Marcus Allen

By Omar Waheed – Madison 365 – A time capsule sealed inside the walls of Mt. Zion Baptist Church for more than 60 years was opened Oct. 21 as the church prepares to demolish an older wing of its building. Placed behind the building’s address placard when construction was completed in the early 1960s, the capsule was nearly forgotten until congregation members who remembered its existence alerted Rev. Marcus Allen. The community gathered to open it ahead of the demolition and the construction of the church’s planned Family Life Center. Read more of this story.

By Nicole Pollack – Wisconsin State Journal – At Madison’s largest Black church, finding space for all the programming requires some finesse. In one room with rows of narrow tables and a fireplace mantel covered in artwork, the weekly rotation includes tutoring for elementary-aged kids, computer help for older adults, painting and yoga classes and a drop-in behavioral health clinic. Mount Zion Baptist Church has about 600 members, said the Rev. Marcus Allen, Mount Zion’s senior pastor. Most of those served by its community programs are not members of the church, he said, and in 2021 the church spun off…

By David Dahmer – Madison 365 – Mt. Zion Baptist Church, the largest African-American congregation in Madison, is an important institution on Madison’s South Side. Over the years, Mt. Zion has provided numerous important programs and services to support people in the greater Madison community. Much of that community work that they do now is under the MTZ Charitable Organization, established in 2021, which operates programs for underprivileged and impoverished youth in Madison to advance equity and accelerate their academic achievement. In an effort to let the community know more about MTZ, Mt. Zion will host “Building Hope Together: Introducing…

A seminary-level preaching class – co-taught by two local pastors – is coming to Madison beginning this January. The class is being offered by the Madison Learning Community (MLC), an initiative of the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary. Beginning with this class, Proclaiming the Word of God, MLC will be offering one seminary-level course each semester to Madison-area pastors, church leaders, and others eager to deepen ministry skills. The faculty for this first preaching course will be Rev. Dr. Marcus Allen, pastor at Mount Zion Baptist Church, and Rev. Dr. Jessica Patchett, pastor at Christ Presbyterian Church. Both new and…