An Interview with Pastor Mosley: Congregation and Community United

By Georgia Robert

I am sitting with Pastor Mosley of the Cathedral of Faith Church of God in Christ discussing his congregation and the role the church plays in the Oakland City Community in South-West Atlanta. Pastor Mosley discusses Oakland City for our upcoming documentary on affordable housing. Upon meeting Pastor Mosley, I am already captivated by his heartfelt welcome and his willingness to share his thoughts about his ministry and the community.

Pastor Mosley has been serving the church and community for five years now. “Our obligation and our purpose, first and foremost [is that] we are committed to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. We also believe in equipping people for success in life, so in addition to the worship services that we put on weekly, we also offer other opportunities for personal growth here in the ministry,” says Pastor Mosley. The Cathedral of Faith is reaching beyond the walls of the church. Pastor Mosley and his staff conduct political forums, housing forums, and health fairs. They operate a food pantry and clothing bank. The church offers family counseling, and each year the community is invited in for the annual block party as well as Christmas service at the Cathedral.

Pastor Mosley also finds ways to help the students and faculty of Finch Elementary School located across the street at 1114 Avon Avenue, SW Atlanta. “We enjoy partnering with Finch, it’s a great school [with] beautiful, beautiful children…and I’m available if they need me to do motivational things with the children and/or the staff. So it’s a great, great partnership that we have with Finch Elementary.”

When the topic of affordable housing in Atlanta comes up, especially the vacant homes in the Oakland City Community, Pastor Mosley eloquently shares his views. “I am convinced and persuaded that families do better when they are in a community, I’m convinced that children do better when they are in a community. Africans and African Americans often make reference to ‘it takes a village to raise a child,’ and Oakland City can be a wonderful, and is a wonderful village for raising children, and the more homes that we have occupied then the stronger the village becomes. It weakens the village when the homes are not occupied.”

In closing, Pastor Mosley is honored to serve the Oakland City Community saying, “The community has embraced me, it has been wonderful to speak to the people up and down the streets, as I get into my car, coming in and out of the buildings, its been wonderful to get their names and shake their hands, invite them and even pastor them whether they come here or don’t come here [Cathedral of Faith], just to let them know we are here for them and we love them and we want the best for them, so I enjoy just meeting the people as I’m walking from place to place here. It’s wonderful, wonderful people here in this community.”

August 7, 2007