A Corner of Little Falls Road Where Everyone Is Welcome
At the corner of Rock Spring Road and Little Falls Road in north Arlington, set among the trees near Marymount University and just south of Old Dominion Drive, stands Rock Spring Congregational United Church of Christ. The corner has been a place of worship and community for more than a century, and the congregation that meets there has built a reputation for following the United Church of Christ's calling to be "a still-speaking God" with conviction. Each Sunday the words are spoken aloud from the pulpit: "Whoever you are, wherever you are on life's journey, you are welcome here." At Rock Spring, that sentence is treated not as a slogan but as a way of life.
The church describes itself as "a vibrant, progressive church that is serious about cultivating joy, building community, seeking understanding, and putting our faith to work." Every piece of the church's life - Sunday worship, faith formation for children and youth, adult study groups, music, hands-on service, environmental advocacy, racial justice work, and pastoral care - is shaped by that understanding. The result is a congregation that draws members and friends from across Arlington and beyond, and that has been voted Open and Affirming, a Just Peace Church, a Safe Church, and a global mission church in successive resolutions stretching back more than two decades.
Sunday Morning at 10:00
Worship happens at 10:00 a.m. every Sunday morning, both in person in the Sanctuary and online. The service is hybrid by design, and the livestream begins well before the service itself so that worshipers at home can find their seat, light a candle, download the bulletin, and greet one another in the online Friendship Pad before the opening notes play.
In person, worshipers enter through the Narthex doors or, for those who need the ramp, through the handicapped-accessible Door #1 on the Rock Spring Road side. The Sanctuary is a beautiful, bright, traditional-looking space with wooden pews, an organ, and a grand piano, designed to hold roughly 225 people. The music leans toward classical and traditional hymns with the occasional Broadway tune or contemporary piece woven in; anthems from the Sanctuary Choir and the ringing of the bell choir are familiar parts of the morning. The order of worship usually follows the same shape each week - reading, preaching, prayer, music - but what happens within that shape varies with the season, the sermon theme, and the wider world. Communion is celebrated on the first Sunday of every month and at other occasional services, and the table is open to everyone, baptized or not, sure or not, including children.
Online, the same service is available through several platforms: the church's own livestream page, Streamspot, Facebook, YouTube, and Amazon Fire TV or Roku (search for "Rock Spring UCC" in the apps menu). A bulletin can be downloaded, the weekly scripture passage is linked, and the online Friendship Pad lets worshipers let the church know they joined in. Prayers of joy and concern can be emailed at any time, and those received by Saturday are folded into the Sunday prayers. When communion happens online, the invitation is to use whatever bread and juice (or wine, or even coffee) is at hand. Services are archived so that anyone can catch up later.
A Building Made to Be Used
Around the Sanctuary, the Rock Spring campus has grown into a versatile set of spaces that the congregation shares generously with its neighbors. Carpenter Hall, the largest indoor gathering space, seats up to 200 and includes a full kitchen ideal for meal preparation, receptions, and community events. Carpenter Hall is also the hub of Rock Spring's food and hunger ministries - more on that in a moment. Other rooms include the Saegmuller Room for smaller meetings, the Bozman Room for adult classes and Bible study, the Hunter Room used for music rehearsals and video, classrooms of various sizes, and an outdoor green space under a century-old Willow Oak tree that is used for exercise classes, outdoor meetings, and gatherings like the annual Blessing of the Animals.
The building is fully accessible. The ramp entrance leads to an elevator that connects the floors, accessible restrooms are available throughout, and wireless hearing assistance devices are offered to anyone who wants one. Parking can be tight on Sunday mornings: a small lot on the Rock Spring Road side is reserved for those who need to use the accessible entrance, and additional parking is available on neighboring streets, with limited street parking along the south side of Rock Spring Road on Sundays. The campus is also a short walk from the A70 Metrobus route.
The congregation makes its spaces available for rent to outside groups whose purposes align with its mission, and the building hosts weddings, baptisms, memorial services, concerts, recitals, classes, meetings, and parties. The campus is intentionally nut-free, and the full policy is shared with anyone planning to serve food on site.
Children and Youth at the Center of the Church
Rock Spring is firm about one sentence: "Children and youth are an integral part of the church at every age and stage of their lives." Sunday morning programming reflects that conviction from the moment a family arrives.
Babies and toddlers are cared for by paid, professional nursery staff who are trained in infant and child first aid and CPR. Parents are given a pager so they can be reached in the Sanctuary if needed. Beginning around age 3, children transition into the Seeds classroom, which is play-based and the most flexible of the three Sunday morning classes. Sprouts is activity-based, and Roots, for older elementary children, is discussion-based. All three use the Shine Curriculum, a justice-oriented, story-rich program that emphasizes inclusive language, diverse imagery, and hands-on service. Teachers create small classroom communities where children play, learn, and serve together.
Children begin each Sunday in the Sanctuary with their families. The Prayground, a welcoming corner of the Sanctuary with quiet activities, books, and fidget toys, gives kids a place to be present during worship without sitting still the whole time. After a Time for All Ages, the children head out to their classrooms. On Sundays when communion is celebrated, the children return to share in the meal.
Older children have a place, too. The Choristers rehearse on Sunday mornings and sing in worship several times a year, including at special services. Middle schoolers (grades 6-8) gather as "The Middlers" for Bible study, fellowship, games, and service. A beloved Middler tradition is the annual "lock-in," an overnight at the church with food, fun, prayer, and a little bit of sleep. High schoolers make up YoRS - Youth of Rock Spring - and help design and lead their own program, choosing topics and service projects. Recent YoRS discussions have covered anxiety and mental health, racism, and the role of faith in democracy. The confirmation program, open to all youth in ninth grade and above who have not yet been confirmed, partners each student with an adult conversation partner and ends with a worship service planned and led by the confirmands themselves.
Families with children of all configurations are supported with intergenerational worship, family-friendly service projects, an annual Rock Spring Life Retreat, and summer mission trips for high schoolers that have taken YoRS participants to West Virginia, Baltimore, Puerto Rico, and Albuquerque to work with Be the Neighbor.
Safety is taken seriously. Rock Spring's Safe Church policy requires background checks for every adult who regularly works with children and youth, and two adults must be present with every group. The congregation adopted the policy by resolution in 2010.
Adults Who Never Stop Learning
Rock Springers believe in lifelong learning, and the adult programming calendar is dense by design. Offerings are driven by the interests of the congregation and often tied to current events. Leadership is shared between staff and lay members, and new ideas are welcomed.
Two weekly Bible studies anchor the week. On Tuesday mornings at 10:00, a Zoom-based Lectionary Bible Study is facilitated by the preaching pastor and walks through the texts and themes of the coming Sunday's worship, giving participants a chance to ask questions and sometimes shape the sermon. On Wednesdays at 1:00 p.m., the BIP (Bible in Polycrisis) Bible Study meets in the Bozman Room and on Zoom, working through a curriculum that pairs Bible study with cultural and theological context. BIP grew out of a small group called Reading the Bible in Pandemic that began at the height of COVID-19 in 2020 and has never stopped meeting.
Thursday Friends gathers twice a month on the first and third Thursday mornings to talk about contemporary spirituality, primarily through the lens of Christianity but with openness to other religious perspectives. Past authors of conversation have included Barbara Brown Taylor, Anne Lamott, Richard Rohr, and Thich Nhat Hahn. Pub Theology meets less regularly but is a long-running favorite, gathering at local pubs - Samuel Beckett's, Clare and Don's Beach Shack, Caboose Commons have all been popular - for food, drink, and deep conversation around a different question each time.
For women, Sacred Circles are small groups of 8-12 that meet monthly for fellowship, learning, and support, using the book Sacred Circles by Robin Deene Carnes and Sally Craig as a starting place. For men, there are three Men's Covenant Groups that meet monthly in person or on Zoom for trust-building and conversation, plus the more casual Men's Lunch on the first Friday of every month at Mylo's Grill in McLean. A current sermon series is often discussed alongside old movies, theology, and life transitions.
Other offerings rotate through the year: book groups like the Better Than Normal discussion groups tied to the fall sermon series, weekend retreats, yoga and movement classes, hands-on workshops, and occasional film screenings such as Grandmothers Share Their Stories - Palestine. The Rohrer Memorial Library on the campus houses a collection of resources for faith formation and reading.
Music That Breathes
Music is a serious part of the church's life, not an afterthought. The Sanctuary Choir is the largest of the church's musical groups and requires no audition. Rehearsals are Thursday evenings from 7:45 to 9:00, and the choir sings in worship most Sundays and at special services. Repertoire runs from simple anthems to major works such as Handel's Messiah, and the choir unites the congregation's breath in prayer and song.
The Bell Choir rehearses earlier on Thursday evenings, in the Hunter Room music space. A children's and youth choir, the Choristers, rehearses on Sunday mornings and helps lead worship several times during the year. The church also hosts Rock Spring Concerts, a series that brings outside musicians into the Sanctuary and Carpenter Hall for performances that are open to the wider Arlington community.
An Open and Affirming Congregation
In 2000, Rock Spring's members voted to be an Open and Affirming congregation of the United Church of Christ. The church's own words are direct: "Gay, straight, single, married, widowed, divorced, rich, poor, healthy, ill, left, right, sure, or unsure" - all are welcomed, all are invited to the table, and LGBTQ+ persons are fully part of the community and its leadership. Several members have observed that what they love most is that their sexuality and gender identity are not treated as something exotic, just as one more part of who they are.
That welcome is one of a stack of formal commitments the congregation has made over the years. Rock Spring has also declared itself a Just Peace Church, drawing on the United Church of Christ's four-fold vision of just peace in the community, with the earth, in the marketplace, and among the nations. A Global Mission Church, it is in partnership with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Redeemer in Jerusalem, participates in film screenings with the Voices from the Holy Land series, and sells Palestinian olive oil each year to benefit small farmers and humanitarian agencies. As a Safe Church, it has required background checks for adults working with children and youth since 2010. As a church that pursues environmental justice, it has committed to becoming a Net Zero congregation. As a church that welcomes immigrants and refugees, it works with partners to extend hospitality and practical help to newcomers. As a church seeking racial justice and equity, it established a standing Racial Equity Committee in 2020 to guide ongoing learning and advocacy. And as a congregation learning about the Indigenous peoples whose land the church buildings stand on, it has begun a deliberate journey of reflection and resource-sharing.
Justice That Stays Local - And Global
The justice commitments are not abstract. They show up in calendars, gardens, kitchens, and letter-writing tables.
On the environmental front, Rock Spring voted in fall 2020 to become a Net Zero congregation and has installed solar panels on Carpenter Hall, improved insulation, and upgraded lighting across the campus. The work has been featured on regional public television and won the 2021 "Faith Community Sustainability Champion Award" from the Faith Alliance for Climate Solutions. The Green Accelerator Project (GAP), launched as part of a broader campus renewal in 2017, has four parts: the Solar Village Project partnership that brings solar-powered lights to homes in developing nations; environmental advocacy alongside partners like the Faith Alliance for Climate Solutions and Interfaith Power and Light; greening the homes of congregation members; and the Plot Against Hunger garden, which was the first faith-based Plot Against Hunger garden in Arlington and grows produce for local food pantries. Rock Spring also supported the installation of solar on three community centers in Puerto Rico, work that was completed just before the COVID-19 pandemic and made those centers useful for the care of patients when the pandemic hit.
On racial justice, the Racial Equity Committee meets monthly to guide the congregation's learning and advocacy. Course work over many years has explored white privilege, implicit bias, and systemic racism. Postcard Writing Parties, organized in partnership with the Center for Common Ground, have sent tens of thousands of postcards to Black voters in underrepresented communities to encourage them to vote and to provide election information; the Center's analysis of the 2024 cycle found that voters who received a Rock Spring postcard voted at an 8% higher rate than those who did not. The congregation also takes part in the UCC Central Atlantic Conference's Faith and Democracy campaign, a non-partisan initiative covering voter registration, voter education, get-out-the-vote, election protection, and voting rights advocacy.
On hunger and homelessness, Rock Spring opens Carpenter Hall twice a week for the Friends of Urban Agriculture's produce packing initiative, where donated produce from community gardeners is sorted into family-sized portions and delivered to local food pantries. The church supports the Safe Haven Day Shelter by cooking and delivering lunches for more than 200 community members each week. It has a long-standing relationship with the Shirlington Education and Employment Center (SEEC), an organization that offers job training and education to undocumented workers, and groups meet twice a month in Carpenter Hall to prepare hot lunches that are delivered to SEEC workers.
On immigration, the church welcomes and accompanies refugees and immigrants in partnership with local agencies. The Handmade Ministry gathers knitters and crocheters who make prayer shawls delivered to people in need - members, relatives, friends of the church, and others - as a visible sign of blessing.
Pastoral Care and Spiritual Guidance
Pastoral care at Rock Spring is built on the conviction that "all are ministers." The pastoral team - Rev. Kathy Dwyer, Rev. Laura Martin, and Rev. Hannah Sachs - is available for hospital visits and pastoral calls when the need arises. Members support one another through a Meal Support ministry that prepares and delivers meals after surgery, illness, or the birth of a new baby, a transportation ministry that helps members get to medical appointments, and a calling ministry that simply checks in.
Stephen Ministry, a national program centered on listening, care, empathy, support, and confidentiality, is active at Rock Spring. Rock Spring currently has two certified Stephen Leaders who offer training and six members serving as Stephen Ministers, each of whom typically meets weekly with one care receiver for about an hour. A prayer email goes out monthly to a list of members who hold the congregation's prayer concerns in mind throughout the week. Prayer shawls are knitted and delivered through the Handmade Ministry.
Special Services and Milestones
Weddings, baptisms, and memorial services are part of the church's regular rhythm. Rock Spring welcomes members and non-members to be married or have a commitment ceremony in the Sanctuary, which holds about 225 people. Other parts of the campus can be opened for overflow seating, with services viewable on the livestream, and Carpenter Hall and other rooms can host receptions. Baptisms, including those of infants and children, are celebrated during worship as part of the congregation's life. Memorial services are arranged on a case-by-case basis and can be hybrid or fully online, with receptions typically held in Carpenter Hall. The Blessing of the Animals, in the spirit of St. Francis, is held annually on the front lawn (or in Carpenter Hall in bad weather), with music, readings, and individual blessings for each pet - and a collection for Doorways, one of the few local family shelters that allows pets.
Wider Mission and Giving
Of every dollar that comes in through pledged income, 20 cents is set aside for Rock Spring's Wider Mission - money that supports mission partners and the wider United Church of Christ. Those funds help underwrite tutoring for low-income students, food and shelter for newly arrived immigrants, and struggling UCC congregations. The church also sustains a Justice and Peace Mission Fund, seeded with the balance of two earlier funds and sustained by member gifts, which makes grants to projects that advance the four-fold Just Peace vision of the UCC. Memorial gifts, donations from members and friends, and other approved funds feed the same purpose.
Beyond pledges, there are several ways to give: an online giving form, text-to-give at 703-783-2642, checks mailed or dropped into the offering plates on Sunday morning, donor-advised fund grants, and stock transfers. Sanctuary flowers can also be given to honor a milestone or remember a loved one; donors may take the arrangements home or have them delivered to someone in need of cheer. A planned giving program invites members to include Rock Spring in their wills or estate plans through bequests, beneficiary designations, charitable gift annuities, and donor-advised fund distributions, and members who do so are honored in the Legacy Circle.
Getting Connected
The church office is staffed Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., and the building is open from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The phone number is 703-538-4886. Anyone new to Rock Spring is invited to fill out an "I'm New" form online, and the Your First Visit page answers the practical questions - service times, parking, accessibility, what happens during worship, what to wear, what to expect for children and communion, whether visitors are expected to give - in clear, unhurried language.
From a small congregation that was planted more than a century ago, Rock Spring has grown into a community whose reach extends from the corner of Rock Spring and Little Falls Roads to the wider world: to Jerusalem, where it partners with the Church of the Redeemer; to rural communities that now read and study by solar light; to underrepresented voters whose ballots are weighed in part because of a postcard; to food pantries that depend on Monday and Thursday produce packing; to children and youth who learn in Praygrounds and Sunday school classrooms that their questions matter. It is, in the words the congregation uses to describe itself, a place where everyone is invited by love to grow in grace, encouraged to question, called to serve, and committed to joy.