A Visit to Christ Church

Gone are the Sundays when I could just roll out of bed and make it to church on time for services. Unless of course, I want to attend Immanuel-on-the-Hill. Church visits take some planning. This morning I drove down to Old Town to attend the 9:00 a.m. service, billed as the family service, at Christ Church. I'd planned to go last week but overslept. I had some idea of what to expect since I looked at the parish website, which had today's bulletin posted. Even so I wondered if I'd find myself worshipping in a museum. After all it is the oldest parish in Alexandria, and both George Washington and Robert E. Lee worshipped there.

Instead I found a vibrant community. Although it, too, appears overwhelmingly white, it does include people of all ages. It is clear from the Parish Life handed out with the service bulletin that much goes on there, including some outreach. The one thing that stood out was the parish's involvement in the Bible Challenge, which starts on May 28. I recognized this since my parish Grace Church in Norwalk began the Challenge at the beginning of the year. In the middle of the whole interview and relocation process I fell behind and eventually stopped. I suppose I'll pick it up again at some point in the future.

As I walked up to the church, people from the 8:00 a.m. service were leaving and exchanging hellos with those arriving for the 9:00 a.m. service. I was greeted at the door and then met inside by an usher who handed me the bulletin and Parish Life and guided me to a center pew toward the front. He even held the little door open for me. The woman he seated next to me a short while later also greeted me as she sat down.

The church itself, at least inside, looks much like churches of the same vintage in New England. It was hard to miss the pulpit, which loomed over everything at the front of the church. It dwarfed the tiny altar table beneath it and the lectern to the left. Clearly it had been built at a time when the Liturgy of the Word held primacy in the church. On the far left was a marble plaque that read "In Memory of George Washington." It was matched on the far right by one that read "In Memory of Robert Edward Lee." On either side of the pulpit were large framed areas with text painted directly on the wall. The one on the left was the Lord's prayer ("Our Father which art..."), the Apostles Creed, and a quote from Matthew 7:12 ("whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets."). The one on the right had the Ten Commandments from Exodus 20.

A Verger led the procession. She seemed much less officious than many I've observed over the years. The acolytes appeared to be high school-aged, and my guess is that the clergy ranged in age from 30's to 60's. One of the acolytes read the first reading, after which the rector took children through third grade out for Children's Chapel. They returned during the Prayers of the People. The Psalm and the New Testament reading were included in the bulletin for the 11:15 a.m. service but were not used. The priest who preached read the Gospel from the pulpit. I enjoyed the sermon, and it gave me an insight into the Ascension that I'd not considered before. No one left their pews during the Peace. It would have been difficult in any case given the doors on each pew.

Announcements followed the Peace. They weren't overly long, but they were complete. This is a church accustomed to visitors. A good portion of them were taken up by welcoming visitors and making sure they knew where coffee hour and Christian Formation offerings could be found. I found this very helpful, especially given my experience at Immanuel last week.

They used Eucharistic Prayer B, so I'm beginning to wonder if there's some sort of guideline in the diocese about which prayer is used during Easter. Or maybe it's a regional preference in general. Or maybe it's just a coincidence that all three churches I've visited so far have used the same Eucharistic prayer. It took an anthem and two hymns before everyone had received, but the process went smoothly. Although most people knelt to receive, I was not the the only one who stood. That was also the case during the prayers.

I left after a very brief time at coffee hour. When I returned to my car I was amused to find that I was parked behind the father and son who sat in front of me during the service.

I spent a good portion of the rest of the day at the Barnes and Noble in Potomac Yard reading a Sister Fidelma mystery. Now that I know which street is Route 1 (which I still tend to call the Post Road) it was much easier to get to Potomac Yard. Even with the traffic lights it took me less time than taking 395 like I did the last time. As I used my membership card for buying iced tea I realized it was one of the few things I didn't have to change after moving down here. Driver's license, insurance company, car registration, library card, yes; Barnes and Noble membership, no.

After leaving Barnes and Noble I drove around for bit before going home back to my room. I now think I know where the other branch of my bank is, even though I didn't get there. Pretty soon I might even begin to remember street names!