All Souls Memorial Episcopal Church

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The mission of All Souls Church is to be a Christ-centered sanctuary where a diverse community worships and serves. We live this mission through faithful celebration of the Eucharist, Christian Education, and loving nurture of both members and neighbors.

Low Mass with Hymns 10 a.m.Sermon by the Rector
Worship that includes scriptures, prayers, a sermon, and celebration of the Holy Eucharist, usually lasting under one hour. Normally, there is no music at this early service.
Breakfast in the undercroft follows the Low Mass. Preparations continue throughout the morning for a Thanksgiving Dinner in the undercroft that afternoon. We eat around 3 p.m.. All are welcome, but it is helpful if you RSVP the parish office to let us know you're coming.

High Mass 11 a.m.Sermon by the Rector
The children of the church will lead our indoor procession. Worship includes hymns, music by the choir, scriptures, prayers, a sermon, and celebration of the Holy Eucharist. The service usually lasts an hour and fifteen minutes.
Childcare is provided in the nursery from 8:15 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. every Sunday.

We use Rite I from the Book of Common Prayer, 1979, worshiping in a traditional way with an inclusive and progressive outlook.

The bimonthly newsletter, The Message, for December 2010 - January 2011 is here

Christ the King Sunday is a sort of "made-up" feast day. It is the kind of day that probably would have driven the Reformers crazy. Begun in 1925 by Pope Pius XI, it was intended as a celebration to be held at the end of October, just before All Saints' Day. By proclaiming Christ as king of the universe in a celebrative, obvious way in October, it was thought that then, the feasts of All Saints and All Souls would be observed with a proper perspective. Since then, changes in the liturgical calendar have moved Christ the King to the last Sunday after Pentecost, just before Advent. Now the day works almost as an exclamation point to our year, as Advent begins a new liturgical year in the life of the church. (Following that custom, readers will notice that this weekly newsletter begins a new volume with next week's publication.)

Located in Woodley Park just off Connecticut Avenue, we strive to live out our name, that we might truly be a community for All Souls.

It doesn’t matter to us whether you’ve never been to church before, have been away for a while or might be a longtime Episcopalian. It doesn’t matter to us that you might be from another Christian tradition, from another faith altogether, or might simply be seeking a place of peace. All souls are welcome.

Some people know us from our Saturday farmer’s market. Others attend meetings in our building, enjoy our gardens or take advantage of parish programs. Many come for our celebration of the Holy Eucharist—most weeks the Mass is celebrated on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday. Precisely because our worship uses old words and ancient ritual, we find that this frees us to continue building a community that is diverse and loving, filled with celebration and joy. Join us when you can and help us continue to welcome all souls.

Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 a.m. through December 18, 2010,
in the church parking lot.

All Souls and Kwasa
In October, the rector and three members of the All Souls community visited the Rev. Sharron Dinnie, the Anglican Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, and the church's outreach to very poor children and families called the Kwasa Centre. Over the last few years, the All Souls Endowment has given grants to the Kwasa Centre for its pre-primary school, after-school tutoring programs, and orphanage houses. The All Souls group left South Africa tremendously impressed by the good ministry going on in Springs and grateful that All Souls can partner with our friends in South Africa. Look for upcoming opportunities to learn more about the ministries of Kwasa and the experience the All Souls delegation had over the recent visit.