Marjoe Gortner, America’s youngest ordained minister, passes at 82

Faith Facts

• Marjoe Gortner was ordained as a minister at the age of four, making him America’s youngest ordained preacher.
• The 1972 documentary “Marjoe” won an Academy Award for its portrayal of his early ministry.
• Gortner later left the ministry to pursue acting and other professional endeavors.

Marjoe Gortner, once hailed as America’s youngest ordained minister, has passed away at the age of 82.

Gortner was ordained at just four years old and quickly became a traveling child preacher, drawing crowds across the country with his sermons.

“The documentary captured a moment in my life that shaped everything that followed,” Gortner once reflected on the film’s impact.

After stepping away from the pulpit, he turned to acting and appeared in several films and television shows, carving out a second career in Hollywood.

“I wanted to see what else I could do with my life beyond the stage I had known since childhood,” he later shared in interviews.

His story remains a striking example of how early fame and faith intersected in the American public eye.

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