St. Francis of Assisi

I have been going to St. Francis of Assisi since it was built. Our daughters were involved in the youth group for so many years. It’s in a beautiful setting, peace and quite, warm welcome atmosphere. People are so friendly! I am proud to be a parishioner and this is absolutely my home…

Located in the Evergreen HiLLs– this church is modern, intimate, and undeniabLy a stunner.
I’ve been to St. France’s of Assisi twice and each time I am bLown away by its beauty. The first thing you notice are the 360 gLass windows aLong the church that gives you a view of the Evergreen foothiLLs.
This church faLLs under the smaLLer sized churches that I have visited, I think it is PERFECT.
I am a fan and hopefuLLy I’ll be back sooner than Later…

First time I went to this church because we just move here to this area, the church is so beautiful and the priest is nice and funny, I am kinda late like 10 mins and I just noticed that some of the chairs are vacant with bags and prayer book on the top of the chair that is why I’m standing til the mass ended, i’m disable person with a cane, so I thought those chairs was taken but after the mass there is nobody on that chairs, I hope before the mass started they shld announce about it that they shld not put their personal belongings to the empty chair.

I have been to this church on and off for a few years now. I have recently been trying to bring the kids to church more now that their summer activities are over. It is located on a small little hill and parking can be a little hard to come by if you get there at the wrong time. We usually go to the 8:30am mass and it’s always nice to see people there awake and wide eyed for church. The people there are really friendly. The church is very clean and presentable and I like the priest. The environment is very welcoming and peaceful. I’ve been to some churches where it just looks so dark inside but this church is very open and has a beautiful view!

It’s not the closest church to where we live, but we started going to this church because it offers a Sunday 6PM mass (which the churches closer to us do not), and continued attending this church because we love the sense of community in this church! The chapel itself is very beautiful, but the community definitely makes us feel like we belong…

In 2011 I visited this church for the first time because my partner convinced me that it was worth to give it a chance. The first time I met several priests who seemed to be very caring and told me about the importance of this church in their lives. I fell for it and for more than 6 months I spent at least one day per week coming to this church. During that time I met several priests and one of them (I can’t say the name because Unilocal will remove the review) starting telling me about the economic woes this church was facing and he started asking me for money. I made the huge mistake to give him $ 2,000 so that St Francis of Assisi could remain open and since that day I never heard from the person who took my money. Before taking my money he would return my phone calls within minutes but this changed from the day I gave him the envelope with $ 2k. Since that day he has not got back to me and he has never sent me a receipt for my charitable contribution. Because of his greed and dishonesty I won’t be able to even deduct this money from my taxes. Anyway, hope my reviews helps others, do not make donations to this church unless you get proper documentation, otherwise the money will not be spent on good causes.

Beautiful church and a great community of people. Also, the music is the best in San Jose! They have more than one choir, from Little Flowers (young girls ages 8 – 12 ish) to even Young Adult Choir! This place is great!

5^th stop during our Visita Iglesia 2014 (9^th and 10^th station of the Cross)
A church on top of a hill. A church overlooking hills of lush valley greens. Solemnity within natures beauty. You do feel that you can touch and sky and commune with God. Very nice.

I was born and raised in the Evergreen area, but now live on Oahu due to my husband’s job. Even with an entire ocean between us, we still chose to come back to St. Francis so that our son could get baptized in the same church as our daughter. That is how much we like this church.
Not only is it visually impressive with the large windows and lovely view, but everyone here was so lovely. When we had our daughter my husband and I, in true Filipino fashion, were not yet married, just enjoying that sinful life. But the baptism coordinator did not give us a hard time about that. With our son they were willing to work with us on a lot of things. We only had a short window of time to get our son baptized, and with my husband being in the military, it’s not as if his vacation schedule was easily predictable. But luckily for us everything worked out.
If we have more kids I’d love to continue the tradition and get them baptized here.

This is a beautiful church. It’s located on top of a hill past Evergreen Valley College and has floor to ceiling windows overlooking the East Hills of San Jose.
I came here for the first time on New Year’s Day and it was a packed house. The reason why I’m writing a review (since I typically wouldn’t for religious institutions) is because I felt so comfortable here. There was no pressure to attend, join in, participate or anything. They literally said that we have no obligation to go, but an invitation to attend is always extended to my family and I. And that is why I’ll keep coming back. The service was a little over an hour and at the end of it, they wanted to say happy new year in different languages to represent the different ethnicities that were in attendance and to say thank you to those who traveled from far away. The music was lovely and the message was easy to understand. No wonder its gotten such great reviews here on Unilocal.It’s well deserved.

I came here for a wedding and this place was beautiful. I love the giant windows that overlook the valley. It was flooded with natural lighting which I loved!

My place for Sunday services, because it’s right down the road from me.
I know one goes to church to pray and to serve God. But God bless, does this church offer the best views ever! It’s a beautiful diversion and makes understanding the Gospel a much more enlightening experience.
The people here in the parish are wonderful, and the priests make the mass a lively, religiously educational affair. I usually attend 8:30 mass on Sundays; it isn’t very crowded; in fact, it’s more of an intimate affair and makes totally waking up to God better for me, personally.
All in all, St. Francis of Assisi is one of the best churches I’ve ever been proud to attend.

Its a church with a great view of the hills and the SJ area. Its clean and the staff are great!

I was invited to witness a friend’s wedding ceremony. The church is located in the hills of ESSJ. The view from the church overlooked a sea of houses and trees. Simply very relaxing to look at. The set up in the church is stadium styled with the altar in the middle of the room. The up keep of the premises is very well maintained.
The ceremony was quite shorter than the ones I’ve been previously. But, beautifully done. I wouldn’t mind coming back for an actual mass ceremony.

Location: 5 STARS
Management: 5 STARS
Devotees: 5 STARS
Services: 5 STARS
Staffs: 5 STARS
Guest Reception: 5 STARS
Communication: 5 STARS
Publication and information:5 STARS
This is one of the best place one has to visit in his life. This is so quite and peaceful place that anyone feels relaxed and devoted in god.
The place the service Prasads, the devotees, and the management of Gurudwara is fantastic and excellent.
One has to visit here at least once a week and serve the Gurudwara as possible physically and financially. It is run by the donation of the devotees.
There is not anything that will make you unhappy and unsatisfied.
BOLE SO NIHAL, SAT SRI AKAL !
Bidur Khatri

Beautiful church with a spectacular view.
This church sits atop a small hill in the Evergreen area.
Interior is a little small but really beautiful because it has windows all around.
I’ve only attended mass here for 2 weddings and a baptismal. I have yet to attend a regular mass here.
Parking is pretty decent, but I haven’t been here when it’s busy.

My Ratings:
Quality — 5 Stars
Location — 5 Stars
Service — 5 Stars
My Opinion/​Story:
I love this church. I wanted to get married in this church. I especially like the sermon — not too long and quite entertaining. I love the round layout of the church, aircondition during the summer, and the view — 360 degrees of glass walls taking in the view of the valley. I love the simplicity of the décor yet it’s very nice. It has a very homey feeling that welcomes you when you come in. The ushers are all nice and helpful and I like that they’re organized when it comes to communion. The choir is good and I like when they sometimes have a short skit with young ones acting. You can see how the community highly involves children.

This is a great church. People talk about the East Side of San Jose and say how it’s all ghetto and what not. If you take this time to look at different parts of the East Side you’ll see that it does have it’s bright spots and this Church is one of them.
The views during service are nuts 360 degrees over looking the Evergreen area, yes it is ESSJ, and there’s nothing ghetto about the view. There’s plenty of parking and there’s a playground to take the little ones to when the elders are getting their pray on. LOL

People and spiritual fulfillment bring me to church, not the building itself. But one cannot review this church without mentioning the building.
Although the parish has been around for about 15 years, the current building on the hill has been here for seven. On a bright sunny spring morning, you can look out at the view of the green foothills and it resembles a small town in Switzerland. I know that scene alone helps add to the population explosion we have seen in our parish. At night the twinkling lights add to the atmosphere of celebrating midnight mass.
Monsignor John, Father Loi, and the volunteers and fellow parishioners are officially «the church»…just don’t let the great view distract you.

The World According to Noelle
~Allergic Girl’s Guide to Life~
Issue 266
Kordero Ng Diyos
Kordero ng Diyos na nag-​aalis ng mga kasalanan ng mundo
Maawa Ka sa amin! Kordero ng Diyos, maawa Ka.
Kordero ng Diyos na nag-​aalis ng mga kasalanan ng mundo
Maawa Ka sa amin! Kordero ng Diyos, maawa Ka.
Kordero ng Diyos na nag-​aalis ng mga kasalanan ng mundo
Ipagkaloob Mo sa amin ang kapayapaan
Most Holy Trinity Catholic Parish had such a huge attendance that it split off into two faith communities– one being Saint Francis of Assisi Catholic Parish and Christ the King Catholic Parish. Currently to date there are 2600 people that make up the two new faith communities. I remember 13 years ago attending mass at the Grange Hall. I also remember going to the Mirassou Winery for mass on Christmas Eve. I remember priests such as Father Fran, Father Ives, and Father John Sandersfeld. Now Father John Sandersfeld is Monsignor John Sandersfeld, the current Pastor of Saint Francis who will be retiring in 2009.
Tonight I was here for a special Simbang Gabi Mass. Simbang Gabi or Mass at Dawn is a nine-​day novena to the Blessed Mother. The novena begins December 16 as early as 4 in the morning and culminates with the «Misa de Gallo» on Christmas Eve to welcome the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ. In some churches, the panuluyan is reenacted showing the effort of Joseph and Mary to find a suitable birthplace. Simbang Gabi traces its roots in Mexico when, in 1587, the Pope granted the petition of Fray Diego de Soria, prior of the convent of San Agustin Acolman, to hold Christmas mass outdoors because the Church could not accommodate the huge number of people attending the evening mass. During the old times, the pre-​dawn mass is announced by the ringing of the church bells. In some rural areas, an hour before the start of Simbang Gabi, a brass band plays Christmas music all over the town. It is also believed that parish priests would go far knocking on doors to wake and gather the faithful to attend the misa de gallo. Farmers as well as fishermen wake up early to hear the Gospel before going to their work and ask for the grace of good harvest.
My friend was a good sport and came with me to mass in support of my faith– which means a lot considering he’s not Catholic or Filipino. He survived his first Catholic Mass– and a Tagalog one to top it off. I don’t expect him to become Catholic, I’m just thankful for his support by sitting next to me at mass this evening. This year has been a challenging one for me as my grandmother and mother have both battled rare forms of Cancer. As hard as it is to believe, I have a hard time verbalizing how seeing my loved ones with Cancer affects me. I have a hard time discussing how I feel with even my closest friends and family (its to a point where I don’t discuss it, internalizing how I feel), so I’m looking into a Cancer support group. Through prayer I am able to find some peace. When my mom first was diagnosed with a rare form of Cancer five years ago is when I first learned about Simbang Gabi and started to attend offering my prayers and mass attendance for the nine day novena in honor of my mom. Today, was the first day of Simbang Gabi and I feel good that I was able to pray for my mom and grandmother. I will attend the rest of Simbang Gabi (8 days left) at Holy Family Parish– which starts at 5:30 a.m. the traditional time of the Simbang Mass.
Noelle’s Notes
Beautiful and Welcoming Catholic Community