"I consider myself a biblical archaeologist. Every week, I go on a treasure hunt in God's Word. I dig through the Word. I mine it. And, every Sunday, I am so excited to show you the treasures I found!"
Pastor Jim Fontaine
Find Real Hope Here!
Rev. James A. Fontaine became the pastor of Friendship Baptist Church on July 3, 2016. Pastor Jim is a graduate of Assumption College in Worcester (1985 - Bachelor of Arts); Connecticut School of Broadcasting (1991); and Bethel Seminary of the East (2006 - Master's of Divinity). For 13 years prior to coming to Friendship Baptist, Pastor Jim served as the pastor of Burncoat Baptist Church in Worcester (2003 - 2016).
Pastor Jim loves sports, especially the Red Sox, Patriots, and Bruins. While he doesn't get the chance to go out often, he does love to golf. He is also a fan of movies. Pastor Jim's favorite book is the Bible, of course, but he does have some other favorite books and authors as well. One of his all-time favorites which impacted his spiritual growth is "Desiring God" by John Piper. He also likes "Searching for Heaven on Earth," a study of Ecclesiastes by Dr. David Jeremiah. Another important book Pastor Jim read was Charles Swindoll's "The Church Awakening." A recent book that he loves is "Gentle and Lowly" by Dane Ortlund. In addition to reading, Pastor Jim also likes Christian radio and listening to sermons especially by David Jeremiah, Charles Swindoll, Alistair Begg, and Charles Stanley.
During his 2023 sabbatical, Pastor Jim published a book entitled "Prodigals: Find Your Way Home!" It had been a lifelong dream to publish a book. Now, that dream has become a reality and a blessing!
Pastor Jim is joyously and happily married to his beautiful wife, Paula. They have been blessed with four wonderful children: three daughters (Kayla, Jamie, and Heather) and one son (Ray). They also have a beautiful granddaughter, Izabella and Dasha!
In a day and age of relativism and 'cotton candy preaching', Pastor Jim is committed to bringing the Gospel, the Good News of salvation through Jesus Christ alone, to a world that is totally lost without Christ. He does this through the faithful preaching of the timeless, eternal, and inerrant Word of God, preaching verse by verse through the Bible in grace, truth, and love. He takes his commitment to preaching very seriously as evidenced by one of his favorite verses, 2 Timothy 4: 1 - 5:
In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and
his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2 Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction. 3 For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.