A church that has been part of the Glencarlyn neighborhood for more than 130 years is about to close its doors.
St. John’s Episcopal Church will hold its last regular worship service on Sunday, Aug. 30 at 9 a.m. A final community service of thanksgiving is planned for mid-September.
Officials with the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia told ARLnow that more details related to the closure will be forthcoming shortly. In a message to the parishioners, Rev. Shirley Smith Graham, the diocese’s canon for congregational vitality, said despite the closure, the church has a legacy to be proud of:
“Just as each church has a moment of beginning, so a church may also have a moment when the people of that church can no longer carry the ministry forward. When this happens, the church becomes inactive. However, the impact of the church is everlasting. The gifts of the church continue in the people who have been inspired to grow in their faith, in the memories of how the neighborhood has been nurtured by the church and its ministries, and in the items of the church that will be shared with other churches so that the ministry lives on.”
Located at 415 S. Lexington Street, the church traces its roots to 1890, when a group of approximately 20 families from what then was a small enclave surrounded by farms petitioned Virginia Theological Seminary to set up a mission church serving Protestants in the area.
“The parents had grown concerned that there was no church close by for them and their children,” a church history recorded.
Religious services initially were held in neighborhood homes or outdoors. By 1910, a frame chapel had been constructed, with seating for about 70 people. Electricity was installed in 1921, and a bell tower was constructed the next year, according to the church history.
The growing congregation acquired several Westover lots in the late 1940s. Construction on a new $48,000 building began in 1956 and was completed the following year, with an education annex constructed in 1960.
According to the history, the original 1910 church was dismantled and transported by the Arlington Church of the Brethren to Stanardsville, Va., where it was used in the construction of a Brethren conference center.
In its latest Village View newsletter, the Glencarlyn Civic Association lamented the looming closure of the neighborhood landmark.
“St. John’s has always been a welcoming congregation, with attendees from various religious backgrounds joining in prayer since the beginning,” longtime community leader Bill Pritchard wrote in the newsletter, adding:
“For over 130 years St. John’s and the Glencarlyn neighborhood have had a productive and supportive relationship … in addition to serving Glencarlyn, members have been supporting those in need in the wider community.”
The civic association was informed that a final service is likely to be held on Sept. 17 in the early evening.
As for what may happen to the building and grounds, Virginia’s Episcopal diocese promised to keep Glencarlyn residents in the loop.
“Our diocese takes great care when considering the use of church properties,” Smith Graham said in an email to the civic association’s leadership.
Association president Brandon Hemel said his organization is “greatly interested in the future of the property and the continued legacy of St. John’s,” and hopes to be a partner with the diocese in determining future uses.
The Diocese of Virginia is the second-largest Episcopal diocese in the U.S., comprising much of the state’s northern and central areas. Its origins are connected to the founding of Jamestown in 1607, which established the Church of England as the new colony’s official religion.
After the Revolution, the Church of England was disestablished as Virginia’s state religion. It re-formed as the Episcopal Church.
The Diocese of Virginia is part of the Anglican Communion, a confederation of church organizations spanning 165 countries.
Arlington is home to seven other Episcopal churches: St. George’s, Trinity, St. Mary’s, St. Peter’s, St. Michael’s, St. Andrew’s and Iglesia San Jose.
This article has been updated to reflect that there are seven other Episcopal churches in Arlington.
