In 1953, Rev. Albert Cleage and a group of followers formed the Central Congregation Church in Detroit Michigan. They were committed to ministering to the downtrodden, and offered several programs for the community's poor. Rev. Cleage’s idea and premise was a call from God to work to complete the true and righteous mission of Jesus. This entailed reaching out to the community which could not be reached within the confines of the church edifice. Whereas the Presbyterian and Protestant movements of the day differed with Rev. Cleage, the journey from Central Congregation Church to the Pan African Orthodox Christian Church was been paved with the sacrifice of struggle.

The struggle of Rev. Cleage later to be known as our beloved founder and first Holy Patriarch, the Honorable Jaramogi Abebe Agyeman was not simply a social one it was also a theological and religious one. Jaramogi Abebe Agyeman suggested that Jesus’ mission was more complex than a journey to the cross in which his human sacrifice would allow people to experience a chimerical kingdom in after death, he explained that his life was a personal example which when emulated could lead people to the experience of God in their present reality. Jaramogi founded a Black Christian Nationalist Movement, which called for black churches to understand the truth of Jesus' teachings and their African heritage. The Pan African Orthodox Christian Church became answer to the question of how God works in the world, a community of faith where you can experience the blessings of Covenant faith with God and his people.

The Pan African Orthodox Christian Church under its current leader and second Holy Patriarch, Jaramogi Menelik Kimathi, continues to be an alternative to those who seek the truth of Christian ethics. Our church gives people who want to live the life that Jesus talked about a real opportunity to do so. The truth is that Jesus taught us communal love and the intrinsic value of all creation. In the world we live in we can no longer afford to accept or be part of a Christianity that entertains and stimulates while leading us to escape the realities of suffering people. The science of KUA which our church has rediscovered, allows our members to transcend the boundaries of social deprivation and experience God in many cases for the first time.

We alleviate the stress of daily life by engaging in the practice of communalism, sharing in the labor of life, giving as we are able and receiving as we have need. Though we live and work in the world we are not of the world. Our minds have been trained as Jesus said to “Overcome the World.” Where others teach an integrative approach to dealing with society, we teach a liberating approach to life that enables you to maintain dignity, self respect, and self esteem in a world which would exploit you. You deserve the opportunity to experience the difference that the PAOCC offers. Make the decision today to visit and fellowship with us.