A Fig Tree, a Sanctuary, and a West LA Neighborhood
St. John's Presbyterian Church sits on 2.56 acres at the corner of National Boulevard and Military Avenue in the Rancho Park neighborhood of West Los Angeles, and the easiest way to find it is to look for the tree. The enormous Moreton Bay Fig that shades the sanctuary was planted in 1875 by the property's original owner in honor of his firstborn son, more than seven decades before the church existed. In 1963 the City of Los Angeles declared it Historic Cultural Monument No. 19, and it remains a beloved Westside landmark. For the congregation that meets beneath it, the tree has become a symbol of what St. John's aspires to be: rooted and enduring.
Sixty-seven men and women from Rancho Park and nearby neighborhoods founded the church in 1949 with a vision for a new Presbyterian presence in their community. They began modestly, worshiping in homes and borrowed spaces, and later that year purchased the National Boulevard property for $45,000. For more than a decade, services continued in temporary quarters on the site, until November 25, 1962, when the congregation dedicated the sanctuary that is still used today. Children and youth have been central to the church's ministry from the start: Sunday School launched alongside the congregation itself, a Youth Program officially began in October 1950, and in 1966 St. John's opened a Nursery School that has continued to serve Westside families ever since.
Worship on Sundays at 10:15
Sunday morning worship is the heart of St. John's. The congregation gathers in the sanctuary every Sunday at 10:15 AM for a service that is also streamed live online so that members near and far can join in. The service draws on a blended musical tradition: a Celtic Choir directed by Juli Hullinger leads alongside a contemporary Praise Team led by Alexa Borstad, and the preaching is rooted in expository Bible teaching. Senior Pastor Rev. Dr. Steven Craig, who holds a doctorate in preaching and has served St. John's for more than two decades, regularly brings the message, and guest preachers and lay speakers round out the pulpit rotation.
Visitors are warmly welcomed. After a brief greeting time in the sanctuary, children are dismissed to their own classrooms, and adults remain for the sermon, prayers, and communion. Each Sunday also includes a Welcome Luncheon at 12:00 PM in the Westminster Room and Library, a casual gathering where newcomers can meet others over a meal. For those who want to dig deeper before the service, an Adult Bible Study meets at 9:00 AM on Sundays, offered both in person and over Zoom, with engaging discussion on the day's Scripture and ample room for questions.
Children, Students, and the Rooted Generation
The children's ministry at St. John's is called Sprouted, and the name says what it aims to do. Babies under two are welcomed into the nursery before the service begins. Toddlers from age two through Transitional Kindergarten are dismissed from worship to the Green Room for their own lesson. Children in Kindergarten through fifth grade check in across the patio outside Fellowship Hall, where Sunday School meets from 10:15 to 11:30 with Bible stories, crafts, songs, and activities designed to make learning about Jesus enjoyable. Rev. Dr. Toya Richards serves as Director of Children and Family Ministries, and the church is currently funding a full-time search for additional leadership in this area through its Renewal Campaign.
Middle and high school students belong to Rooted, the student ministry that meets Sunday evenings from 5:00 to 7:00 PM for games, food, meaningful conversation, and time in Scripture. Director of Student Ministries Leah Armstrong also hosts IDK Nights on Tuesdays from 6:00 to 8:00 PM, when students gather to cook a new dish together and then sit down to share the meal. Students are encouraged to be part of the whole church family by joining the 10:15 AM worship service on Sunday mornings, and many serve in leadership roles across the church.
Adults, Bible Study, and Small Groups
Adults at St. John's have several rhythms for going deeper. The Sunday morning Adult Bible Study is the most visible, but the church also runs a network of small groups that meet throughout the week in homes and on campus. These are the places, the church says, where faith grows deeper, friendships form, and support is real, and newcomers are paired with a group that fits their schedule and season of life. Bible study opportunities have included series such as Sacred Questions for Anxious Times, an extended walk through the questions God's people ask in times of fear and uncertainty.
St. John's has historically been a church of study groups: the history mentions Mothers' Groups, Book Groups, and Men's Study Groups that helped define its life together. Those traditions continue today. Visitors exploring faith for the first time can also join the Alpha Course, a twelve-week series that includes lunch, a short talk, and open discussion where no question is off limits.
A Sanctuary Shaped by Members
St. John's is a congregation where the building itself tells the story of its people. Handcrafted banners, chancel pew seatbacks, pulpit decorations, and kneelers made by members adorn the worship space, gifts of time and talent that have been added over decades. The music program reflects the same creative spirit. The Celtic Choir, the Praise Team, and visiting musicians and drummers (the church has hosted the Peace Player Drummers in past services) give the congregation a worship life that ranges from centuries-old hymns to gospel and contemporary songs.
The church's campus has long been more than a Sunday home. Civic partners including Alcoholics Anonymous, Scouts, the Red Cross, the Westside Village Civic Association, Clover Elementary School, and the Mar Vista and Westwood Homeowners Associations have shared the property, along with faith partners such as Redeemer Baptist Church, Adat Shalom Congregation, Shin Il Korean Presbyterian Church, and Vineyard Christian Fellowship. The large green space that surrounds the sanctuary is part of the church's identity and a gift to the neighborhood.
The Renewal Campaign
St. John's is in the middle of a multi-year Renewal Campaign with a goal of one million dollars over and above regular giving, running now through December 2027. The campaign has three pillars: reimagine ministries, revitalize the worship space, and respond in service to the wider community. Early gifts of close to $300,000 have already funded a new sanctuary roof with a ridge vent to address ceiling mold (completed in September 2025), the hiring of a Communications Director, and the search for a new full-time Director of Children and Family Ministries.
Up next, the Renewal Committee has identified several urgent repairs to the building: exterior lighting and signage along National Boulevard, a renovated narthex, mold remediation and repainting in the nave and chancel, new flooring and pew repairs, and long-overdue plumbing and restroom work. The campaign is also setting aside funding to support a one-year Co-Pastor transition when Pastor Steve eventually retires, an intentional alternative to the typical interim process, designed to keep the church growing into the future.
What Presbyterians Believe, and What St. John's Believes
St. John's belongs to the Presbyterian Church (USA) and since 2016 has also been affiliated with The Fellowship Community, a renewal movement within the denomination. The church's own statement of beliefs, drawn from Scripture and shaped by historic Reformed confessions, affirms one God who created all things and who is before all things visible and invisible. The congregation confesses faith in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, fully God and fully human, through whom God is and will always be God-With-Us, and in the continuing presence and power of Jesus in the world through the Holy Spirit.
The church teaches that the Bible is the authoritative and inspired word of God, that humanity was created for a love relationship with God but has chosen to turn from that love, and that the Church is a community nurtured by the Word, empowered by the Spirit, and sent forth to represent Christ in the world. St. John's grounds its identity in five core values: living relationally, embracing diversity, going at God's speed, learning God's ways, and giving to others. In April 2026 the Session adopted a Unity and Inclusion statement affirming that membership and leadership are not to be denied to anyone because of background, culture, identity, experience, viewpoint, or personal history, holding fast to a shared vocation to follow Jesus Christ as redeemed sinners.
Getting Connected and Giving
For visitors, the Sunday rhythm is the easiest on-ramp: Bible Study at 9:00 AM, Worship at 10:15 AM with full children's programming, and a Welcome Luncheon at 12:00 PM. Those who want a more personal conversation can fill out a form under Talk to Us on the church's site, and the team will follow up. A prayer request can be submitted online, and the prayer team and pastors lift up each request with care and confidentiality. The office is reachable by phone at (310) 477-2513 or by email at info@stjohnspres.org.
St. John's welcomes giving in several ways. The simplest is online through the church's secure eGive platform, accessible by phone, tablet, or computer. Donations can also be made in person during the Sunday service by cash or check, or mailed to the church office. The church accepts Qualified Charitable Distributions from IRAs, gifts of appreciated stock or mutual funds, and pledges for the Renewal Campaign. Members can designate gifts to general ministry, missions, or special offerings, and online giving is free for the donor with no bank fees.
The church is served by a faithful staff: Rev. Dr. Steven Craig as Pastor and Head of Staff; Rev. Dr. Toya Richards as Director of Children and Family Ministries; Leah Armstrong as Director of Student Ministries; Brittany Wilson as Nursery School Director; Juli Hullinger leading the Celtic Choir; Alexa Borstad leading the Praise Team; and Sound Mind Media's Ruby Reyes as Communications Director. Office Administrator Nancy Ashley and office mascot Hank keep things running day to day. Together they share in the simple mission the church has carried since 1949: joining Christ on the road, and pointing travelers to the Way.