Note: the questions below are relevant to our 10am weekly service in Virginia. For information about our 5pm monthly service in Maryland, click here.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
WHERE IS DREW? WHERE DO WE GO IN THE BUILDING?
Drew Elementary is located just off Shirlington Road at 3500 23rd St S, Arlington 22206. We use the main entrance at the front of the parking lot and meet in the cafeteria, just inside the doors. Multiple restrooms are available near the cafeteria and are clearly marked.
WHAT ABOUT PARKING?
Drew has onsite parking with approximately 100 spaces, and 4 dedicated disability spaces. You can ignore signs about designated parking for school employees on Sundays! Street parking is available on Shirlington Road, S Kenmore St, and 22nd Street S. People with limited mobility, parents of small children, and visitors have priority in parking spaces closest to the school entrance. This parking area allows easy ramp access to the gym.
WHAT HAPPENS DURING THE SERVICE?
The service will last about an hour and 15 minutes, and will follow an Anglican liturgy that includes prayer, song, scripture, a short sermon, and communion. "Liturgy" simply means "the work of the people," and it really is — many hands and voices work together each week in our worship. During most of the year, we follow the Renewed Ancient liturgy that begins on page 123 in the 2019 Book of Common Prayer. From Easter until the fall, we follow a liturgy from the Kenyan church. The words of the liturgy and song lyrics are provided on a printed bulletin, with space to color or doodle. You can view our services on YouTube to get a feel for our worship; the production values aren't stellar, but we hope the sense of worship, welcome, and wonder comes through.
WHAT KIND OF MUSIC?
We value participation over perfection in our musical worship. For a small church, we are rich in volunteer musicians from many musical traditions. Together, they lead us in musical worship that is a mix of traditional hymns and chants, contemporary praise songs, and songs from the various languages and cultures that comprise our congregation and our neighborhood. Not everyone will know every language or every song, and that's perfectly alright. Those occasional unfamiliar languages, rhythms, or choruses remind us that we are part of a multi-lingual, multi-ethnic, multi-cultural community of worshipers around the world.
WHAT SHOULD I WEAR?
Because our weekly worship includes the sweaty work of setup/teardown, people tend to dress casually, but all styles are welcome. The pastors wear a clergy collar (a white tab at the neckline) but otherwise dress casually like everyone else. Before the service, they put on garments called vestments: a simple white robe called a cassock-alb, a rope at the waist called a cincture, and a scarf in the colors of the church year called a stole. Vestments aren't meant to be fussy, and they certainly aren't meant to highlight any sort of elite spiritual status for those who wear them. Quite the opposite, in fact. They help erase the class and style markers of the priests' clothing, marking clergy as servants. And they are a visual signal that when we come to church, we are entering a different kind of community, a different kind of culture, a wholly new reality that we share through our baptism, which the white robes are meant to evoke. And beyond that, they're beautiful! Every bit of beauty, color, and texture helps when we transform a gym into a sanctuary on Sundays. If you're curious to know more about them or any of the articles you see on Sunday, just ask.
WHAT ABOUT KIDS?
Children of all ages worship with us in the service; this letter from Amy explains why. During the school year, children's programs for ages 3-12 begin at 9:30am. When the service begins, children may continue working in their designated areas, or may join their families in worship. During the summer, children explore the created world together at 9:30am through a program called Wild Wonder, then worship in the service at 10am.
We offer nursery care from 10am until just before communion. The nursery is held in the shaded courtyard area just inside the school, weather permitting. Read more on the Children page of our website.
IS THERE AN OFFERING?
Each week, we prepare to bring ourselves as an offering to God, just as we are, through an offertory song and prayers just before communion. Those who wish to give financially may do so online or by text: read more.
ARE YOUR SERVICES ACCESSIBLE?
Yes! Both the entrance and the inside of the building are fully accessible. We also provide sensory items (pocket crosses, play dough, noise-canceling headphones) in a basket on the welcome table to facilitate worship for those with sensory needs or who simply desire a more embodied worship. Incarnation has several members with disabilities and we try to facilitate the fullest inclusion possible; please contact us to discuss further.
WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THE SERVICE?
Prayer teams are available for private prayer after our in-person service. Once a month, we hold an after-service potluck. Everyone is encouraged to linger every week after the service to meet new people and catch up with one another.
WHAT COVID PRECAUTIONS DO YOU TAKE?
As a tenant of Arlington Public Schools, we adhere to their guidelines. Per current APS guidance, masks are not required at church, though anyone who prefers to mask for any reason is welcome to do so.
If you are experiencing any cold- or flu-like symptoms, or if you have been exposed to someone who tested positive for COVID, we request that you stay home and attend church online. Pajama church from the couch has its perks!
IS THERE AN ONLINE OPTION?
Yes! We continue to livestream the service for those who are unable to join us in person or prefer to exercise extra caution; join via the link on the Online Worship page and use the linked order of service to follow along.
