About Our Parish
In the northeast corner of Fort Lauderdale, we are truly blessed to experience Catholic family living at St. John the Baptist parish. With our beautiful Church, spacious parish hall and inviting Rectory/Office building, and approximately 1,200 participating members, the environment for growth in holiness is offered to all who seek a personalized approach to formation and living our cherished Catholic faith. But, it was not always so!
As Northeast Broward County experienced phenomenal growth throughout the 1960s, it became evident that a new parish was needed to provide for the expanding Catholic population. After thorough investigation, Archbishop Coleman F. Carroll decided to establish a new parish on November 7, 1969, adjacent to Cardinal Gibbons High School with its Principal, Father Thomas A. Dennehy, as the first Pastor.
The parish of approximately 400 founding families began celebrating masses in the high school’s library. In a desire to solidify their faith under the patronage of St. John the Baptist, the youthful parish, imbued with great energy, desire and commitment, set about providing a church facility that would reflect their level of faith in the Lord and hope for the future. With much enthusiasm, sacrifice and effort, the “Founding Fathers and Mothers” provided a beautiful home for the Lord in their midst, where they and future generations could worship the Almighty.
On December 18, 1971, Archbishop Carroll dedicated the church to the great delight of the original parishioners. Slowly organizations of service, education and worship expanded to fill the needs of parishioners. A complete parish was now operational to provide for the spiritual, emotional, social and formational needs of all parishioners and guests. St. John the Baptist has been blessed with committed parishioners who are desirous of sharing not only their means, but also their time and talent.
Even as the climate of our contemporary society has changed over the past fifty years, the parish of St. John’s continues to be a vibrant influence, not only on its members, but also on the much broader community of South Florida. Our communal purpose today remains as its original mission statement addressed: bringing “people to God and God to people.” The aspiration of developing personal holiness and inviting others to share in that ideal through evangelization remains a top priority.
With great joy and hope, we, as a Catholic parish, now embark on the next stage of our collective journey. We express deep appreciation for all those who diligently made an effort to establish an avenue for the transmission of faith. In turn may we, through the help of Jesus, Our Savior and His blessed Mother, Mary, recommit ourselves to the preservation and expansion of our faith.
