Founded in January 1984; held services at Santa Teresa Roman Catholic Church in San Jose.
About St Elias Community:
St Elias Melkite-Greek Catholic Church is the Melkite Greek Catholic parish for Alameda, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, and San Mateo counties, as well as parts of Solano county, in the San Francisco Bay Area of northern California. It encompasses the Roman Catholic Dioceses of San Jose, Oakland, and Monterey, and the Archdiocese of San Francisco. The majority of the congregation live in the San Jose and Fremont urban area, within a 20-mile radius of the church.
The congregation of St Elias Church is mainly Greek Catholics from various parts of the Middle East--Egypt, Sudan, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine, and Syria. But parish membership is not limited to Arabic-speaking Christians; St Elias parish welcomes everyone interested in the Bible-based, family-oriented Christian tradition given to the Apostles and handed down by them in the lands of the Byzantine Empire.
Regularly Scheduled Services:
Sunday Divine Liturgy, in English and Arabic, is celebrated at 11 am.
Important Dates:
In 1989, the mission found a new home at the chapel of the Sisters of the Holy Family in Fremont.
In 1992, St Elias bought a church and house in Fremont.
The Fremont property was sold and vacated in January 1998.
From February 1998 until September 1999, services were held at St Basil the Great Byzantine Catholic Church in Los Gatos, and the pastor lived at Our Lady of Fatima Russian Byzantine Catholic Church in San Francisco.
In August 1999, after a successful “New Home” fund-raising campaign, St Elias purchased a former Protestant church at 4411 Hyland Avenue in East San Jose, a location central to the congregation’s centers of population.
In October 2000, St Elias hosted the National Melkite Clergy Conference and unveiled a new custom-built iconostasis and solea and other interior improvements.
In November 2006, St Elias welcomed Archbishop Cyril Bustros, Eparch of Newton, to San Jose. Archbishop Cyril celebrated the Divine Liturgy in St John Vianney Roman Catholic church, introducing Byzantine worship and spirituality to many people. Following Archbishop Cyril’s visit to the parish, St Elias again hosted the National Melkite Clergy Conference.
In the spring of 2007, parishioners and friends of St Elias raised $51,000 in donations and $59,500 in zero-interest loans, which, combined with a low-interest loan from the diocese, enabled us to pay off our high-interest bank loan and substantially reduce not only our debt but also our monthly expenses.
Ecumenical Activities:
Father James Graham, pastor of St Elias, is active in the East Side Clergy Fellowship in the church’s neighborhood. It comprises pastors from Roman Catholic, Episcopal, Methodist, Presbyterian, and Lutheran churches as well as our Melkite parish. St Elias hosted the annual service for the Week of Christian Unity in January 2001. Fr James is also active in the Eastern Catholic Pastoral Association of Northern California and maintains good relations with the Roman Catholic Dioceses of San Jose and Oakland. In February 2007, Fr James visited St Patrick’s Seminary in Menlo Park to talk about Eastern Christian spirituality, to bless the new ikon chapel, and to celebrate Lenten Vespers with the seminarians, faculty, and staff.
