As a Catholic community, prayer and sacraments are the center of our faith life.
Please contact the Parish Office by phone or email for additional information regarding any of the sacraments
(510) 653-8631
Email: St. Augustine Parish
To view our current prayers for parishioners, please visit our Mass Intentions page.
Infant and Child Baptisms
(for children under the age of six)
Families should arrange for baptisms well in advance so that there will be adequate time to prepare for the ceremony. This preparation includes an interview with the pastor, followed by one pre-baptism class. Please call the rectory to schedule your baptism date and meeting: (510) 653-8631. Children seven or older are prepared for baptism through participation in our Family Faith Formation Program.
Downloadable Parish Baptism Registration Form
Godparents for Infant Baptism
What is required to be a godparent?
Each child to be baptized requires at least one godparent (also called “sponsor”). If there are to be two godparents, one is to be a man and one a woman. Church Law does not allow for multiple godparents.
At least one godparent must be 16 years old or older, have been baptized, confirmed, and received Eucharist in the Roman Catholic Church, and be living a life in harmony with the Faith and the role as godparent. It is preferable that this godparent be active in his or her faith practice.
If there is a second godparent, and the second godparent is not Catholic, that godparent should possess an active Christian faith.
The role of godparents is to help the child they sponsor to lead a Christian life in harmony with baptism and to fulfill faithfully the obligations connected with being a baptized person. To understand the obligations of this role, and to prepare to fulfill it, St. Augustine Parish requires godparents to attend the Infant Baptism Preparation Class, preferably with the parents of the child they will be sponsoring. The role of godparents is discussed during the class. This class is normally held during the week prior to the baptismal date. Please see the posted schedule for class dates.
If time or distance prevents the godparents from attending the St. Augustine Infant Baptism Preparation Class, godparents can attend the Infant Baptism Preparation Class or Program in their home parish. After their completion of the program, the home parish should be able to provide each godparent with a letter indicating that he or she is prepared to act as godparent. This letter should be delivered to St. Augustine Parish before the day of baptism.
Conversely, godparents who will be traveling out of town and need a letter from St. Augustine Parish indicating they have been prepared for the role of sponsor are welcome to attend the St. Augustine Infant Baptismal Preparation Class.
First Communion for Children
Children who are second grade and older, and who have been baptized, can prepare for their First Reconciliation and First Eucharist. Class begins in September, and meets on Sundays from 9:00-9:45 a.m. before the 10 a.m. Mass. Please contact ourFamily Faith Formation Coordinator at the parish office or via email at katefaithformationstaugustine@gmail.com
Reconciliation
Face-to-face as well as anonymous (behind the screen) confessions are held on Saturdays, starting at 4:00 p.m. Communal penance services are celebrated prior to Easter Triduum (Lent) and Christmas (Advent)
Confirmation
Adults who wish to receive Confirmation join the RCIA Inquiry Group. This group includes those who are curious to learn more about the possibility of becoming Catholic, as well as those who were baptized at another time in their lives and may like to receive First Communion and Confirmation. The usual time to receive this sacrament at St. Augustine is at the Vigil of Easter, although Confirmation may be administered at other times of the year at Diocesan Confirmation celebrations. Questions about the Inquiry Group or RCIA can be directed to Jay Mitchell at the Parish Office (510) 653-8631 or by email
Weddings
By diocesan regulation, arrangements for weddings must be made at least six months in advance of the date of the marriage. This amount of time is required to reserve the church, plan the ceremony, and participate in an approved Evenings for the Engaged program. If either or both of the candidates will not have reached their 20th birthday by the date of the marriage, diocesan policy requires an interview with the pastor and approval from the bishop’s office.
Funerals
To insure the availability of the church, a priest, and a singer, the family of the deceased should notify the pastor or pastoral associate to make arrangements. This should be done before setting dates with the mortuary. Our director of music ministries will provide accompaniment and a soloist whose fees are usually included in the mortuary fees.
Prayer
Prayer is one of the ways that members of the parish support those whose lives are troubled by illness or trauma. Our prayer ministers spend at least twenty minutes a day praying for those who either call the office, or write their intentions in the book found in the vestibule of the church by the picture of Our Lady of Guadalupe. If you would like to request prayer, you may contact the Parish Office (510) 653-8631 to make sure that your intentions are remembered by our prayer team.
Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults
RCIA is for both non-Catholic adults interested in exploring membership in the Catholic Church through Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist, and for those who are baptized in the Catholic Faith but who have not received First Eucharist or Confirmation or both.
The first phase, Inquiry, meets weekly. It is a no-strings-attached opportunity to ask questions and discover what the Catholic Faith is all about. If and when the participant is ready to take the next step into the Catholic Faith, he or she transitions into Catechumenate. Participants receive the Sacraments at the Vigil of Easter. Contact Jay Mitchell at the Parish Office (510) 653-8631 or by email
Please contact the Parish Office by phone or email for additional information regarding any of the sacraments.
(510) 653-8631
Email: St. Augustine Parish