How San Jose Chinese Catholic Mission Is Growing Faith—One Family, One Meal, One “Yes” at a Time
On a typical Sunday at San Jose Chinese Catholic Mission (SJCCM), you can feel the rhythm of a community that has learned to live in more than one language—and to belong across generations. The parish is home to three distinct worshipping communities—English, Mandarin, and Cantonese—gathered within St. Clare Church and connected by a 33-year history of families who immigrated from Taiwan and China and grew up together in the pews.
Fr. Carlos Alberto Olivera, the pastor, describes a place where yesterday’s teens are today’s parents—and where today’s children are being formed in faith with intentionality. It’s a pattern the parish has seen before: relationships deepen, young people remain connected, and new seasons of parish life emerge.
“What’s beautiful here is that we’re one Mission with three language communities sharing a spiritual home and growing together,” remarks Fr. Olivera. “There’s a real sense that this is family.”
From “Youth Mass” to a Full English-Speaking Community
The English-speaking community began years ago as a youth Mass in the lower church, an identity that made sense when many parishioners were students and young adults. Over time, those young adults married, started families, and the English community grew into a full parish community of its own. After COVID-era shifts, the community moved into the main church facility—an outward sign of an inward reality: this is no longer a “phase” of parish life, but a lasting spiritual home.
One of these parishioners who grew up in the parish and is now raising her daughter here is Rosemary DeAragon, SJCCM’s Director of Religious Education. Ask her why this place is so special and she has no problem elaborating. “It’s very much a grassroots mission,” says Rosemary. “We’re a community with so much history and tight relationships that people are very committed to keeping it alive and thriving. It’s a very special place.”
Community growth brings practical needs. In partnership with St. Clare Parish, the parish is expanding and improving shared space—including renovations that will create new classrooms and expanded areas for faith formation.
Building Faith Early: A Children’s Ministry with Depth
Ask Rosemarywhat’s fueling the community’s momentum, and she’ll point you to the youngest members first. The children’s ministry currently includes six primary catechetical classes. Among them is a Montessori-style Catechesis of the Good Shepherd (CGS) for ages 3–6, an approach that invites children to encounter Scripture and liturgy through hands-on, prayerful work.
The parish is expanding to CGS Level 2 (ages 6–9) in collaboration with St. Clare Parish—an effort that requires dedicated space, thoughtful planning, and the creation of handmade materials. It’s the kind of formation that can’t be rushed; it’s built piece by piece, and it forms children in a way that becomes part of them.
The parish’s multilingual reality shows up here, too. As children grow up “American,” many families choose English-language formation even if they worship in Mandarin or Cantonese—so children’s ministry becomes a bridge across the whole parish.
To support parents in their role as the first catechists, the parish scheduled a parents’ retreat on in the fall, designed especially for parents of young children and offering formation support that can be difficult to access amid busy family life.
Strengthening Young Families: “Spiritual Food” for the Domestic Church
As SJCCM’s young families grow, the parish has also built formation experiences that meet couples and parents where they are. One example is its Young Married Couples retreat, designed as “spiritual food” for couples raising children and balancing work, family life, and faith in a secular culture.
The retreat model is intentionally practical and deeply sacramental: participants receive formation through talks on marriage, parenting, and family spirituality; then break into small-group workshops to share experiences and apply what they’ve heard to real life—everything from strengthening family prayer to navigating modern challenges with faith. The weekend also centers on communal Mass and Eucharistic adoration, grounding renewal in worship rather than simply inspiration.
And because most attendees are parents, the parish prioritizes free childcare and children’s activities—a detail that makes participation possible and communicates something important: young families belong here, not someday, but now. The retreat drew 110 participants—far more than expected, reflecting both the need and the hunger for this kind of formation among young families.
Evangelization that Sticks: Alpha as a Pathway to Belonging
The Mission’s growth isn’t only about serving existing families; it’s also about reaching new people—especially those who feel far from the Church.This year, SJCCM is welcoming 87 participants in Alpha, including more than 30 who are not Christian—an encouraging sign of outreach to those exploring faith for the first time. The program runs as an eleven-week journey that blends hospitality (a shared dinner), table conversation, and prayer.
And the numbers point to something deeper: Alpha is doing more than hosting conversations—it’s forming disciples. The parish has seen annual baptisms connected to Alpha increase over the last three years; at one point, eight people entered the Church. “Alpha has become one of our clearest doorways for newcomers—especially younger adults who are searching,” says Fr. Olivera. “We’ve seen people move from questions to friendship to faith, and then—beautifully—some of them step up to lead.” That “pipeline”—from curiosity to conversion to leadership—has become one of the community’s most hopeful patterns.
Because SJCCM serves Chinese-speaking communities, Alpha also requires careful translation and theological precision. Mandarin Catholic terminology can differ from familiar Protestant biblical terms, so the team coordinates Catholic-specific translations. It’s evangelization that honors culture and language while staying rooted in Catholic teaching.
A Campus Invitation, and a New Generation at the Door
The parish’s evangelizing energy is also reaching beyond parish walls. Outreach to their neighbor Santa Clara University drew 60 Chinese students to a barbecue—an encouraging sign that young adults are looking for community, friendship, and faith. In Silicon Valley, where these students are often far from home, a simple meal can become the first “yes” to belonging. “When we welcomed Chinese students from SCU, it reminded us how powerful simple hospitality can be. A meal, a conversation, a place to belong—those can be the first steps back toward faith,” remarked Fr. Olivera.
SJCCM’s vision expands that outreach into a more structured Chinese Young Adult Ministry, focused especially on Chinese international students and young professionals navigating cultural transition, isolation, and vocational uncertainty.
This focus complements what the parish already sees on the ground: young adults don’t only need a service to attend—they need relationships, accompaniment, and a place to rebuild a sense of belonging while they navigate life’s biggest decisions.
Grants Supporting Vital Ministries
From the Catholic Community Foundation’s perspective, SJCCM’s story reflects the very purpose of the Living the Faith Grant Cycle—an annual, open-application process that helps parishes in the Diocese of San José strengthen core ministries such as family life, formation, worship, and engagement. SJCCM was awarded Living the Faith grants to strengthen and expand key ministries described above plus more—especially faith formation for children and families and evangelization that invites new people into the life of the Church.
In 2025, the Foundation awarded Living the Faith grants broadly across the Diocese—reaching 45 parishes and totaling $327,000—to support programs focused on five pillars of work that are central to the Diocesan Pastoral Plan – Renewed in Christ, Together in Mission.
And the Foundation’s partnership with the parish isn’t only seasonal. The Foundation also stewards a San Jose Chinese Catholic Mission Endowment, invested for the long term to provide annual support for the parish’s operations—helping build stability that lasts beyond any single year’s needs.
A Community Becoming a Launchpad
Step back, and what emerges is a portrait of a parish-in-motion: three language communities worshiping side by side, a new generation being formed with care, and evangelization that aims for transformation and belonging.
San Jose Chinese Catholic Mission is growing because it is doing something vital: it is making time for relationship, for formation, and for shared life—so that faith becomes not just something people practice, but something they can build a life around.