CLEVELAND (ABP) — A hero of the Civil Rights Movement regarded as one of America’s best African-American preachers has stepped down after 54 years as a pastor.
Otis Moss Jr., 73, preached his farewell sermon Dec. 29 to about 3,000 worshipers at Olivet Institutional Baptist Church in Cleveland. He led the congregation — one of the city’s largest and noted for its commitment to social justice and civil rights — for 33 years,
 Photo courtesy of OtisMossJr.org |
As a young preacher in his native Georgia, Moss helped lead sit-ins at segregated lunch counters and fought for voting rights for blacks. He went to jail several times for participating in sit-ins and marches.
He marched with Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma, Ala., and Washington, and urged Jesse Jackson to run for president in 1983. Moss was co-chair of the National African American Religious Committee of Barack Obama’s presidential campaign and is co-chair of an upcoming black-tie African American Church Inaugural Ball celebrating election of the nation’s first black president Jan. 18.
Orphaned at 16, Moss attended Morehouse College in Atlanta, where he became one of the most respected student activists in the struggle for civil rights. He earned his bachelor’s and master-of-divinity degrees from Morehouse, and later went on to serve his alma mater as a trustee.
Moss was a special guest of President Clinton to witness the signing of the peace treaty between Israel and Jordan. He saw Pope John Paul II in a 1979 visit on the White House lawn. He finished a doctorate from United Theological Seminary in 1990 and was twice named by Ebony magazine as one of America’s top 15 black preachers.
Luminaries including Oprah Winfrey, Jesse Jackson and former congressman Louis Stokes were among 1,200 people at a December gala celebrating Moss’ ministry. Obama sent a congratulatory letter telling Moss “you’ve left an indelible mark on all that you’ve touched,” and “the Lord has used you mightily.”
In 1997, Moss partnered with University Hospitals to open the Otis Moss Jr. Medical Center across the street from Olivet. Boasting a chapel, medical offices and seminar space, Moss called it one of his proudest accomplishments.
In his farewell sermon, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Moss said the best days lie ahead for the church, country and himself. “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him,” he read from I Corinthians 2:9.
Moss’ son, Otis Moss III, is pastor of Obama’s former church. He replaced Jeremiah Wright, who retired last year after a long career at Chicago’s Trinity United Church of Christ.
Bob Allen is senior writer for Associated Baptist Press.