Clair Johnson
The Rev. Dr. Clair Emery Johnson, professor emeritus of religion at Gustavus Adolphus College, died on Christmas Eve 2009 at the age of 84. One of the pillars of the College’s Department of Religion during his 37 years on the faculty, Johnson continued to preach in area congregations and give presentations on religious topics—especially American religion and the life and work of Martin Luther—following his retirement from the faculty in 1995.
Johnson was born on October 5, 1925, in Evansville, Minn., the younger son of Lutheran pastor Constant Johnson, who served Lutheran parishes in Evansville and Jamestown, N.Y., and his wife, Hildur. After serving from 1943 to 1946 in the U.S. Army, he attended Augustana College in Rock Island, Ill., where he graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa in 1950. Following graduation, he entered Augustana Seminary, where he earned his master of divinity degree. He did post-graduate work at Union Theological Seminary in New York City, where he was granted both a master of sacred theology degree (1955) and a doctorate in divinity (1964).
Johnson was ordained into the Lutheran ministry in 1956 and served Pilgrim Lutheran Church in New York while continuing his graduate work. He was also married in 1956, to Christine Brostrom, a 1950 Gustavus graduate.
In September of 1958 Johnson accepted a call to serve his wife’s alma mater as Gustavus’s first chaplain and to teach in the Christianity Department. In 1962 he became a full-time professor in the newly titled Department of Religion, teaching until 1995. During his years at Gustavus he was an avid fan of the Gustavus men’s basketball team, carrying on an interest in sports developed during his own college years at Augustana, where he had earned eight letters in basketball and baseball. Last season, he was proud to mark 50 years of attending Gustie basketball games.
Johnson also found time to serve as interim pastor of Bethany Lutheran Church in Judson, Minn., and as part-time chaplain for 21 years at the Mankato Lutheran Home. He was recognized with the Gustavus Faculty Service Award for his service at the nursing home and his 15-year volunteer ministry at the Nicollet County Jail. He preached and led Sunday forums at various area churches for nearly 50 years. In 2004 he earned the Gustavus Adolphus College Association of Congregations’ Covenant Award for contributions strengthening the partnership between the College and the Church.
Preceded in death by his wife in 1995 and his brother, the Rev. Constant Johnson, in 2005, Johnson is survived by his two children and their families—daughter Madeline Claire Johnson, her husband, Jamie Pillers, and their daughter, Lucia; and son K. Christian Johnson, his wife, Karen Christianson, and their children, Peter and Maja ’13.
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