Author: J Chester Johnson

is a poet, essayist, and translator. Recent books are St. Paul’s Chapel & Selected Shorter Poems (2010), Now And Then: Selected Longer Poems (2017), and Auden, the Psalms, and Me (2017), the story of the retranslation of the psalms in the Book of Common Prayer for which W. H. Auden (1968-1971) and Johnson (1971-1979) served as the poets on the drafting committee; published in 1979, this version of the psalms has become a standard. In May, 2020, Damaged Heritage: The Elaine Race Massacre and A Story of Reconciliation was published by Pegasus Books to be distributed by Simon & Schuster. His poem about the iconic St. Paul’s Chapel, relief center for the recovery workers at Ground Zero in New York City, has been the Chapel’s memento card since soon after the 9/11 terrorists’ attacks (1.5 million cards distributed); American Book Review has said of the poem: “Johnson’s ‘St. Paul’s Chapel’ is one of the most widely distributed, lauded, and translated poems of the current century.” One of fifteen writers selected to be showcased for the inaugural Harvard Alumni Authors’ Book Fair, he was educated at Harvard College and the University of Arkansas (Distinguished Alumnus Award, 2010).