Back To God

[Show Open]

Oliver Mosely Jr.: I couldn’t understand it. It makes me very emotional, even today, and I strayed away from Christianity. I’m not proud of it, but that’s part of my experience.

[On-Screen Text Graphics]

STORIES OF FAITH

My name is Oliver Crawford Moseley Jr, of course, being a junior, you know, I was named after my papa. I was born in Palestine, Texas, on September 12, 1938, and my grandparents, maternal grandparents, and my dad raised me from 4 years old until around 17.

He was a teacher also, but he gave up that job and began to work for the Missouri Pacific Railroad. And because of that, we traveled every summer after school, and we traveled throughout the United States because we could travel for free.

My relationship to God was, frankly, unknown in depth. I’ll put it that way. I saw my granddad, my maternal granddad, read the Bible every day of his life, that I can recall. Also, I saw my dad read the Bible every day of his life. He even had on his wall a picture of his mother, and next to that picture was a plaque that had the Lord’s Prayer in it. And so even though I didn’t understand why they were reading the Bible, it impressed me. It gave me a guide.

My grandmother encouraged me to go to church [worship building] with my granddad every Sunday, and we always had to dress up. I guess at that time, you might say I was being groomed to be a Christian, but I didn’t understand. I just did what I was instructed to do. I guess you could say I was naive. I was baptized at age 13 in my grandfather’s church. And prior to then, my grandmother, because she was a musician, she had influenced me to take the piano. I fought that for many years, but at least I got to the point where I was able to play the piano in church for the choir. And that experience was very good. I’ll put it that way, because it made me make a commitment to practice harder.

In elementary school, we had devotional prayer every morning before classes started. Even in elementary school, EM Banks Elementary in Palestine, Texas, we all would have to assemble in this big auditorium, and we would say a prayer, say the pledge of allegiance to the flag, and then proceed to our various classrooms. So all of that contributed to my growing up to be a Christian.

[On-Screen Text Graphics]

Questioning God

Back in the 60s, they called it the Civil Rights Movement. I developed an attitude that was really anti-God and Christ. I’m not proud of it. But the reason I developed that is because I saw so many of my people. And I say, my people, people of color in this particular country, that were being mistreated so poorly and so in such an evil way. I would question God. “What kind of God is?… Where is God?” When these different kinds of things are happening to my people. I couldn’t understand it. It makes me very emotional, even today. And I strayed away from Christianity.

We crossed a bridge, the Hampton bridge, marching one afternoon, I remember that, and we were concerned about whether or not the policemen in the City of Hampton would actually attack us for marching peacefully. And those were the times that I questioned God’s actions or not action toward my people during the Civil Rights Movement. And I didn’t come out of that state. Now, this I’m talking about in my late teens, like 17, 18, 19 years old, and I maintained that state psychologically until probably in my late 20s to early 30s.

[On-Screen Text Graphics]

Turning Back To God

When I became affiliated or interested in the Church Of Christ, or Iglesia Ni Cristo was after my first divorce in 1995. I’d gotten back into attending church more frequently because I felt at that point I needed support, a spiritual support, and I knew, based upon what I had been taught as a kid, that God would be my answer. I didn’t know what to expect, but I did know that I couldn’t do it alone.

So when I moved back to Chicago, I would attend different churches every weekend, every Sunday. And I mean all different religions. One of my first cousins, he was a fighter pilot in the Air Force at that time, had just retired, but he was in his second marriage. And he was married to a beautiful lady from Makati, Philippines, and her mother came to visit them once, and I met her, and she was already a member of INC, Iglesia Ni Cristo.

So on one occasion, she says, “Junior, I’m going to my church this weekend, and we have an evangelical mission. Why don’t you come and go with me?” And maybe because she had seen that I was struggling with trying to get back into the church. I was very inquisitive, number one. Every time I would hear something, it was like it was new to me, even though I read through the Bible many times myself, some of the other churches I go into, some of the ministers would start a topic. They would pick a scripture for an example and read the Scripture. Then they would elaborate so many different ways that it took you away from the full meaning of what the scripture said, from the page itself. And I didn’t find that in INC.

It was so impressive when I got there. It was like an open arm. “This is Brother Oliver. I’m so and so, Brother Oliver, and so and so and so.” And that impressed me, because I found the brethren to be very, very open-minded, very relaxed in talking to me. I began to return and attend other worship services and some of the other events that they would have periodically. And then it came down to the point, well, which church do you belong to?

[On-Screen Text Graphics]

God is the answer.

At that time, my wife’s uncle Carlito Allegros was one of the head deacons, and they were the ones who took me under their wings to make sure that I got the instructions. And this was in the year 2000, so I’ve been around now, what, 25 years, I guess, and I haven’t looked back. The Church has inspired me for many different reasons. Not only do the teachings come directly from the Bible, I gather that all members are totally engulfed with these teachings and beliefs. And one thing that really impresses me is the fact that the many different activities that the Administration provides for the members are spiritually influenced, if you will. They’re spiritually designed.

Interviewer: As you are going through your learning. What has the Church of Christ, Iglesia Ni Cristo, what did it offer you that was missing in your life?

Oliver Mosely Jr.: Stability for one. I’m very… sometimes can be very rambunctious. And I settled tremendously, I have to admit. And even some of my friends don’t even recognize me anymore. In fact, when I became a member and was baptized, and then became a deacon. My friend who says, “Wait a minute, you Moe are a Deacon? How could that have ever happened?” So I had all kinds of different comments, pro and con, but many of them come back and say, “Well, look, at least you have settled down some, so I don’t know how you ever did it, but if the Church did all that for you, God bless you.”

But being a member of Iglesia Ni Cristo (Church Of Christ) has given me a new vision, if you will, to let me know that whatever I do, regardless of how I feel, regardless of the culture that I grew up in, God is the answer. Period.

Take it from a person like myself. I know I’ve benefited because I have made a commitment that I never made before in my life. And I pray about this every single day, “God guide me so that I will practice, not just know your commandments, but I will practice your commandments every day of my life.”  And I do that every single day because I want to be what God wants me to be. It’s like an open map. Just follow the road. And as long as I’m practicing His commandments, I know He’s there. I know who my God is today, and he has been so wonderful to me.

[On-Screen Graphics]

INC MEDIA SERVICES

All Rights Reserved 2025

[Video ends]