THE HISTORY OF NEW ST. PAUL TABERNACLE C.O.G.I.C.
New St. Paul Tabernacle Church Of God In Christ was founded by Bishop Phillip Aquilla Brooks, who emerged from the ranks to become one of the most respected leaders in Church Of God In Christ history. Appointed as First Assistant Presiding Bishop in 2008, Bishop Brooks established New St. Paul Tabernacle (NSPT) in 1953 in Detroit, Michigan. The first home for NSPT was an old bank building on Grand River Avenue in Detroit. Many renovations were made to transform it into the house of worship that then Elder Brooks envisioned. Most of those renovations were completed by Pastor Brooks himself.
In the late 1960’s, while NSPT was still at the Grand River location, Elder Brooks established the March of Faith Radio Broadcast. The congregation began to grow as a result and in 1972, Elder Brooks moved the church to a larger building on Oakman Boulevard. It was there that the ministry flourished and within seven years, they were blessed to be able to burn the mortgage.
In 1975, Elder Brooks was made Prelate over Northeast Michigan Jurisdiction COGIC, the Church Of God In Christ’s historically-first jurisdiction in Michigan. From that point on, many significant and historic mentionables emerged from the ministry at New St. Paul Tabernacle. Among them was the establishment of the March of Faith Television Broadcast.
In 1987, Bishop Brooks moved NSPT from its location on Oakman Boulevard to a new campus on Southfield Drive in Detroit. The new location comprised a church, a school and a gymnasium. Within three years, the entire complex was paid off and the mortgage was burned. This opened the door for many renovations and innovations to take place. Among them are the following:
• C.H. Mason Bible College
• Grandmont Rosedale Christian Day School
• New St. Paul Community and Economic Development Center
• New St. Paul Tabernacle Non-Profit Housing Corporation
• Faith Manor Senior Citizen Housing Complex
• New St. Paul Head Start Agency
• First Community Mortgage, the first church-based
mortgage company
• Phillip Sims Apartments
• COGIC Social Services
Many notable and recognizable individuals have attended services and/or befriended the work at new St. Paul Tabernacle Church Of God In Christ. Those include, but are not limited to; President Bill Clinton, Bishop Desmond TuTu, Nelson Mandela, Randall Robinson, Martin Luther King III., Congressman John Conyers, Mayor Coleman A. Young, and Mayor Dennis Archer.
New St. Paul Tabernacle is a pillar in the community. Each year the church gives away hundreds of food baskets at Thanksgiving time and provides clothing for school children during Christmas time. The church has sponsored numerous HIV/AIDS Awareness concerts and has housed transplanted families from the New Orleans Katrina-Hurricane catastrophe. It continues to be a beacon of spiritual and community leadership under the vision of its pastor, Bishop P.A. Brooks.