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Sharing our Links to the Past |
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I joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon) on April 1, 1945. I was 19 at the time. Why did I do that? First, let me relate my previous religious experiences leading up to my conversion to the Church. During my early childhood I did not go to church. My mother taught me to say, "Now I lay me down to sleep" and the Lord's prayer. When I was about 10 years old my parents decided I should start going to church. My mother was a Lutheran and my father an Episcopalian, though neither had gone to church (that I know of) since they married in the Lutheran Church. They decided I should go to the Episcopal Church in Santa Monica which was called St. Augustine By-The-Sea. The rector was Rev. Wallace Pierson. I went regularly each Sunday to Sunday School and enjoyed it thoroughly, learning much about Jesus Christ. Rev. Pierson baptized me in 1938 by dipping his finger in some water and forming the sign of the cross on my forehead. Before going to church I hadn't had very much religious education. When I was about six a saleswoman came to the house and sold my mother a set of children's Bible stories. I still remember reading about Moses and the burning bush. The St. Augustine's building was a famous landmark in Santa Monica. It was located on Fourth Street close to the Evening Outlook building (where I worked later as a newspaper carrier.) It was the oldest public building in Santa Monica dating back to 1887 when Santa Monica was a village of less than 2,000 people. It was founded by a handful of English immigrants and was named after St. Augustine, the son of the City's patron saint, St. Monica. The building was destroyed by fire in March of 1965 or 1966. Carrying the Cross in Sunday School Sunday School was a joy. Occasionally we would have our class out in the famous garden which depicted many Biblical scenes. Notable to me was the ladder fastened to a building. The ladder represented Jacob's ladder, leading to heaven. Mrs. Templeton, the Sunday School superintendent, asked me to carry the cross in Sunday School. Each Sunday I dressed in red and white silken robes and led the Sunday School processional from the rear of the church to the front, carrying a cross. Behind me came the Sunday School choir, followed by the minister and other participants, all singing the opening hymn or processional. This was an enjoyable and spiritual assignment, teaching me reverence for God. I won awards for reciting the weekly collects (set prayers for each Sunday.) Occasionally I served as an altar boy in the 6 a.m. communion. Once a month we had communion in Sunday School. I was also in the youth choir. I continued active in the church until sometime in high school. When I joined the Navy (in 1943) I had been away from any church activity for several years though I continued to pray, and I attended Protestant church services in the Navy. My Introduction to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints About a year and a half after joining the U.S. Navy I became associated with a fellow worker in the Parachute Loft at Los Alamitos Naval Air Station near Long Beach where I packed parachutes. His name was Lawrence Taylor and he was a very cheerful, optimistic person surrounded by the evils and temptations of Navy life. While not pious, he never swore and stood out so much by his righteousness that he was named "Deacon" by his fellow sailors. He had a good sense of humor and always seemed happy. I found out from others that he had been a minister. One day I went into the supply room where he worked as a storekeeper and asked him what church he belonged to. He told me he was a returned missionary (having served two years in New York) for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often called the Mormon church. "Do you still believe in polygamy?" I asked, knowing better. He countered with a classic answer, which impressed me to the core: "No, but we believe in an eternal marriage which does not end with death." This answer led to other questions. I found that he was an elder and he taught me that worthy males may hold the priesthood. Each day I questioned him on religious matters. He spoke much about the Savior and he told me that the members partook of the sacrament (like the communion) each Sunday rather than infrequently and that certain inspired prayers were said to bless the sacramental emblems of bread and water. We discussed baptism, coffee, the Bible, authority, and a dozen other subjects, all of which seemed to take on new meanings to me. I could see the logic and the intelligence in the Latter-day Saint philosophy. On some points I was stubborn. I could not see why baptism had to be by immersion, for example. But finally this principle was made clear to me. I Learn How the Church Began During all of these informal discussions I did not know how the Church began. Lawrence never instigated any discussion, leaving that to me. Curiosity grew stronger. He promised he would give me all the details soon. Finally one afternoon after work he consented to tell me things which made me realize that I must investigate and either accept or reject his beliefs. He told me of the restoration of the gospel brought about by Joseph Smith's First Vision, the origin of the Book of Mormon, the restoration of the priesthood, and the revelations that Joseph Smith received. The teachings rang true. I did a lot of studying, praying and reading. I read parts of the Laltter-day Saints Standard Works (the Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants and the Pearl of Great Price.) I discussed the beliefs with disinterested parties, some of whom thought I was wasting my time and others sincerely feeling that I had discovered great truths. Whenever I thought of the Church and its doctrines I could feel a heavenly presence which manifested the truthfulness of my findings and urged me to investigate even further by asking more questions and becoming more firmly convinced as I discovered new truths. One Sunday night I went to sacrament service with Lawrence at the Park View Ward, Long Beach Stake, and there I heard three speakers, all of whom talked on things which seemed meant for me. I was favorably impressed. I became acquainted with the youth of the ward and we would often spend Sunday afternoons discussing doctrines in the meetinghouse. Because the Spirit bore witness to me so many times, I became convinced that I had found the truth. I found that through studying the scriptures I could understand what before had been unheard-of doctrines such as pre-existence, eternal marriage and eternal progression. One day in the chow line I asked Lawrence what I had to do to join the Church. He said I had to give up drinking coffee, the last "vice" I had clung to. My Baptism and Confirmation On April 1, 1945, I was baptized and confirmed by Lawrence at the Park View Ward. Previous to that, upon the advice of the local bishop, I met with my future bishop in the Santa Monica Ward (where I would attend after leaving the Navy), Norman Farnsworth. As a result of that meeting I was put on the mailing list for the ward servicemen's newsletter which helped me get acquainted with my future friends. I also started paying tithing to that ward. The day of all days, the day of my baptism, gave me testimonies I shall never forget. I had fasted all day long. In the afternoon about four we walked over to the meetinghouse. Lawrence again reminded me that baptism brought about a remission of sins and that the slate of life was erased clean, and that I was being born again. These glorious thoughts were on my mind when, dressed in white, I walked into the font. I was going to be baptized just like in the days of old, by a man having the authority from God. After I was immersed in the water and came out of it, a feeling came upon me which I believe I can never experience again, save it be in another world. I had never felt such a feeling of cleanliness before. My sins were remitted. It was a real feeling - I knew it. Shortly afterward I was confirmed, and at the saying of "Receive the Holy Ghost" I again experienced an unusual sensation. This time it felt as if I was being purged of my sins. It struck me that the baptism had cleansed my body and that it had prepared it for the reception of the Holy Ghost. For indeed, that is what I felt, the entrance of the Holy Ghost. I looked up at Lawrence and the members of the bishopric who had assisted, and I knew they were men of God, men with authority from on high. As I walked to my chair I had a smile which could not be quickly removed, so filled was I with the awe of it all. There was no doubt in my mind. I was doing the right thing. I had taken the first step into a new world. A world of truth, happiness and blessings beyond all my dreams. The Book of Mormon Another testimony in my life was the testimony of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. It was June 3, 1945, and I was in the Navy aboard the ship USS Greenwich Bay (AVP 41.) I had been reading the Book of Mormon and was almost finished. Since it was Fast Sunday, I had fasted breakfast and was spending the forenoon finishing the book. When lunch time came I remained in the office where our group was assigned while the others went to lunch. As I read the last few pages I studied carefully Moroni's admonition to ask the Lord about the truthfulness of the book (Moroni 10:4-5) and then I laid the book down. Kneeling, I prayed to the Lord to reveal the truthfulness of it to me. Almost immediately, a glorious feeling came into my breast. It seemed to expand my whole bosom almost to the point where I could not bear it. It was a wonderful sensation which remained until I declared I had had enough and was convinced. At that point, someone knocked on the door and asked for some information. After I was through with that business I again knelt, realizing that a great thing had happened and why not try it again. This time I asked if the testimonies of the Three and Eight Witnesses to the Book of Mormon were true. Immediately, as before, the same - identically same - feeling came over me. Completely satisfied I rose to my feet with a real testimony of the Book of Mormon. I have frequently borne testimony to that sacred record and will continue to do so, thankful to the Lord for His love in giving me such a beautiful and enduring testimony. A Half Century Later. Over fifty years have passed since those "days never to be forgotten." My testimony has grown day by day while my understanding about God and his ways has expanded. The responsibilities I have had in the Church and in family life with my beloved wife, children, grandchildren and, yes, four great grandchildren, along with all their families as well as my friends, have given me new understandings. But I still look back with joy and wonderment on those early days when I first learned about the Church: those days when truth saturated my every thought, when the glorious plan of the Lord was opened to me. In recent years I have felt the overwhelming desire to record and document our family history, not only for our immediate and extended families but for others throughout the world who may be related. While some of this has been, and will continue to be done, through the publishing of books (see my biography) I have realized that the World Wide Web is an effective and far-reaching way to publish such a history. That is why I have developed this website and will continue to expand it. I truly hope that family members and others will review it from time to time. Then when some of them gather even more information, they will find the foundation and documentation here on these web pages. That desire had its roots in an incident when I was around twelve. I asked my grandparents, Joseph and Ada (Publicover) Gray about their ancestors. I still have my original notes which have helped me over the years in my pursuit of our generations in that particular line. The rest is history! Posted November 2, 1998, revised May 13, 2002 Home | The Gray Family of
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©1998-2007 Wallace F. and Frances M. Gray. This web page may be freely linked. To contact us send to grayfox2@cox.net Their home page is http://geocities.datacellar.net/wallygray25/index.html |