversary of the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center at Vanderbilt University

 

Cynthia accepting awardBishop Joseph A. Johnson, Jr. was posthumously conferred the “Distinguished Alumnus” award at Vanderbilt Divinity School on October 3, 2014. Bishop Johnson was the first African American to graduate from Vanderbilt University (BD’54), the first to receive a PhD (1958) and the first to serve as a full member on the Board of Trusts. [Click here for full bio.]

The Distinguished Alumni award award is “given to someone who has demonstrated excellence and distinction in justice making through their work in congregational ministry, religious institutions, ecumenical organizations, community –based organizations, government, or other social institutions.”

The award was presented by Dr. Emilie Townes, Dean of Vanderbilt Divinity School, and Dr. Frank Dobson, Director of the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center at Vanderbilt University. The award was accepted on behalf of Bishop Johnson by Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver, granddaughter of Bishop Johnson and president of the Bishop Joseph Johnson History Project.

In presenting the award, Dr. Dobson quoted from Bishop Johnson’s book, The Soul of the Black Preacher:

“Soul is the strength to survive in a hostile environment, to break through the legal and social conventions which tend to dehumanize and degrade. Soul is the ability to use creatively the destructive powers of a racist American society for the development of a tough faith and undying hope.”  – Bishop Joseph A. Johnson, Jr.

Dr. Dobson concluded, “Bishop Joseph Johnson broke through those legal and social conventions, and in doing so, he changed Vanderbilt forever. It is thus very fitting on the 100th anniversary of his birth and the 60th anniversary of his first graduation from Vanderbilt that this honor is being bestowed upon him.”

Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver accepted the award on behalf of her grandfather:

Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver delivers acceptance speech

Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver delivers acceptance speech

I want to thank the faculty of Vanderbilt Divinity School and Dean Emilie Townes for honoring my grandfather. I also want to thank Dr. Frank Dobson for his presentation of this award.

It is an honor for me to accept this award on behalf of my grandfather and on behalf of all of my family, some of whom are present this evening. I also accept this award on behalf of Capers Memorial CME Church, whose members are also present and where Bishop Johnson pastored while at Vanderbilt, and the entire CME Church.

In the introduction to Bishop Johnson’s book, The Soul of the Black Preacher, Bishop C.D. Coleman (who wrote the introduction) describes the black preacher as “teacher, healer, carpenter, and undertaker by necessity. It was he who took down the mutilated bodies…after the mobs had done their worst. It was he who represented black people to a hostile white community in times of deep trouble.” These words possessed deep meaning for Bishop Johnson, who, early in his ministry, did actually perform the funeral of a man who had been lynched.

Today, however, those who carry Bishop Johnson’s legacy are not limited to black preachers. They include those who minister to the families of Trevon Martin and Michael Brown and other African Americans families denied racial justice. But they also include those who minister at the US-Mexican border to children fleeing in a mass exodus to a better life. They include people of faith who interdict human traffickers, freeing people from modern-day slavery. They include those who minister to families experiencing the trauma of domestic violence.

Today, my grandfather’s legacy is carried by the soul of the justice-seeking preacher who is committed, as Bishop Johnson was, to improving our world with the intellectual, interpretive power to proclaim the gospel in liberating ways, combined with courageous pastoral care to those at the margins of society, along with faithful action for social and economic justice on behalf of the least, the last, and the lost.

It is this vision of mind and soul, of intellect and faith in the service of justice that compelled Bishop Johnson to attend Vanderbilt, and it is a vision that he carried throughout his life, his ministry, and his theology. I thank Vanderbilt Divinity School for honoring Bishop Johnson and his legacy. I thank Bishop Johnson for his life vision, and for all of us who carry his legacy, our soul-filled struggle for a more just world continues.   – Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver

 

in Vanderbilt Trailblazer 0 comments
 by Cynthia Johnson-Oliver

Scholars, Religious Leaders Reflect on Bishop Johnson’s Life and Legacy

Banner Celebrating 30th Anniversary of the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center at Vanderbilt University
Panel Discussion on Legacy of Bishop Joseph A. Johnson, Jr., held at the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center at Vanderbilt University L. to R.: Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver, Dr. Riggins Earl, Bishop Paul Stewart, Dr. Evelyn Parker, and Dean Emilie Townes
Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver speaks about Bishop Johnson's early life and ministry.
Dr. Riggins Earl reflects on Bishop Johnson's experience and legacy as the first African American student at Vanderbilt.
Bishop Paul Stewart speaks about Bishop Johnson's legacy in the CME Church.
Senior Bishop Lawrence L. Reddick and Bishop Paul Stewart of the CME Church
L to R: Dwayne Johnson, Patricia Johnson-Powell, Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver, Dr. Riggins Earl, Bishop Paul Stewart, Dr. Evelyn Parker, Dean Emilie Townes, Bishop Lawrence L. Reddick, and Dr. Frank Dobson
Bishop Lawrence L. Reddck, Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver, and Dr. Riggins Earl
Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver and Dean Emilie Townes
Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver and Dr. Evelyn Parker

The auditorium of the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center at Vanderbilt University was filled with students and other members of the Vanderbilt community, members of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, including Senior Bishop Lawrence L. Reddick, and members of the Johnson family, all of whom gathered to hear reflections on the life and legacy of the Black Cultural Center’s namesake, Bishop Joseph A. Johnson, Jr.

The event was a panel discussion on the life and legacy of Bishop Johnson that featured scholars and religious leaders. Panelists included Bishop Paul Stewart, retired senior bishop of the CME Church; Dr. Evelyn Parker, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at Perkins School of Theology; Dr. Riggins Earl, Professor of Ethics and Theology at the Interdenominational Theological Center; and Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver, JD, granddaughter of Bishop Johnson and president of the Bishop Joseph Johnson History Project. Dr. Emilie Townes, Dean of Vanderbilt Divinity School, served as moderator of the panel. Dr. Frank Dobson, Director of the Black Cultural Center, introduced the panel.

Rev. Johnson-Oliver, who is currently writing a biography of Bishop Johnson, reflected on his early life and ministry. Dr. Earl then gave reflections on Bishop Johnson’s experiences and his legacy as the first African American student at Vanderbilt. Bishop Stewart reflected on Bishop Johnson’s legacy as a bishop in the CME Church. Dr. Parker offered reflections on growing up as a youth in the episcopal district in which Bishop Johnson presided, along with his scholarly legacy. A highlight of the discussion came after a question by Kevin Brown, a Vanderbilt Divinity School student, who asked about Bishop Johnson as a husband and father. From the audience, Patricia Johnson-Powell, daughter of Bishop Johnson, gave a heart-warming reflection of an egalitarian husband who shared in household responsibilities and regularly affirmed her as his “baby girl.” The panel also addressed questions about Bishop Johnson’s books and their significance today.

[Video of panel discussion is forthcoming.]

Bishop Johnson was the first African American to be admitted to Vanderbilt University. He went on to become the first African American to graduate, receiving the Bachelor of Divinity degree in 1954, and the first to receive the Doctor of Philosophy degree in 1958. In 1971, he was elected to the Vanderbilt Board of Trust and two years later preached at the Divinity School’s Cole Lectures. Bishop Johnson was also the 34th Bishop of the CME Church, the first President of Phillips School of Theology, and Professor of New Testament at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, GA.

In 1984, the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center at Vanderbilt was dedicated in his honor. In 2013, the Bishop Joseph Johnson History Project was started by Bishop Johnson’s granddaughter, Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver.

The panel discussion marked the 100th anniversary of Bishop Johnson’s birth and the 60th anniversary of Bishop Johnson’s first graduation from Vanderbilt. The Black Cultural Center is also celebrating its 30th anniversary. At an awards ceremony later that evening, Bishop Johnson posthumously received the Distinguished Alumni award conferred by Vanderbilt Divinity School.

in Vanderbilt Trailblazer 0 comments
 by Cynthia Johnson-Oliver

Bishop Johnson Named “Distinguished Alumnus” at Vanderbilt Divinity School

2014 Distinguished Alumni Celebration DinnerWe are pleased to announce that Bishop Joseph A. Johnson, Jr. has been named a 2014 Distinguished Alumni/ae award recipient at Vanderbilt Divinity School. The Vanderbilt Divinity School award is “given to someone who has demonstrated excellence and distinction in justice making through their work in congregational ministry, religious institutions, ecumenical organizations, community –based organizations, government, or other social institutions.”

In 1953, Bishop Johnson became the first African American to be admitted to Vanderbilt University. He went on to become the first African American to graduate, receiving the Bachelor of Divinity degree in 1954, and the first to receive the Doctor of Philosophy degree in 1958. In 1971, he was elected to the Vanderbilt Board of Trust and two years later preached at the Divinity School’s Cole Lectures.

In 1966, Bishop Johnson was elected the 34th bishop of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church. He also served as President of Phillips School of Theology, Professor of New Testament at the Interdenominational Theological Center, and Dean of Chapel at Fisk University

A pioneer in the field of black theology, Bishop Johnson authored several books, including The Soul of the Black Preacher (1971), The Local Church and Lay Evangelism (1974), Our Faith, Heritage, and Church (1975), Proclamation Theology (1977), and Basic Christian Methodist Beliefs (1978).

In 1984, the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center at Vanderbilt was dedicated in his honor. In 2013, the Bishop Joseph Johnson History Project was started by Bishop Johnson’s granddaughter, Rev. Cynthia Johnson-Oliver.

Rev. Johnson-Oliver will accept the award on behalf of Bishop Johnson at a celebration dinner to be held on October 3, 2014 at Vanderbilt University. She will also present at a panel discussion on the life and legacy of Bishop Johnson at the Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center.

Other 2014 award recipients include Rev. Dr. Thomas W. Ogletree and Rev. Becca Stevens. Previous Distinguished Alumni/ae recipients include James Lawson, Fred Craddock, Gardner Taylor and Charlotte Hotopp Zachary.

Click here to read article announcing Distinguished Alumni/ae Award.

Click here to read Vanderbilt Divinity School announcement.

Click here for more information about the panel discussion on the life and legacy of Bishop Johnson.

 

 

 

in Vanderbilt Trailblazer 2 comments