Martin David Odom was appointed to serve as Mt. Zion’s Senior Pastor July 1, 2024. Prior to that, he served as Assistant to the Pastor of  Epworth United Methodist Chapel in Baltimore, MD.  

The attributes that best describe Pastor O are passionate preaching, love for people, and visionary leadership. Pastor Odom has been active in ministry either as youth minister, pastor,  or pastoral assistant since 1994.  A native of Newark, NJ, he is the youngest son of the late Rev. Dr. Lawrence Sylvester Odom, Sr. and Mrs. Loga B. Odom.

Born and raised in the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, Pastor Odom has served as pastor of churches in New Jersey,  Louisiana,  Pennsylvania, Washington DC, and Maryland. He loves leading a church like Mt.  Zion where people have awesome testimonies of what can happen when you have faith in God. 

Pastor Odom has a Bachelor of Arts (1994) from New  Jersey City University in  Jersey City, NJ. He also holds a Master of Public Administration (1997) from Kean University in Union, NJ, and a Master of Divinity(1998), from Princeton Theological Seminary in Princeton, NJ. Pastor Odom has also pursued doctoral studies in the field of Urban Studies at the University of New Orleans. His focus area has been faith-based responses to the community change process (gentrification) 

A recipient of numerous awards, Pastor Odom is a member of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Incorporated. (1989) He has also written widely in local newspapers, magazines, and journals. He is the author of one book, Take Back Your Life: Strategic Moves to Overcome Life's Battles, (2012) https://www.amazon.com/Take-Back-Your-Life-Strategic/dp/0615674461.

Pastor Odom and his lovely wife Nicole G. Odom have been married for 24 years. They have two adult daughters Maya Marie and Samantha Nicole. Pastor Odom would have you know one important fact about him before you visit, Go Ravens!