St. John’s Episcopal Church
ABOUT THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH
About Us
St. John's Episcopal Church is the only Episcopal church in Hardin County.
On June 1, 1954, a small group of parishioners petitioned to the Bishop of the Diocese of Texas to start a mission in Silsbee. Bishop Quin accepted the petition on June 7, 1954, and St. John's dedicated its first building at our current location on December 16, 1955.
By 1986, we added a larger contemporary sanctuary. Our altar was designed and built from a large cedar tree, which stood in nearly the exact spot now occupied by the altar.
Faithful clergy have served St. John’s, including Rev, Frank Doremus, Rev. Grant Herbst, Rev. Joseph Harrison, Rev. Garrett Wingfield, Rev. Donald Sheffield, Rev. James Abernathy, Rev. Jon Sonnen, Rev. John Williams, Rev. Shanna Suarez, Rev. Mary Wilson, Rev. John Bedingfield, Rev. (Deacon) Tracie Middleton and Rev. John Johnson.
In 2025, we tragically lost our priest and have filled the pulpit with congregational lay leaders since, with the support and guidance of the leadership of the Diocese of Texas, the Southeast Convocation of Priests, and various supply priests. We are grateful for our congregation for their efforts to provide services each week and to the Diocese of Texas for the support and guidance.
A Tribute to Our Priest
Rev. John Johnson
As a congregation we mourn Rev. John's unexpected passing and celebrate the time that we had with him. We are choosing to remain rooted in our community during this time of transition and we look toward the future with hope, trust, and joyful anticipation. This page will be updated as soon as we have more information.
Father John joined us in February 2012 after serving the church in Anahuac, Texas for five years. He was ordained a priest in January 2008 after formation at the Iona School for Ministry. He was a police officer in his earlier career and later an attorney and government affairs consultant. He believes those experiences not only prepared him for his ministry but drove him toward it. "I have been with people in the darkest moments of their life," he recalls, "and I've come to realize that being immersed in the life of a faith community is perhaps the only way to navigate those experiences and come out with a sense of hope. We can quibble about the things only church folk quibble about, but seeing Christ in the other and being Christ for the other, which is to say, being there when someone--friend or stranger--is in need, that's what it means to be the church. That's who we strive to be at St. John's, and we warmly invite you to join us in that work and ministry."
