History of SJC

The Coptic Orthodox Church is an ancient Christian church that dates back to the first century in Egypt when Mark the Evangelist brought Christianity to that land. “Coptic” means “Egyptian,” and indicates the culture in which Christianity first took root in Egypt. For the scholars among you, we are known as the “Church of Alexandria,” and so much Christian theology came out of our Church, which is universally shared among every and all Christian denominations today.

The Coptic Church was well-known and respected global part of ancient Christianity. After the Arab conquests of North Africa, and Egypt specifically, the Coptic church became a localized isolated community. Between the 10th and 14th century, the Coptic majority in Egypt became the minority within the land. The Coptic Christians (or “Copts”) remained the only Christian community in Egypt until the 17th century. At that time, other Christian groups began entering Egypt, but until this day, Copts are the largest Christian group in the entire Middle East. 

Our faith is founded squarely on Jesus Christ. Being one of the oldest faiths, our history is chronicled in the New Testament. Our tradition is saturated in Scriptural practices, teachings, and spirituality. Our faith has been protected in the hearts of Egyptians for nearly two millennia.

Fast forward to our more recent history: In 1971, the Coptic Orthodox Church had seven parishes outside of Egypt. Today, by the grace of God, there are hundreds all over the world on every major continent, and there are 40+ alone in the southern part of this State. Most of these parishes have been ethnic parishes, pastorally ministering to the immigrants who came to the U.S., fleeing persecution and seeking a better life. In the past 5 years, our Diocese of Los Angeles, Southern California and Hawai'i has pioneered a project of creating “American Coptic Orthodox Churches” to serve first generation U.S. citizens as well as individuals who wanted to make their faith journey in the Coptic church. Our parish of St. John Chrysostom (“SJC”) is one of these American Coptic Orthodox Churches.

SJC had its first liturgy on Saturday, July 16, 2016 at a Greek Orthodox parish in San Juan Capistrano. His Eminence Metropolitan Serapion celebrated that liturgy and there were about 40-50 people in attendance. The next week there was half as many. Many priests labored in the service of this parish. Fr. Mina Ghebrial, Fr. Moses Samaan, Fr. Kyrillos Guirguis, Fr. Gregory Bishay, Fr. Andrew Iskander, Fr. Daniel Nashed. In 2018, Fr. Daniel Habib was assigned to the parish. He started in July, and SJC was renting a room out of the Seventh Day Adventist Church on Kensington in Laguna Niguel. We rented the space for a total of 24 hours in the month.

From 2018 – 2020, SJC searched diligently for a permanent home. It entered into escrow 4 or 5 times, trying to make it all work out, and it wasn’t until 2020, that we were able to find a permanent home in San Juan Capistrano. We love that our acronym “SJC” matches perfectly with this wonderful city.

SJC has been blessed to have a wonderfully diverse membership. SJC serves everyone from single students, young professionals, young families all the way through to retirees. Three generations are always present, which is a mark of a healthy parish. Our congregants have diverse backgrounds and a wealth of experience and expertise. SJC hopes to be able to utilize our expertise in the local community.