About St. John the Baptist · El Cerrito, California
St. John the Baptist is a Catholic parish in El Cerrito, California, in the Diocese of Oakland. Founded in 1925, it is the first Catholic church in El Cerrito and serves a diverse, multilingual community that worships in English, Mandarin (a Chinese Catholic community based at the parish), and Brazilian Portuguese. The parish celebrated its centennial in 2025, opening the year with a Mass celebrated by Bishop Michael Barber, who also blessed the parish's new altar. Today St. John's offers weekend Masses in multiple languages, a robust children's religious education and Confirmation program, and is clustered with St. David of Wales under one pastoral administrator.
- Established
- 1925
- Patron
- St. John the Baptist
- Rector
- Fr. Thuong Hoai Nguyen (Pastor since 2011; also serves as Pastoral Administrator of clustered parish St. David of Wales beginning in 2025)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Oakland
Why belong here
St. John the Baptist is a long-standing, multilingual parish where an English-speaking family, a Mandarin-speaking newcomer, and a Brazilian Catholic can all find a weekend Mass that feels like home. It pairs that diversity with a concrete, working parish life: a two-year children's First Communion program, a teen Confirmation and Youth Ministry program, an RCIA process for adults, and the long-standing Chinese Catholic community that calls St. John's its spiritual home. Joining means becoming part of a parish that has just marked 100 years in El Cerrito and is looking forward to its second century.
Mass times at St. John the Baptist
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 4:00 PM to 4:45 PM (English)
- Sunday 5:00 PM to 5:45 PM (Brazilian Portuguese)
- By appointment — call the parish office
Adoration times
- Adoration is offered at the parish; specific weekly hours are published on the parish calendar (sjtbc.us/parishcalendar).
History of St. John the Baptist Parish
St. John the Baptist was established as a parish in 1925 and is the first Catholic church in El Cerrito. Before becoming its own parish, the community existed as a mission attached to a nearby parish. Fr. William N. Abeloe, the pastor at the 50th anniversary, wrote an 80-page illustrated history of those first fifty years, including the mission period; a 75th-anniversary booklet was added in 2000. The parish's ethnic makeup has shifted over a century — once largely Portuguese and Italian, today it is multilingual, with English, Mandarin, and Brazilian Portuguese Masses celebrated regularly.
- Parish established 1925 (previously a mission church)
- First Catholic church in El Cerrito
- Fr. Abeloe, 'Parish of St. John the Baptist 1925–1975', 80 pages, 1975
- 75th-anniversary booklet published in 2000
Centennial Celebration (2025–2026)
In 2025 St. John the Baptist began a centennial year that runs through the Solemnity of the Birth of John the Baptist in 2026. The opening Mass was celebrated on June 21, 2025 by Bishop Michael Barber, who also blessed the parish's new altar. The centennial includes a dedicated website (sj100.sjtbc.us) documenting parishioners' stories, ethnic communities, and the parish's history.
- Opening Mass: June 21, 2025 with Bishop Michael Barber
- Blessing of the parish's new altar at the opening Mass
- Centennial runs through June 2026
- Centennial website: sj100.sjtbc.us
Clergy and Staff
Fr. Thuong Hoai Nguyen has served as pastor of St. John the Baptist since 2011 and, beginning in early 2025, took on the additional role of Pastoral Administrator of St. David of Wales when the two parishes were clustered. He is assisted by Fr. Joseph Tri Tran and by Fr. Chrisanttus Nakanda, a priest from Cameroon who is in residence while completing doctoral studies at the Graduate Theological Union (GTU).
- Fr. Thuong Hoai Nguyen — Pastor since 2011; Pastoral Administrator of St. David of Wales from 2025
- Fr. Joseph Tri Tran — ordained May 17, 2002 at All Saints' Church, Hayward
- Fr. Chrisanttus Nakanda — from Buea, Cameroon; ordained July 16, 2020; in residence while studying at GTU
- Tom Kennedy — Administrative Assistant
Faith Formation and Religious Education
Children's Religious Education is directed by Camille Herrera and runs from preschool/kindergarten through 8th grade. First Communion preparation is now structured as a two-year formation program regardless of the child's age; baptismal certificates are required at registration. The parish also runs a two-year Confirmation program for teens in grades 8–11 that includes bi-weekly catechism meetings, a retreat, and service work; youth ministry and Confirmation classes meet at the Community Center every other Wednesday from 7:00 to 8:00 PM.
- Children's Religious Education Director: Camille Herrera (religiouseducationsjtbc.us)
- Two-year First Communion program
- Confirmation program for grades 8–11
- Youth Ministry & Confirmation classes: every other Wednesday, 7:00–8:00 PM, Community Center
RCIA and Adult Sacraments
The parish runs a formal RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) process for adults who are unbaptized, baptized in another Christian denomination, or simply searching and discerning a call from God. The process leads to sacramental initiation through Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist at Easter. Adult Confirmation classes are also offered.
- RCIA Coordinator: Richard Keller
- Contact the rectory at (510) 232-5659
- Sacramental initiation celebrated at Easter
Ethnic Communities and Languages
Multilingual worship has been part of St. John the Baptist's identity since its founding. A century ago the parish was largely Portuguese and Italian; today it serves English-speaking, Mandarin-speaking, and Brazilian Portuguese-speaking Catholics, with Filipino parishioners also contributing across every area of parish life. The parish currently offers Mass in English, Mandarin, and Brazilian Portuguese.
- Chinese Catholic Community — Mandarin Mass Sundays at 1:00 PM
- Brazilian Catholic community — Portuguese Mass Sundays at 6:00 PM
- Filipino parishioners active in Liturgy, Finance, Faith Formation, Social Justice (GRIP), Communications
- Chinese Catholic chaplaincy priests: Fr. Thomas Ng (1981–2007), Fr. Paul Chen (2007–2019), Fr. Michel Marcil SJ (2019–2021)
Parish Clustering
At the beginning of 2025, just before its centennial year began, St. John the Baptist and St. David of Wales were clustered by the Diocese of Oakland. Fr. Thuong Hoai Nguyen serves as pastor of St. John's and as Pastoral Administrator of St. David of Wales.
- Clustering effective early 2025
- Pastor: Fr. Thuong Hoai Nguyen
- Sister parish: St. David of Wales
Visit, Contact, and Connect
St. John the Baptist is located at 11150 San Pablo Avenue in El Cerrito, CA 94530, and can be reached by phone at (510) 232-5659 or by email at [email protected]. The parish maintains an official Facebook page and a centennial microsite at sj100.sjtbc.us documenting its 100-year story, ethnic communities, and parishioner interviews.
- Address: 11150 San Pablo Avenue, El Cerrito, CA 94530
- Phone: (510) 232-5659
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: http://www.sjtbc.us
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sjtbc/
- Centennial site: https://sj100.sjtbc.us
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. William N. AbeloeThrough 1975 (pastor at 50th anniversary)
Authored the 80-page illustrated history 'Parish of St. John the Baptist 1925–1975' covering the mission years and first half-century.
- Fr. Thuong Hoai Nguyen2011–present
Escaped from Vietnam as a teen; attended St. Patrick's Seminary in Menlo Park; in 2025 also became Pastoral Administrator of clustered St. David of Wales.