Where it begins.
Beraca Baptist Church was founded by the late Rev. Soinier Jean-Pierre and his wife Zilma and Pastor Lamartine St Juste on January 16th 1978 in the living room of their home in Brooklyn NY. As the ministry grew, they rented storefront properties and various church buildings to accommodate their need. With approximately twenty members, many ministries began to form such as choirs, children & youth ministries, married couples and singles ministries. God continued to bless our little church and as a result we experience growth in membership.
Shortly thereafter, Beraca was faced with the untimely death of Rev. Soinier Jean Pierre. After his death a committee was formed to lead the church. In a short time the church grew from twenty to eighty members. Our Sunday worship attendance grew to over one hundred. It was an exciting time. More ministries were formed to meet the growing needs of our members. Though we were a small church our Christmas and Easter productions drew crowds of approximately 1,300 and at times had to turn people away. After about fifteen years of being led by a committee the Lord saw fit to make changes in the leadership and structure of our church.
On April 8 2000, the members of the church unanimously confirmed Mullery Jean Pierre the son of the late Rev. Soinier Jean Pierre as the Pastor of Beraca Baptist Church. He then appointed deacons and then elders. Shortly thereafter, with very little money the Lord allowed them to purchase their very own building in the Canarsie section of Brooklyn in a miraculous way. Beraca Baptist Church grew into a multicultural church with about 1,200 worshipers from 17 different nationalities. With serving in over 40 ministries, Beraca’s goal is to bring hope, healing and transformation to the individual as well as entire families in their community.