The red brick front of St Johns Church on a sunny autumn day

About Us.

A neighborhood church in St. Johns, Portland, where everyone is welcome to love God and love people.

Our Story.

St Johns Church has a rich history in the community. St Johns Church as we know it today emerged in November 2020 as the result of a merger between two different congregations.

Funny story (but true)…

February 2020 the leadership at St Johns Wesleyan Church and St Johns Christian Church announced to the congregations of a vision to merge these two churches into a new church. The plan that was presented had a timeline of 13 weeks allowing time for the congregations to meet with one another and to ask questions about the impact of a merger. This was going to culminate with a congregational vote in May 2020. Believe it or not, March 15, 2020 was the first scheduled “town hall” meeting bringing both congregations together. That was the first Sunday everyone suspended meeting in person.

The churches ended up doing combined online services for much of 2020 and were able to finally do a congregational vote-by-mail in October 2020. Both churches had overwhelming support for the merge and Sunday, November 29, 2020 the first week of Advent, was the first official service of St Johns Church.

Two rich traditions

While St Johns Church is a relatively new church, the history of its two parent churches is rich. St Johns Christian Church has its origins in 1909 while the St Johns Wesleyan Church began in 1923.

Today St Johns Church is an independent church, however we acknowledge the benefit of being a part of historic faith traditions. Our two different denominational faith traditions are The Wesleyan Church and The Christian Church/Church of Christ.

St Johns Church continues to be in a collegial relationship with both denominational faith traditions for the purpose of encouraging fellowship and including St Johns Church in various ministries and the historic faith traditions as well as helping to inform our doctrine and practice. St Johns Church is also committed to working together with The Wesleyan Church and The Christian Church/Church of Christ in fulfilling the Great Commission of Jesus Christ by helping to establish new disciples and build new churches in our community as well as the broader Pacific Northwest.

Our Team.

Pastor David smiling in front of a brick wall

Pastor David

Approach: Room at the table.

David preaches the way he hosts: generous portions, honest questions and always an extra chair for whoever walks in.

Pastor Josh smiling in front of a brick wall

Pastor Josh

Approach: Faith with sleeves rolled up.

Josh leads our care ministries and neighborhood partnerships. Find him at Tuesday supper, at Care Day, or listening over coffee.

Derek Beadoin

Associate Pastor

Derek is an associate pastor who leads our youth. He also oversees our children’s ministry volunteers and guides the young adult group.

Matt Clark

Young Adult Leader

Matt is our young adult leader. He has a heart for teaching scripture and readily sets aside his own plans to help group members in need.

Matt Shea

Prayer Pastor

Matt is officially our prayer pastor. He also leads a midweek Bible study, preaches, and provides pastoral care to many in our congregation.

McKahan Mcguire

Young Adult & Youth Ministry

McKahan works collaboratively with Matt Clark to help lead the young adult group, and serves as an essential youth ministry volunteer.

Janel Hovde

Emeritus Pastor

Janel served on our staff for many years before retiring in 2024. She brings with her a wealth of experience and cares deeply about people on the margins.

Phil Hawk

Emeritus Pastor

Pastor Phil led St Johns Wesleyan Church for 35 years before stepping down as lead pastor in 2017.

Board of Directors

  • Anthony Bloker
  • Rhonda Ensley
  • Jan Barret
  • Scott McInroy
  • Susy McGuire
  • Derek Beadoin
  • Josh Hawk (ex-officio)
  • David Libby (ex-officio)

Church Office

office@sjcpdx.com503.286.0613

Office hours by appointment

Our Beliefs.

Our mission is simple: Love God. Love People.

We intentionally leave space for a diverse understanding, practice, and interpretation of God’s word. We believe in unity and that one of God’s greatest desires for us is that we would be able to work out our differences with love.

With that said, we do adhere to a pretty universal Christian orthodox belief. Our foundational beliefs come from some of the early creeds of the church, namely the Apostles Creed and the Nicene Creed.

Statement of Belief.

We believe…

  • God is the creator of all things in heaven and earth; in Jesus Christ as God’s only Son, who died and rose again; in the Holy Spirit who lives and works in the world and in our lives today.
  • Jesus Christ the Son suffered on the cross, died but rose again and now sits at the Father’s right hand until he returns to judge every person at the last day.
  • The Holy Scriptures are the God breathed, inspired Word of God.
  • By the grace of God every person has the ability and responsibility to choose between right and wrong. Those who repent of their sin and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ are justified by faith.
  • God not only counts the believer as righteous, but makes such persons righteous, freeing them from sin, purifying their hearts by faith and perfecting them in love, and providing for their growth in grace at every stage of spiritual life, enabling them through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit to live victorious lives.

Our Six Core Values.

  • Connection.

    Connection with God, each other, and our community.

  • Justice.

    Promote fairness and give voice to the oppressed, marginalized, and vulnerable.

  • Equality.

    Affirm that all are created equal in Christ; celebrate the diversity of God’s creation.

  • Integrity.

    Live and speak honestly, reflecting the character of Christ.

  • Growth.

    Grow in faith, discipleship, understanding of Scripture, and love for God and others.

  • Grace.

    Extend to others the grace we have received from God.

Join Us Sunday.

Worship is Sundays at 10am at 8044 N Richmond Ave, Portland, OR 97203.