Rev. Dr. Otis Moss III, Senior Pastor, of Trinity United Church of Christ, Chicago, Illinois, is an accomplished author, speaker, and activist.

Dr. Moss received his BA in Religion and Philosophy from Morehouse College, where he served as student government president. During his matriculation at “the house,” he was inducted as the Ford Foundation Scholar, named by the NCAA as an All-American Track and Field athlete, and graduated with honors.

He continued graduate work at Yale University and was awarded the FTE Benjamin Elijah Mays Scholarship in Religion and the Yale University Magee Fellowship Scholarship. Dr. Moss is recorded as one of the few African Americans to ever receive this award in the school’s 300-year history.  Dr. Moss graduated from Yale with a Master of Divinity degree, with a concentration in Ethics and Theology. He is the first recipient of the Harrington Prize for young preachers. He received this prestigious award in 2002 from Presbyterian College in Clinton SC, Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur GA, and Peachtree Presbyterian Church in Atlanta GA. This joint distinction recognizes young ministers who have shown evidence of distinguished examples of preaching, evangelism, community service, and the promise of future contributions. Newsweek Magazine cited him as one of “God’s foot soldiers committed to transforming the lives of youth.”

Dr. Moss is an ordained minister in the Progressive National Baptist Convention and the United Church of Christ, carrying dual standing in both denominations. He is the author of several books, including the The Gospel According to the Wiz and Other Sermons From Cinema. His sermons, articles, and poetry have appeared in publications such as Power in the Pulpit II: America’s Most Effective Preachers; Joy to the World: Sermons from America’s Pulpit; Sound the Trumpet: Messages of Hope for Black Men; The Audacity of Faith: Christian Leaders Reflect on the Election of Barack Obama; Sojourners Magazine, and The African American Pulpit Journal.

Rev. Dr. Moss is married to his college sweetheart, the former Monica Brown of Orlando, Florida, a Spelman College and Columbia University graduate. They are the proud parents of two creative and humorous children, Elijah Wynton and Makayla Elon.