Welcome to St. Alban’s Church! Every Sunday, and most days in between, people gather in this place to worship, to learn, to grow, to share the joys and struggles of our lives, and to seek God’s grace in the midst of our lives. We do not come because we have it all figured out, but because we are seeking light on the way. We come as we are and welcome one another.
On this website, you can find information about our worship, our classes for people of all ages, membership at St. Alban's, and about how we seek to make a difference in this world. We warmly encourage you to join us for a Sunday service or for some of the many other events that happen here. You belong at St. Alban’s.
Please fill out this welcome form to connect with us.
Contact us with any questions. Call (202) 363-8286 or email the church office.
SUNDAY SERVICES (after Labor Day through May)
8:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist: Rite I (spoken)
9:00 a.m. Holy Eucharist: Rite II
11:15 a.m. Misa in Español (Little Sanctuary)
11:15 a.m. Holy Eucharist: Rite II (Rite I during Advent, Christmas, Lent, and Easter)
WEEKDAY SERVICES
Monday, Wednesday, & Thursday, 9:00 a.m. Daily Morning Prayer
Tuesday, 7:30 a.m. Holy Eucharist: Rite II
St. Alban’s Episcopal Church is located next to the Washington National Cathedral at the corner of Massachusetts and Wisconsin Avenues in the northwest section of the District of Columbia.
From either direction on the north loop of the Capital Beltway/I-495 follow signs for Route 355/Wisconsin Ave south toward DC. St. Alban’s is located on the left just before the intersection of Massachusetts and Wisconsin Avenues NW. Make a left onto Lych Gate Rd before you reach Massachusetts Ave. As you enter the drive, the church will be on your left and Satterlee Hall and the Rectory on the right. Stay on Lych Gate until it becomes Pilgrim Rd.
From any Virginia main in-bound thoroughfare (George Washington Memorial Parkway, I-395, Route 50, I-66), follow signs to Rosslyn and take the Key Bridge from Rosslyn north across the Potomac River into Georgetown. Go right on M St, left on Wisconsin Ave. St. Alban’s is located on the right just after the intersection of Massachusetts and Wisconsin Avenues NW. Make a right onto Lych Gate Rd after passing Massachusetts. As you enter the drive, the church will be on your left and Satterlee Hall and the Rectory on the right. Stay on Lych Gate until it becomes Pilgrim Rd.
Parking is available on Pilgrim Road Monday-Friday after 3:30 pm and all day Saturday and Sunday. Parking is also available in the Cathedral’s underground garage for a fee Monday- Saturday and for free on Sunday. You may also park on neighborhood streets according to DC parking signs.
Visiting a church for the first time can be a bit daunting. So we have tried to put together the answers to some of the questions you’re likely to have and to ensure that you find a warm welcome here. Click on the questions to learn more.)
What time are services on Sunday morning?
At St. Alban’s Parish the formation of our children is a high priority. While we know that a significant amount of a child’s faith comes from the home, we aim to provide excellent children’s formation throughout the year to complement the formation that is ongoing in a child’s life. Our goal is to help children easily point to the love of God in their lives.
Worship: Children’s Chapel meets at the start of the 9:00 a.m. service in Nourse Hall. Children join the congregation in "big church" at the Peace, in time for Eucharist.
Education: All church school classes resume the Sunday after Labor Day with our annual Open House. Instruction starts the following Sunday.
Nursery care: Child care is available from 9:00 to 11:05 a.m. during the program year (September to May) for infants and children under 3 who aren’t quite ready for our 2s & 3s class.
Learn more about Children's Ministries
Four teen groups participate in formation classes at St. Alban’s on Sunday mornings. We use the nationally recognized Episcopal curriculum “Journey to Adulthood," or J2A. J2A has two guiding principles: 1) Manhood and womanhood are gifts of God; and 2) Adulthood must be earned. This is a strong program with over 50 youth participating, many of whom engage in a wide variety of ministries at St. Alban’s. Two or three adults mentor each of the groups for two years, sharing their own faith journeys and forming strong bonds of fellowship with the participants.
Worship: St. Alban’s Teen Service Fellowship starts at 9:00 a.m. and is a separate service just for our teens held in the Little Sanctuary at St. Albans School. This interactive service offers teens time to talk about life, the Gospel, and to celebrate Eucharist together. The teens return to "big church," before heading to their classes at the conclusion of the 9:00 a.m. worship service. Friends are always welcome.
As Episcopalians, we follow Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. We believe in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We believe God is active in our everyday lives through the power of the Holy Spirit.
The mission of the Church is to restore all people to unity with God and with each other in Christ. The Church pursues its mission as it prays and worships, proclaims the gospel, and promotes justice, peace and love. The Church carries out its mission through the ministry of all of its members.
We uphold the Bible and worship with the Book of Common Prayer. We believe the Holy Scriptures are the revealed Word of God. In worship we unite ourselves with one another to acknowledge the holiness of God, to hear God's Word, to offer prayer and praise, and to celebrate the Sacraments. The Celebration of Holy Eucharist is the central act of worship in accordance with Jesus' command to His disciples. Holy Communion may be received by all baptized Christians, not only members of the Episcopal Church.
The Episcopal Church is part of the worldwide Anglican Communion with 70 million members in 165 countries. The word "Episcopal" refers to government by bishops. The historic episcopate continues the work of the first apostles in the Church, guarding the faith, unity and discipline of the Church. Both men and women, including those who are married, are eligible for ordination as deacons, priests and bishops.
We strive to love our neighbors as ourselves and respect the dignity of every person. We welcome all to find a spiritual home in the Episcopal Church.
If you choose, you can keep the commandments, and to act faithfully is a matter of your own choice. He has placed before you fire and water; stretch out your hand for whichever you choose. Before each person is life and death, and whichever one chooses will be given. ...
I’m not sure what possessed me to buy the book I’m currently reading – A Carpenter’s Life as Told by Houses by Larry Haun. I can barely handle a paintbrush, much less a hammer or power saw. The metaphor of building something is more appealing to me than the reality of...
“… what if Jesus wasn't kidding? What if he wasn't talking about some never-never land? What if he really did mean what he said two thousand years ago?” ...
During church services yesterday I introduced Suzanne Hicks, Executive Director of Hope for Humanity, Inc. Hope for Humanity is a non-profit based in Richmond, VA, and the organization that built the Hope and Resurrection School in the South Sudan. St. Alban's has supported the work...
What do we do when we’re in a place we’ve never been before, when there is no map or companion beside us to tell us what to do next? It doesn’t take much for us to feel like we’re in uncharted territory. Loss can bring us there – the loss of a job, the loss of a...
I was in the pits last week. It felt like rip currents of painful news that just kept coming, and I got caught in the undertow. Do you know that feeling? One healthy decision was to withdraw from the frantic social media. Another was to be with good friends instead of slouching around the...
Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. This is always a loaded season for me, tied very much to losses in my personal life. I cared for my dying father through Lent, and he breathed his last on Maundy Thursday. As I cared for my mother years later, we went to the early morning Ash...
Given all that is happening in the world and in our beloved Capitol lately, during yesterday's celebration for the young boys and girls at St. Alban's who were prayed for and blessed by the church as they symbolically, or ontologically, perhaps, move from adolescence to womanhood and manhood, I...
I had the best of intentions. I was going to send a few emails, then have the bulk of the day to focus on Sunday’s sermon. One of the great joys of my work as a priest is preparing for a sermon. I love finding the whispers of God in these ancient texts, the parallels between their day and...
I freed a thousand slaves. I could have freed a thousand more if only they knew they were slaves. Harriet Tubman For many of us, last...