• Home

The Complete Pilgrim - Religious Travel Sites

Howard Kramer's, The Complete Pilgrim, Religious Travel Site

  • AMERICAN RELIGIOUS SITES
  • CHRISTIAN SITES
  • JEWISH SITES
  • CATHOLIC SITES
  • ISLAMIC SITES
  • INDIAN/HINDU SITES
  • HOLIDAY SITES
  • CASTLES
  • BATTLEFIELDS
  • MOUNTAINS
  • NATURE
  • WILDLIFE SITES
  • PHOTO GALLERIES
  • ARCHIVES
  • ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

AFRICAN MEGACHURCHES OF LOS ANGELES

April 11, 2014 By Howard Kramer Leave a Comment

Los Angeles, California

(photo from Wikipedia)

(photo from Wikipedia)

Though not traditionally thought of as a Bible Belt state, the sheer size of California and its sprawling cities has encouraged the development of Megachurches, especially in and around the Los Angeles area.  Los Angeles boasts almost as many major megachurches as Houston and Atlanta, and some of the best known of these are traditional African American denominations.  Some standouts include The West Angeles Cathedral, the largest Church of God in Christ congregation in the United States, and the First African Methodist Episcopal Church.

History

Many of the traditionally African denomination Protestant churches traces their roots back to the 19th century, some as far back as the colonial era.  The first major church established to serve African American congregants was the African Methodist Episcopal Church.  The AME was also among the first Protestant churches to expand across the country to the West Coast.  In 1872 the AME established the first church founded by African Americans in Los Angeles.

(photo from Wikipedia)

(photo from Wikipedia)

The First African Methodist Episcopal Church was founded by Bridget Mason.  Born a slave in Georgia, she was bought by Mormons and taken to California.  There she escaped and became a freewoman, ultimately becoming a prominent member of the community.  The church she founded remained a small but historic institution for the next century.  However, under new dynamic leadership beginning in the 1970s, the church grew from a small congregation into one of the largest and most famous churches in Los Angeles, honored by president George Bush Sr. as one of his Points of Light.

The Church of God in Christ, the largest predominantly African American denomination in the United States, was founded in 1897 by disaffected Baptists in the American South.  Although due in part to political-religious issues of the Segregated South, the primary driving force was the embracing of the Holiness Movement which encouraged members to live free of voluntary sin.

Launched in the American South, the movement gained traction about a decade later in Los Angeles.  In 1943, one Clarence E. Church founded the West Angeles Church of God in Christ.  For years a small, obscure church, it received new, dynamic leadership in 1969 when Charles Blake became the pastor.  Under his direction the congregation grew from less than one hundred members into the largest traditional African American Church in the United States.

Visiting

The First African Methodist Episcopal Church is the largest AME church in the United States.  Almost one hundred years to the day after the original church was founded, the original church building burned to the ground.  The current church dates from 1968 and is one of the major religious landmarks of Los Angeles.  First African is one of the most prominent and active churches in Los Angeles and currently serves in excess of 10,000 congregants weekly.

The West Angeles Church of God in Christ is the largest African American church of any denomination in the United States and one of the largest CGC congregations in the world.  Due to growth the church has moved twice.  The current building, known as the West Angeles Cathedral, has been in use since 1999.  The five thousand seat sanctuary, one of the largest in California, serves over 20,000 congregants weekly.

First African Methodist Episcopal Church is located in the densely built-out sprawl of West Los Angeles approximately four miles from the city center.  The West Angeles Church of God in Christ is nearby approximately five miles west of the city center.  As of this writing no visitor information was available.  Web: http://famechurch.org (official website of First African Methodist), http://westa.org (official website of West Angeles Church).

Filed Under: Methodist, Nondenominational, Protestant Tagged With: US-California

Where would you like to go?

Africa (North) Africa (Sub-Sahara) Arabia Armenia/Azerbaijan/Georgia Australia/Pacific Austria/Switzerland Balkans Belgium/Netherlands British Isles Canada Caribbean Central Asia China Czech Republic Egypt France Germany Greece Hungary/Romania/Bulgaria India (NE)/Nepal India (NW) India (South)/Sri Lanka Iran/Iraq Israel Italy/Malta Japan/Korea Latin America Mexico Palestine Poland/Lithuania Russia Scandinavia Southeast Asia Spain/Portugal Syria/Jordan/Lebanon Turkey/Cyprus Ukraine US-California US-Mid Atlantic US-Midwest US-New England US-New York US-Pacific Northwest US-South US-Southwest

About Howard Kramer

Howard Kramer is the creator and author of The Complete Pilgrim. He first took an interest in religious sites in his early twenties when traveling through Italy after college. In the two decades since he has traveled to more than two dozen countries and almost every state, visiting and photographing hundreds of the world’s greatest churches, synagogues and other places of religious interest. Howard has been writing about religious sites for the better part of the last decade, and The Complete Pilgrim is a culmination of years of his work and passion.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

THE COMPLETE AMERICAN PILGRIM – NOW AVAILABLE ON AMAZON

THE COMPLETE PILGRIM

Welcome to The Complete Pilgrim(TM)! This site, created by Howard Kramer, is a combination travel blog and online guide to the world's greatest sites of religious interest (with some historic and recreational places thrown in for good measure). All written content has been originally researched and produced and is provided free for public research and enjoyment. Thank you for visiting!

Site of the Week

WITTENBERG CASTLE CHURCH

WITTENBERG CASTLE CHURCH

Wittenberg, Germany The … [Read More...]

Friends of TCP Spotlight

5 PLACES TO VISIT IN HISTORIC PHILADELPHIA – MUSLIM TRAVEL ROCKS

5 PLACES TO VISIT IN HISTORIC PHILADELPHIA – MUSLIM TRAVEL ROCKS

by Glory Ali The City of Brotherly Love offers tons to see and do and get this, it’s FREE. That’s right you heard it right it’s FREE. Click here for complete article  

MOVING THE U.S. EMBASSY TO JERUSALEM – FAITH IN FAITHS

MOVING THE U.S. EMBASSY TO JERUSALEM – FAITH IN FAITHS

by Mary Neuhauser President Trump recently announced his intentions to move the United States Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, thereby recognizing Jerusalem as the official capital of Israel. The purpose of this article is to give you a brief overview of what this decision means and why it matters. Click here for […]

Photo of the Week

BASILICA OF ST. DENIS

Last month, I visited one of the most fascinating churches I have ever been to, the almost completely ignored Basilica of St. Denis in the northern suburbs of Paris.  Almost every French monarch is buried here, and almost nobody goes here.  Here are some pics I took:

Basilica of St. Denis

Tomb of Clovis

Tomb of Clovis

Tombs of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette

Tombs of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette

Tomb of Louis XIV The Sun King

Tomb of Louis XIV The Sun King

Royal Tombs

Royal Tombs

The Crypt

The Crypt

 

 

 

 

Follow us!

Where would you like to go?

Africa (North) Africa (Sub-Sahara) Arabia Armenia/Azerbaijan/Georgia Australia/Pacific Austria/Switzerland Balkans Belgium/Netherlands British Isles Canada Caribbean Central Asia China Czech Republic Egypt France Germany Greece Hungary/Romania/Bulgaria India (NE)/Nepal India (NW) India (South)/Sri Lanka Iran/Iraq Israel Italy/Malta Japan/Korea Latin America Mexico Palestine Poland/Lithuania Russia Scandinavia Southeast Asia Spain/Portugal Syria/Jordan/Lebanon Turkey/Cyprus Ukraine US-California US-Mid Atlantic US-Midwest US-New England US-New York US-Pacific Northwest US-South US-Southwest

Contact Us

Have a comment, a great photo or a religious site you'd like to nominate for the weekly spotlight? We would love to hear from you. Email us at hkramer@thecompletepilgrim.com.

About the Author

Howard Kramer is the creator and author of The Complete Pilgrim. He first took an interest in religious sites in his early twenties when traveling through Italy after college. In the two decades since he has traveled to more than two dozen countries and almost every state, visiting and photographing hundreds of the world’s greatest churches, synagogues and other places of religious interest. Howard has been writing about religious sites for the better part of the last decade, and The Complete Pilgrim is the culmination of years of his work and passion.

Return to top of page
Copyright © 2023 The Complete Pilgrim, LLC || Marietta, GA 30068 || Legal Disclaimers

Website by: Kristina McInerny, Notes From Kris, Inc.