First Chinese Baptist Church, San Francisco

Situated in the heart of SF's Chinatown, the First Chinese Baptist Church was established in 1880 as a bilingual and bicultural congregation. When Chinese students were not permitted to attend the city's public schools, it offered day school for children and night school for adults; nowadays, it offers two distinct worship experiences to meet the specific interests of people. The 10am Cantonese Worship proclaims the Good News of the Living Christ to a multi-generational congregation. Similarly populated by a wide variety of generations, the 11:20 English Worship proclaims the Gospel in an experience that uses praise band, organ, piano and voice choirs.

Like many others in town, the church's first building was destroyed in the devastating earthquake and fire of 1906. After clearing up the ruins, the new building, completed in 1908, was designed with a peaceful sanctuary and a reading room on the ground floor. The 1st and 2nd floors consist of classrooms, while the 3rd houses a fellowship hall and a few office rooms for the pastors. Major renovations were taken up in 1980 for the centennial celebrations, in which the sanctuary was greatly modified. In the year 2000, the building was further modernized by the addition of elevators and modular classrooms on the 2nd and 4th floors.