Meet Your Good Table-Mates

whoever you are, Wherever you are on life’s journey,

you are Beloved and welcome among us

Has “church” turned you off with oppressive theology, clannishness, or hierarchical thinking? Find relief and liberation here; we support your recovery. Come to our Sunday Gathering at 10:30a, and see our vibrant, inclusive community: we foster spiritual growth with open-handed creativity, questioning, listening, laughing, singing, and healing. And we do this in person and online via zoom!

We are an Open and Affirming congregation (for over 30 years!), with an open door, an open book, open arms, open minds, and open hearts. In the United Church of Christ we say "God is still speaking, " meaning that God is active in our lives and in our hearts, right now. Seekers have been following the Jesus Way for 2,000 years: today's travelers blend all that is new and exciting with the Church's oldest traditions. We do not require any tests of faith, but welcome your testimonies to faith.

As co-owners with Planting Justice of The Good Table property in El Sobrante, we are excited to create a “good place” for the people of the north East Bay to gather in community, enjoy good food and grow through educational and arts programs in our space. While The Good Table Cafe is a secular and separate non-profit organization, it was founded by our pastor, Rev. Dr. Melinda V. McLain, with seed money from selling our El Cerrito campus in 2006 and will be our legacy for many years.

Thank you for your donation. All gifts are tax-deductible. If you are giving for a specific funding appeal such as

Strengthen the Church, our Sacred Arts Fund, or El Sobrante Pride 2025, kindly provide a note.

Our mission is . . .

to listen for the voice of the Still-Speaking God in our time

to model the radically inclusive welcome of God

to tend the Holy in ourselves, one another, and creation

and to embody the love of Christ in the world.

How to Connect

• Our spiritual book group the Live Edge Readers meets each Wednesday via zoom, 2:30-4p.

• Interfaith Meditation meets each Thursday via zoom, 6-6:40p.

• Join us for our Sunday Gathering at 10:30a with music, prayer, preaching. Our music is eclectic - from rock and roll to ancient chants and whether you come in person to 5166 Sobrante Avenue, El Sobrante, CA 94803 or join via zoom, you are invited and welcome to be yourself and find the joy of being in community with other spiritual travelers.

our history (as recorded on our 75th Anniversary

When Congregationalist missionaries first reached the San Francisco Bay Area, they established First Congregational Church in San Francisco in 1850,

Mira Vista Congregational Church was founded on Easter Sunday, April 9, 1950 by seventy charter members, meeting initially in member’s homes and then at 7075 Cutting Boulevard in El Cerrito, CA,

In 1957, The Congregational Christian and Evangelical and Reformed denominations merged to become the United Church of Christ, a protestant denomination deeply committed to ecumenism and social justice, and then in 1961 Mira Vista Congregational became Mira Vista United Church of Christ,

With other like-minded congregations in 1967, Mira Vista founded the Greater Richmond Interfaith Program (GRIP), an organization dedicated to addressing racial and economic injustice in Contra Costa County that now serves as West County’s only family shelter for the unhoused,

In 1974, Mira Vista United Church of Christ founded the West Contra Costa County Rape Crisis Center, now part of the Contra Costa County Family Justice Center,

As early supporters of women’s rights, Mira Vista United Church of Christ has had many women pastors including: the Rev. Nancy McKay, the Rev. Shirlee Bromley, the Rev. Dr. Christina Hutchins, the Rev. Diane Phillips, and the Rev. Susan A. Meeter and their current pastor, the Rev. Dr. Melinda V. McLain,

In partnership with Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, CA, Mira Vista United Church of Christ has provided internships and field education opportunities for at least fifty seminarians who have gone on to productive ministries including our current Conference Minister for the Northern California Nevada Conference of the United Church of Christ, the Rev. Dr. Davena L. Creer-Jones,

In 1994, Mira Vista United Church of Christ, voted to become Open and Affirming, welcoming all LGBTQ+ persons as beloved children of God,

Mira Vistans accepted an offer of purchase in 2006 from East Bay Montessori School for the Cutting Blvd. campus and then moved their ministry to the campus of Christ Lutheran, El Cerrito freeing up time and assets for mission including traveling five times to New Orleans to help rebuild after Hurricane Katrina, participating in Rebuilding Together East Bay and supporting numerous local, state, and national organizations with 15% of yearly tithes,

After calling the Rev. Dr. Melinda V. McLain in 2014, Mira Vista actively explored various models of ministry that would integrate spiritual practice with ministries of justice and mercy,

In 2018, Mira Vista United Church of Christ formed a partnership with Planting Justice, a large secular non profit for the purpose of purchasing and renovating the former Adachi Nursery & Florist property to become a new spiritual home for the church, a pay-what-you-can community cafe, local food and craft marketplace, gathering space for arts, education, and wellness programs, and an organic tree and plant nursery, weekly Farmer’s Market and farm store operated by Planting Justice.

Mira Vista United Church of Christ and Planting Justice, operating together as the non profit entity, The Good Table LLC, purchased 5166 Sobrante Avenue in El Sobrante on April 25th, 2019 and began extensive renovations in 2021.

In April 2020, Mira Vista became The Good Table United Church of Christ,

and on this day, April 26th, 2025, we do now celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the congregation in our new home in El Sobrante with gratitude for the great legacy and generosity of our forbears in faith who made it possible for the current congregation to create this unique partnership and new ministry in El Sobrante that will no doubt endure for many decades.