This Unitarian Universalist community is a loving and vibrant group. I have been part of their…read morecommunity off and on for over 12 years. So happy to see them in their new church home. This is a place where social change for the good of all people is the prayer. They don't just talk about change but have real impact.

We love this community. We were looking for a church that would be a great place to raise our kids…read morewith progressive values and help us show them what it means to truly live those values in a multi generational space. UUP is that place. Wonderful people, exploring faith and service to the community in an open and brave way.

I adored visiting St. Stephens. I tend to give 5 stars to any church I don't take any issue with,…read morebut this one stood out to me. The outdoor services in the summer and apparent environmental stewardship in the congregation is lovely. The congregates are very friendly and love to chat with visitors. Pastor Christy is an amazing speaker and the music was amazing. I loved that they supported an interfaith food pantry and, last time I checked, they were working on making a cafe not just for church goers, but for the entire community to come have a social space to enjoy. It is churches like this one that give me faith in the value of religion as a binding force in our lives and in the importance of in-person fellowship (even transcending faith boundaries). I look forward to visiting again!

Love this church! Great for families. It even has a play section in the rear of the church with…read morerugs and toys for small children rocking chairs for nursing moms. Having Christy, a priest with 2 small children of her own, as pastor gives the community a special feel. Her sermons are also thoughtful, challenging and inspiring. Very strong community with engaged members of all ages

Wonderful church! Great preaching, friendly people, and heart felt worship, what more could you…read morewant! This is seriously one of the most inviting and friendly Churches I have been to. It isn't a Calvary Chapel, but it does have that feel a little bit. The huge distinction between this Church and a Calvary Church is that Refuge has 4 or 5 elders that play an active roll in church leadership. Char is a great pastor and does most of the preaching, but the other elders preach from time to time and don't sit on the sidelines. The service starts at 9:30, but their is group prayer before hand at about 8:30. Also, people often show up around 9:00 have coffee and chat a bit. There are a few worship songs at the beginning and at the end of the sermon. They partake in communion (or the sacrament) each Sunday and it is open to all professing believers. I know there is nursery for the little kids and I believe children's church goes up to 6th grade.

Very biblically grounded teaching with an emphasis on applying the Word to our lives. The pastor…read moreis well studied and an excellent, clear, teacher. Worship is great, and the fellowship is like a family gathering.

Great little community church! There's usually 100-150 on a Sunday morning. There's heartfelt…read moreworship with great lyrics. Pastor Tim does a wonderful job preaching faithfully from the Word. This is a healthy church. It's a good place to be and a good place to grow. There's truth and love. There's a lot of grace here!

There are some caveats in writing a review of a house of God. There are some precautions that…read moreare... advisable. First off, you don't want to judge, in the biblical sense, others. Now usually I'm a pretty funny guy, but on this one, due to the nature of the subject matter, pardon me if I'm a little more circumspect. This review, and all the other ones I'll be doing as I search out a "HoW", (House of Worship), in Santa Rosa, are and will be aimed at believers. If you don't "get down" with the whole "Jay-Zuhs" thing, move along, there's nothing to see here. My churchy reviews are to be viewed through the prism of a) my faith and b) what I have been used to in the realm of congregational experiences. A little background: I was raised an Episcopalian overseas, which was probably closer to British Anglican than anything else. Think Roman Catholic lite. (All the ceremony with only half the guilt.) Then I went off and was a really crappy human being for about 15 years and then became active in a Presbyterian (USA) church in California, (and tried real hard to not be a crappy human being). Ah, the Presbys, masters of the potluck, though Lutherans and Methodists can give us a run for the money any day of the week and, of course, twice on Sundays. But I digress. So here are the criteria that I think may be useful to you to be able to gauge whether this church is the place for you and maybe your family. 1.) Congregation size: Based on number of people present the day I attended. 2.) Warm Fuzziness: This is how welcomed did I feel. Did people come up and introduce themselves? 3.) Demographics: Age spreads, % of young families, children, racial mix, etc. 4.) Facilities: Seating, layout, AV, etc. 5.) Bulletin/Program/Service Structure: How well the flyer they hand you reflects what goes on during the service. Like the old baseball adage goes, "You can't tell the players without a scorecard." 6.) Preach-a-fyin': This is highly subjective, but it will tell you a little about the pastor who is giving the sermon. I'm of the mindset that says I don't care what else a church has going for it, if the pastor is a gasbag I'm not going to be happy there. 7.) Music ministry: Shout to the Lord, baby! (But do it on key!) 8.) Minutiae: Were the cookies good? Was the offering request heavy-handed? All the other things that can be relevant. Okay, there's the criteria. Now that I've set these down, let me now rate Foothills Community Church. 1.) Congregation size: 60? +/- 10 people. For me that's about right as I'm from a slightly smaller church, though I'm not freaked by a congregation twice that size. No star rating per se, as this is a personal preference thing. 2.) Warm Fuzziness: Five stars! Greeted twice coming in, twice by people in the pews. There's a lot of genuine love going down here. 3.) Demographics: 60% Anglo, 30% Asian & Pac Islanders, 10% other. Good mix of young families, middle aged couples and seniors. 4.) Facilities: Parking in the rear, lots of space. Building and grounds in great repair, church clean and newish, AV platform, good sound, good acoustics, excellent lighting, in general, five stars. 5.) Bulletin/Program/Service Structure: Okay, this is where I may lose some of you. If you are used to having a mix of praise songs and traditional hymns, scratch that. It's strictly praise songs and there is no sequencing in the bulletin. I showed up 10 minutes before the service began. People seemed to drift in slowly over the next 30 minutes w/o any apparent particular logic. Nobody seemed tweaked about it. 6.) Preach-a-fyin': This I'm going to have to split. Five stars: Pastor Tim Swanson, who was not doing the sermon, but running the service. Five stars: Pastor Mark Stone, on content, one star: on time management. Pastor Mark must be ADD or Robin Williams's twin brother. He's funny, intelligent and a brilliant, inspired proselytizer. That said, he ran an hour, an hour into the service. Ended up being a two hour service. It didn't bother me, but if you're a clock-puncher then maybe Foothills ain't for you. Tough? Deal with it. 7.) Music ministry: Solid. Praise songs that were new to me but very, very singable. 8.) Minutiae: Cookie time - One star, no cookie time that I could see. That part of the "fellowshipping" was in my opinion a little weak, but not the end of the world. Offering hit: The bulletin had a nice piece that said: "If you're a visitor don't feel obligated to participate in offering." Very cool. I dropped a sawbuck. For a guy who ain't working right now, it was an act of faith. Yeah baby, I believe. Also, their finances are in the bulletin for all to see. Very Protestant. Note: If you are planning to attend July 25th, 2010, don't. They will be holding their service elsewhere that day. Come back next week. Otherwise, disregard.

I have visited quite a few churches in Sonoma County in search of a place that felt like home…read more Christian Family Fellowship is that place. Each Sunday morning you can expect to learn something new from God's Word. This church is committed to helping each person come to know, love and serve God through in depth Bible teaching and through their one on one discipleship ministry. If you are looking for good solid teaching and spiritual food to help you mature as a Christian in an atmosphere of love and fellowship, this is the right place to be.

It seems that truth, if the idea of truth is recognized at all, is a "wax nose" to be bent and…read moreformed into something that is palatable to the greatest number of people. But, as one observer notes, truth is inconvenient. Christians proclaim the truth revealed in God's Word of the good news of forgiveness of sin found only by faith in Jesus Christ. The message of only one way to God is often challenged as being "exclusive," and so it is; Jesus said "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." If you believe in Christ for your salvation and want to confidently share the truth with those you love then you must understand the basic bible message of salvation by grace through faith in a way that is rational, factual, supportable, and understandable. That is how truth is proclaimed each week at Christian Family Fellowship. What I have been learning each week enables me to share Christ boldly, gently, and lovingly with those about whom I care. Check it out for yourself.

Resurrection Church is wonderful community, a very caring priest who sacrifice himself to ease the…read moreburden of others, his attitude is of humility and love. The people that carry out activities in the church are friendly and selfless. I feel loved and welcome in the parish. I thank God for being Catholic and pray for the humble and sweet priest pastor of Resurrection Catholic Church.

It came to my attention that Resurrection Catholic Church had received a very harsh review from a…read morewoman who attended a vigil Mass, one time. She had made observations about the Priest and parish that were quite frankly not true. First of all, the Priest. He is not celebrating himself. He is, "the real deal", and his parishioners love him dearly. Second, the Church is not dying. It is thriving! I have never seen such an active and alive parish. I have been going to Resurrection for a year and I love everything about this parish. Fr Aaron and the congregation are friendly, welcoming and loving. And the layout of the church is very convenient and accessible.

This church and the entire fellowship saved my life! Through all my struggles they have been there…read morefor me without judgement.

I have been going to this church for almost 20 years. This church is a bible based church and does…read morenot waiver from it. It is a love, caring, and compassionate church. I met my wife of 7 years at this church and we are currently raising our 3 year old in the church. This church has become a family to us. They have so many activities for children of all ages, along with any classes for adults. I could not imagine attending any other church.

What I Love about the Cove is that it made me enjoy church again. It is very much about coming as…read moreyou are and being real. People are genuine and caring. You won't hear any "christianese" or have a message full of acronyms and seven steps to perfection. The community consists of all ages and everyone interacts. Pastor Jeff' has an extreme amount of knowledge of scripture, history and is very relevant and real. He speaks truth. There is a great kids program and even an after school arts program (ASAP). Worship is contemporary but there is still a good hymn sung once in a while. Also occasionally a great concert, JJ Heller is coming soon!

I've only been here once to see singer-songwriter Sandra McCracken play a show. But the fact that…read morethey brought Sandra in speaks volumes. Maybe you've notices how saccharine christian music can be. But like other sugary-sweet things that will eventually kill you if you take too much of them in, people seem to love it. This Church, and their venue specifically, have taken a different path by inviting thoughtful, talented and nuanced artists like Sandra. Kudos, cheers and blessings to "The Cove."