About St. John the Baptist · Pawtucket, Rhode Island
St. John the Baptist Church (Parroquia San Juan Bautista) is a bilingual Roman Catholic parish serving the Woodlawn neighborhood of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, within the Diocese of Providence. The parish offers Mass in both English and Spanish, reflecting its identity as a faith community rooted in the historic French-Canadian immigration to Woodlawn and now ministering to a largely Hispanic congregation. Its present-day church building — designed by the great Montreal architect Ernest Cormier in 1925–27 — is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places and is celebrated as one of the finest early-20th-century church interiors in Rhode Island. Today the parish gathers for daily and Sunday Mass, Eucharistic Adoration, Confessions, faith formation, youth ministry, Legion of Mary, and a parish food bank.
- Established
- 1884
- Patron
- St. John the Baptist
- Rector
- Rev. Mauricio Romero
- Diocese
- Diocese of Providence
Why belong here
St. John the Baptist welcomes families and individuals into a deeply bilingual Catholic community where Mass is offered in English and Spanish every day of the week. The parish nourishes its members through faith formation for children and youth, a Youth Group for grades 7–12, the Legion of Mary, the Comunidad Evangelizadora (CERS), and Eucharistic Adoration every Friday, alongside a Food Bank that serves neighbors in need. Set inside one of the most architecturally significant church interiors in Rhode Island — listed on the National Register of Historic Places — it is a place where devotion, heritage, and service come together.
Mass times at St. John the Baptist
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 3:30 p.m. (in Chapel/Capilla)
- Saturday 5:30 p.m. (in Chapel/Capilla)
Adoration times
- Every Friday 9:00 a.m. to 6:45 p.m. in the Church
About St. John the Baptist / Sobre Nosotros
St. John the Baptist Church — known in Spanish as Parroquia San Juan Bautista — is a bilingual Roman Catholic parish of the Diocese of Providence serving the Woodlawn neighborhood of Pawtucket, Rhode Island. The parish welcomes new parishioners and asks them to fill out a registration form (available from the parish office or by download from the website) or to call the Rectory at 401-722-9054.
- Parish Office: 401-722-9054
- Email: [email protected]
- Office hours: Monday–Thursday 9:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m.
- Bilingual registration form available online
History of the Parish
Founded in 1884 by French-speaking Catholic families of Pawtucket's Woodlawn neighborhood, the parish grew rapidly through the late 19th and early 20th centuries under the leadership of Rev. Alphonse Graton. After the 1897 stone church burned in 1918, Father Graton commissioned the present-day church and rectory from the great Montreal architect Ernest Cormier. The completed church was — and remains — the focal point of Woodlawn's French Catholic community, even though the construction of Interstate 95 in the 1960s cut directly through the neighborhood and dramatically reduced the parish's population. The church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983, and today the parish serves a new generation of English- and Spanish-speaking Catholics under the name Parroquia San Juan Bautista.
- 1884 — origins as a French Catholic community in Woodlawn
- 1886 — land purchased in Woodlawn
- 1887 — first small wooden church built
- 1890 — parish formally organized as St. Jean de Baptiste
- 1897–98 — larger stone church built
- 1918 — stone church burns
- 1925–27 — current Cormier-designed church and rectory built
- 1960s — I-95 bisects Woodlawn neighborhood
- 1983 — church listed on National Register of Historic Places
The Church Building — Architecture & Art
The present church was designed in 1925–27 by Ernest Cormier of Montreal, whose work on this building closely parallels his Notre-Dame de Guadalupe Church in Montreal. Inspired by Filippo Brunelleschi's basilica of San Spirito in Florence (1436), it is a basilican-plan structure of reinforced concrete with a yellow Belden brick facing and Indiana limestone trim, topped by a long green-tile gabled roof and marked by a tall square belltower with an octagonal belfry.
- Architect: Ernest Cormier (Montreal)
- Built: 1925–27
- Exterior: Belden brick, Indiana limestone, green tile roof
- Facade: triple-arcaded pavilion with monumental Corinthian columns
- Doors: bronze, cast by Brandt of Paris
- Belltower: square tower with octagonal belfry and stubby spire
The Interior — 'Noble and Severe'
The interior — described by Cormier himself as 'noble and severe' — is one of the most lavishly detailed early-20th-century church spaces in Rhode Island. The airy 200-foot-long nave, 72 feet wide, has no interior columns; the side walls are developed as columned blind arcades with Corinthian columns of polished marble and gilded capitals. The flat 59-foot-high ceilings are filled with Expressionist paintings by Jean Desauliers, while the apse holds painted panels by Robert Mahias depicting St. John the Baptist preaching in the desert and baptising the Lord.
- Nave: 200 ft long × 72 ft wide, no interior columns
- Ceiling paintings of the Ascension by Jean Desauliers
- Apse panels by Robert Mahias
- Stained glass windows by Mauméjean Frères of Paris
- Corinthian columns with polished marble shafts and gilded capitals
Parish Staff / Personal de la Parroquia
The parish is led by its pastor with a bilingual team of clergy, religious, and lay staff serving the English- and Spanish-speaking congregation.
- Rev. Mauricio Romero — Pastor
- Deacon Vicente Caban / Diácono
- Robert Giambo — Organist / Organista
- Mrs. Cecilia Hoyt — Secretary / Secretaria
- Mrs. Margarita Rivera Zuleta — Coordinator of Religious Education / Coordinadora de Formación en la Fe
- Mrs. Vanesa Zuleta Goldberg — Pastoral Assistant / Asistente Pastoral
- Mr. Conrado Mosquera — Bookkeeper / Contador (part-time)
Sacraments
Information on sacramental preparation is published on the parish bulletin/website in both English and Spanish.
- Baptism — celebrated the second Sunday of every month after the 11:30 a.m. Mass; please call the rectory at least two months in advance.
- Matrimony — please call one year in advance to begin preparation.
- Anointing of the Sick — please call the parish.
- New parishioner registration — please call the Rectory.
Faith Formation & Youth Ministry
Religious education is coordinated by Mrs. Margarita Rivera Zuleta and offered bilingually for the parish's children. A separate Youth Group brings together students in grades 7–12 for faith, fellowship, and formation.
- Religious Education / Formación en la Fe — coordinated bilingually
- Youth Group / Grupo Juvenil — Thursdays 6:00–7:30 p.m. for grades 7–12
Devotions & Prayer Groups
Beyond the regular Mass and confession schedule, the parish hosts several ongoing devotional gatherings in Spanish and English, including weekly Eucharistic Adoration on Fridays and two long-standing community groups.
- Eucharistic Adoration — every Friday 9:00 a.m. to 6:45 p.m.
- Legión de María — Mondays 6:00 p.m. in the Sacristy
- Comunidad Evangelizadora (CERS) — Saturdays 7:00 p.m. in the Chapel
Outreach: Food Bank & Hospitality House
The parish operates a Food Bank (Banco de Comida) that distributes free groceries to neighbors in need, with advertised distribution days in July of Monday 17 and Monday 24 from 9:30–11:00 a.m. and 6:00–7:00 p.m. (per a recent bulletin). A separate Hospitality House (Casa de Hospitalidad) provides hospitality year-round, with a break during July and August.
- Food Bank / Banco de Comida — free groceries; volunteers welcome
- Hospitality House / Casa de Hospitalidad — closed July and August
Visit & Contact
Parishioners and visitors are warmly welcomed at the Rectory. The parish office is open Monday through Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., and the staff is bilingual.
- Address: 69 Quincy Ave., Pawtucket, RI 02860
- Phone: (401) 722-9054
- Email: [email protected]
- Office hours: Monday–Thursday 9:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m.
- Website: churchofstjohnthebaptist.org
- Facebook: facebook.com/pg/JohntheBaptistPawtucket
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Alphonse Graton
Long-time rector; built up the parochial school system (primary, junior and senior high, business schools, and academy); commissioned the current 1925–27 church and rectory after the 1897 stone church burned in 1918.
- Rev. Brian Sistare
Listed as Pastor on earlier parish bulletin.