July 1973 Three CLC (Church of the Lutheran Confession) congregations in Upper Michigan were concerned about the spiritual welfare of their members who had moved to the Detroit area. A 6-day visit from pastors James Sandeen of Calvary, Marquette, Jonathan Schaller of St. Paul’s, Green Garden, and Gene Rutz of St. Peters, Stambaugh, determined that 16 families and 4 other individuals were interested in beginning a new church in the area.
Nov. 1973 Mt. Zion congregation formally organizes. Services are held at Hickory Hollow Apartments in Wayne. Baptized membership: 23 souls.
Dec. 1973 Pastor Paul Tiefel Jr. of Redeemer, Sister Lakes, accepts the call to serve as Mt. Zion’s part-time pastor.
June 1974 Mt. Zion is officially accepted into membership in the CLC. Services are primarily conducted by Pastor Tiefel, with the occasional substitution from Pastor Sandeen and Pastor Carl Brandle (Gethsemane, Saginaw). Members attend from Flint, Jackson, Monroe, Lansing, Pontiac, and Dearborn.
July 1976 Pastor John Klatt accepts the call to serve as Mt. Zion’s first full-time pastor. Services are held at various places: a school in Canton, a hall in Northville, a hall in Plymouth. Baptized membership: 28 souls.
Aug. 1983 Pastor Klatt accepts the call to Prince of Peace, Hecla, SD. Pastor Paul Tiefel once again accepts the call to serve Mt. Zion part-time. Baptized membership: 9 souls.
July 1991 Pastor Tiefel accepts the call to Messiah, Eau Claire, WI. Pastor Mark Bernthal of Gethsemane, Saginaw, accepts the call to serve Mt. Zion part-time. Baptized membership: 17 souls.
Jan. 1994 Pastor Leroy Dux accepts the call to serve Mt. Zion as full-time pastor. Services are held in the community room of the Huntley Square apartment complex in Beverly Hills.
Sept. 1997 Mt. Zion congregation withdraws its membership from the Church of the Lutheran Confession in connection with the controversy that had arisen in the CLC regarding self-esteem. Sometime thereafter, Pastor Dux resigns his call for personal reasons.
June 2000 Mt. Zion reapplies for membership in the CLC and is accepted.
Aug. 2000 CLC Missionary-at-Large Walter Schaller is sent to Mt. Zion to explore mission opportunities in Metro Detroit. Services are held in a Weight Watchers facility in Royal Oak. Baptized membership: 27 souls.
June 2001 Mt. Zion takes over conducting monthly services in the Cleveland area for several Ohio/Pennsylvania families (this had previously been the ministry of Gethsemane, Saginaw, MI).
Aug. 2004 CLC Board of Missions releases Pastor Schaller from his missionary-at-large call. Mt. Zion calls Pastor Schaller to be its full-time pastor.
June 2005 Mt. Zion applies for and is granted full status as a domestic mission congregation under the CLC Board of Missions. Mt. Zion begins receiving monthly subsidy payments which are decremented annually.
Nov. 2008 Mt. Zion, using a Church Extension Fund from the CLC, purchases its first permanent church building at 26689 Northeastern Hwy in Madison Heights. The basement is renovated to serve as the parsonage and Pastor and Kathy Schaller move in. Baptized membership: 27 souls.
July 2009 Mt. Zion is given church furniture (altar, pulpit, lectern) by First Lutheran of Faulkton, SD. These were originally crafted in the 1950s by Pastor Leland Grams from walnut cut on his home farm near Markesan, WI.
July 2015 Pastor Walter Schaller retires. Mt. Zion begins calling for a replacement full-time pastor. In the meantime, Pastor Schaller serves as Mt. Zion’s vacancy pastor.
July 2017 Pastor Walter Schaller formally retires and ILC seminary graduate Tom Naumann is installed as full-time pastor. He and his wife, Ashley, move into the church basement parsonage. Baptized membership: 27 souls.
Oct. 2018 Thanks to God’s blessing of both increased membership and offerings, Mt. Zion is able to offer Pastor Naumann a housing allowance. The Naumanns purchase a home and move out of the church basement. Baptized membership: 37 souls.
April 2021 Mt. Zion begins making plans to open a Christian Day School so that its children might learn daily about their Savior and receive a quality education. A Board of Christian Education is formed.
Jan. 2023 Thanks to God’s continued financial blessings, Mt. Zion becomes a self-supporting congregation, ending 18 years of status as a subsidized domestic mission under the CLC Board of Missions.
Jan. 2023 After learning that our current building is unfit to serve as a state-approved non-public school, Mt. Zion decides to sell its current building and find a new facility to house both church and school with the intent of opening the school in Sept. 2024.
Aug. 2023 Mt. Zion celebrates 50 years of God’s grace upon the preaching and teaching of His Word in Metro Detroit. Baptized membership: 50 souls.
May 2025 Mt. Zion purchases a new church property at 510 W. Girard Ave in Madison Heights.
Sept. 2025 Worship begins at the new property with a special dedication service on September 14. Baptized membership: 50 souls.