Grace Presbyterian Church of Silicon Valley - Palo Alto, California

Beth J.

I've been a member of Grace for about six years now. It's a Christian community in which I've grown spiritually, both through intellectual study and through relationships with others. Sermons consist of thorough Bible exposition applied to all parts of life. Worship services are liturgical, so they have some traditional structure, but old meets new here. I like it because it gives a clear form to worship: we give thanks, we confess, we praise, we share in communion.

As a volunteer in the children’s ministry (happens separately while the sermon is going on) I teach kids who Jesus is and how much he cares for them. Our focus is on helping kids know the gospel, rather than a set of moral rules. I see teaching as doing my part to help parents raise their children knowing Jesus, as we (as a congregation) promise to do at baptism.

Jeff W.

I've been a part of the Grace community for several years.

The people are strongly committed to their Christian faith and most have a solid understanding of the theology of why they believe what they believe--they're not attending church because of tradition.

They're friendly, although personalities are generally fairly intellectual and not hugely emotional (typical of Silicon Valley in my experience).

The Bible is a part of most every sermon, and communion happens every week as well. Services start at 10:30 and are generally done by 11:45 or so.

Jeffrey R.

Great church - vibrant and active church community that loves and serves people well. The gospel is preached every Sunday. Went here for 7 years before moving to Colorado and made lifelong friends.

Kevin L.

They're not a very welcoming church. I just watched a video of church members call the police on a man just for walking on a public sidewalk in front of the church.

Brandon S.

Grace Pres is a fine church, but very conservative. They are a part of the PCA denomination, which broke off from the PCUSA over the full acceptance of the LGBTQ community. They also do not allow women pastors, though women are allowed to hold other nonpastoral leadership roles within the church.

I hate to hold a church's beliefs against it, but it's just that we had to go for a while before these beliefs were made evident to us.

I just think churches should be upfront about their beliefs, and this one happens to have deeply conservative values (which, if that's what you're looking for, this is a great church). It's impossible to find this information on their website so I just wanted to share here in case it helps anyone else.

Michael B.

I've been a member at Grace Pres for 5+ years. I love Grace for many reasons:

- strong focus on the good news about what Jesus did throughout all aspects of the church,

- preaching that sticks close to the text of the Bible while seeking to be relevant to mature Christians as well as those unfamiliar with the faith,

- beautiful musical worship often featuring old hymn texts set to more contemporary tunes,

- a service that includes some liturgy, such as a time of confession and renewal,

- many committed Christians who are willing to admit that they're messy works in progress who are in need of God's grace.

Elizabeth C.

I've been attending for the past 2 years and it is a great community. I found the best way to get to know people is through community groups and they have truly been a blessing for me. The gospel is preached every Sunday and everyone has a clear understanding of why they believe what they believe.

Bruno M.

This is an incredibly welcoming and faithful church. God’s work is visibly carried out by their members and leadership. Lots of children, Stanford students, young adults and elders.