Century of Crossroads – Rev. Saint “Sam” Samuel Johnson (MDiv ’04)

Story Date: 03/16/2022

I live in Indianapolis, Indiana, and was a member of Light of the World Christian Church. Bishop T. Garrott Benjamin Jr. was the senior pastor at the time. He was also a graduate of Christian Theological Seminary. There were others under his pastorate who attended CTS, so I chose the same path. Those ahead of me shared their experiences with me. One of the most interesting and challenging experiences was enrolling at 67 and graduating at 72. My father was a minister, three of my brothers were ministers, and I had a sister who was an evangelist. During my young life my dad always said, ‘This is Saint Samuel. He is going to be my little minister.’ This became a reality. I felt that I had a call to ministry, but I struggled with it from time to time. I went into the military, where I stayed for 21 years. After retiring from the military and pursuing other endeavors for several years, I finally enrolled in seminary and began my journey in ministry. My first ministerial position was as the chaplain and pastor at Robin Run Village, a senior living center. I was blessed to be in this position for ten years. This ministry introduced me to seniors who still hungered and thirsted for spiritual growth in the evening years of their lives. This spiritual growth included Sunday worship services, bible study, and ongoing fellowship. My ministry also included providing memorial services. Although I was a chaplain, I served as a pastor for that community. My parishioners called me Pastor Sam. I am retired from ministry, but I’m willing to serve as needed.

This alumni story is from CTS’ Oral History Project, A Century of Crossroads, which captured the stories and memories of our alumni from our first 100 years in printed and digital formats.