About Us
St. John the Baptist Catholic Church is a Catholic parish in the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter. The Ordinariate is the North American diocese created by Pope Benedict XVI in answer to decades of earnest prayer that enabled formerly Anglican parishes, priests and individuals to come into the full communion of the Catholic Church. We are a missionary diocese obedient to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church in all things.
Our liturgy is deeply reverent and rich with traditional music, Anglican and Gregorian chant, and orthodox preaching. Our form of Mass—Divine Worship: The Missal—was approved by Pope Francis for use in the Ordinariate.
Parish History
Saint John the Baptist Catholic Church was formed in 2015 after acquiring the property of the former Our Lady of Mount Carmel parish in Bridgeport, Pennsylvania. The first liturgy was offered on the Fourth Sunday of Advent, 2015.
Bishop Steven J. Lopes, first Bishop of the Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, established Saint John the Baptist as a canonical parish of the Ordinariate. He visited Bridgeport on November 18, 2016 to erect the parish, and to install the Rev. David A. Ousley as the first Pastor. Following Fr Ousley’s retirement in August 2021, Fr William C. Cantrell became the second Pastor in September 2021. Fr Cantrell retired at the end of June 2023 and was succeeded by Fr Samuel Keyes.
St John's (SJB for short) has supported various apostolates in Bridgeport and the surrounding area. Together with the Legion of Mary, the parish regularly makes calls to the homes in Bridgeport through Evangelization Days. A new Thrift Shop opened in 2017, providing material as well as spiritual service to our neighbors. Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, which began in 2021, serves both our own families and those of the surrounding region. SJB also hosts the Holy Family Council of the Knights of Columbus (serving the three Catholic parishes of Bridgeport). The Council meets monthly at SJB and has been unfailingly supportive of our mission.
