A Clergy Appreciation Reflection from Tom Johnson

Three pastors helped shape what I learned at CST and DSF, as well as in my ministry. They are Rev. Dr. Jo Ann Bynum, Rev. Jinseok Cheon, and Rev. Dr. Jose Francisco Morales. These three pastors were instrumental in my education and continue to be influential in my ministry.

Dr. Bynum encouraged me throughout my time at CST and DSF and was instrumental in suggesting that I take an important step, one I was not originally planning to take: to offer a message to the congregation of Sallims Christian Church [in Newport Beach, CA]. I was initially hesitant, as I did not believe that as a chaplain I would be called to preach. How wrong I was. Dr. Bynum was the person who realized that my ministry should be open and not be limited to what I believed a chaplain should do. My first message was on “my eyes being opened,” and they certainly were, thanks to Dr. Bynum.

Rev. Cheon first invited me to visit Sallims, where he serves as Co-Pastor with his wife, Rev. Dr. Myungsun Grace Kang. After I visited their congregation, he later suggested that I offer a message to their congregation. I thought back to what Dr. Bynum had suggested, and, with some trepidation, agreed. Dr. Bynum was present when I offered my first message at Sallims. Later, the congregation asked if I would consider serving as a volunteer Co-Pastor. I did not hesitate and was honored to serve Sallims for more than four years, from 2019-2023.

Dr. Morales taught the Disciples History and Polity course I was fortunate to take at DSF. That course taught me so much; not only about the history and polity of our denomination, the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), but also how important it is to be open, to remain inquisitive, and to be welcoming to all. Although I realize that I often fall short in those important goals, I now view scripture through a variety of lenses and see my faith and the Divine in ways that are new, different, and unexpected.

I appreciate all that I learned from these three pastors. They have helped me be more honest, to be more open, and it is my hope that in my ministry, as a chaplain and pastor, that I can continue to honor them by remembering the words that Jesus said to the expert in the law at the end of the Parable of the Good Samaritan: “Go and do likewise.”

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Tom Johnson is a DSF/CST graduate (M.Div. with an Interfaith Chaplaincy concentration/2020). For the past two years, he served as a Chaplain at the South Texas VA, as a Chaplain Resident, and Palliative and Bereavement Care Chaplain Fellow. In the photo, he is photographed with Simba, a seven-month-old Labrador-Great Pyrenees mix, and Nala, a nine-month-old Great Pyrenees-German Shepherd mix. Tom is wearing a T-shirt from his time at Andover Newton Theological School, reminding him to “think outside the pulpit.”