Come As You Are: Sunday Worship at 10 a.m.
Wesley United Methodist Church opens its doors each Sunday at 10 a.m. for a single worship service held both in the sanctuary at 711 Spring Street SE in Vienna, Virginia, and online through Facebook and a dedicated worship space. The message posted at the entrance captures the spirit of welcome: Come As You Are. Inside, the service follows a familiar United Methodist pattern of liturgy, prayer, scripture reading, sermon, and music, while reaching out to neighbors who have never attended a Methodist church before.
Holy Communion is celebrated on the first Sunday of each month. Worshipers joining from home are invited to prepare a piece of bread and a small cup of grape juice so they can share in the sacrament together. On Communion Sundays, acolyte children light and carry the candles as a sign of God's presence and the church's call to share Christ's light.
The music in worship rotates with the calendar. On the first and third Sundays the service leans traditional, with organ, acolytes, and choir. On the second and fourth Sundays the Praise Team leads, bringing a more contemporary sound. Fifth Sundays are designated as either traditional or contemporary, depending on the season and theme.
Families with young children find a thoughtful welcome. Nursery care is available for infants through age four during the 10 a.m. service in Room 105 downstairs, staffed by background-checked caregivers. After the children's message in worship, kids in kindergarten through upper elementary head downstairs to Room 102 for Sunday School, with Bible stories, songs, and crafts. Sensory toys, coloring supplies, and Bible story books are kept in the Narthex for younger children who stay in worship. Parking is available behind the building and along Spring Street.
From a Rural Circuit to a Suburban Congregation
Wesley United Methodist Church's 136-year history is woven into the story of Vienna itself. The congregation's roots reach back to the years just after the Civil War, when Northerners resettling in Fairfax County brought abolitionist convictions to a quiet rural community. Locals with Methodist ties began gathering in the old Freedom Hill schoolhouse near what is now Tysons Corner.
In 1890, former Union Major Orin Hine, a Vienna farmer and real estate businessman, and his wife, Alma, donated land on which a new Wesley Methodist Episcopal Church would be built. The building was completed within two years and was affiliated with the Virginia Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, which later merged into the Baltimore Conference. In its early years Wesley was on a circuit with several other Northern Methodist churches, including Crossman Church in Falls Church, Oakton Church, and Wiehle Church, in what is now Reston.
The arrival of a separately appointed pastor in 1951 marked Wesley's transition from a circuit church to a stand-alone congregation. The 1950s transformed Vienna as several thousand suburban homes rose between 1954 and 1962. To keep pace with the growth, Wesley purchased a new church site in 1954 and completed the first portion of its present building in 1956. The current sanctuary and additional educational space followed in 1963.
The congregation's mission reach has been just as important as its building history. Beginning in 1964, Wesley supported two full-time missionaries through the Board of Global Missions. From 1968 to 1972 the church participated in the Methodist Fund for Reconciliation, addressing economic and social disparities tied to racism and segregation in Virginia and across the country.
Three Congregations, One Wesley
On July 1, 2019, Wesley welcomed the members of Epiphany United Methodist Church, also of Vienna. A year later, on July 1, 2020, the congregation of Charles Wesley United Methodist Church of McLean merged into Wesley as well. Those two churches brought rich traditions of their own, and Wesley today reflects a blended heritage drawn from three local Methodist communities.
The church has been an early and continuing supporter of the Committee for Helping Others, an ecumenical network of Vienna churches that supports neighbors in need, and has been a designated church partner with public schools in the D.C. area serving economically distressed neighborhoods. That mission outreach runs straight back to the church's origins in the nineteenth century.
Music at Wesley
Music has long been central to Wesley's identity. The Choir, open to anyone who loves to sing, supports worship on traditional Sundays with voices drawn from across the congregation. The Wesley Handbell Choir rings for special seasons like Christmas and Easter, and is open to all ages and skill levels - no experience required.
The Praise Team leads worship on the second and fourth Sundays and rehearses on Wednesdays. Vocalists and instrumentalists are invited to join by reaching out to the Praise Team Leader. Organ music anchors the traditional services under the hands of a long-serving organist who holds a Church Music Certificate and has accompanied Methodist churches her entire life.
Wesley offers a Christmas Eve Family Service at 5 p.m. featuring a Children's Pageant, candle lighting, and special music, and a Traditional Christmas Eve Service at 7 p.m. with organ, choir, handbell choir, and Holy Communion. Both services close with the candle-lighting tradition that marks the light of Christ coming into the world.
The church livestreams every service through Facebook and the online worship space, with a sermon archive going back years on Vimeo. The weekly worship bulletin is available for download.
Children, Preschool, and Youth
Wesley sees children as full members of the body of Christ. Nursery care is provided by background-checked staff during worship, and Sunday School continues year-round, including a summer program with crafts and playful learning. Children may begin serving as acolytes in second grade, lighting the candles and helping with the offering on Communion Sundays.
Vacation Bible School fills a week each summer with music, games, crafts, storytelling, and Bible learning for children ages four through rising sixth grade. Mission Sunday earlier in the spring gives the whole congregation a chance to prepare VBS decorations together, and a VBS Sunday after the program invites children to share songs and memories from the week with the whole church.
Wesley Preschool has been a ministry of the church since 1958, serving children ages two-and-a-half to five in a play-based program that grows early literacy, social skills, and school readiness. Classes meet from 9 a.m. to noon, with optional programs until 1 p.m. Once a month on Wednesdays at 11:30 a.m., the pastor and the Director of Children's Ministry lead a special Preschool Chapel for the children and their families - a joyful moment of stories, songs, and prayer.
Confirmation at Wesley is open to any youth ready to take that step. Confirmation classes meet jointly with Oakton UMC, and students who complete the course may choose to be confirmed and become full members of the church on Pentecost Sunday.
The Jeremiah Project is Wesley's signature youth mission trip. Each summer, middle and high school students travel to Romney, West Virginia, to help neighbors in need through home repairs - painting, building ramps, and fixing porches. The trip is open to youth entering sixth grade and older, and combines service with shared worship, prayer, and friendship-building.
Family mission projects also include the annual Coat Drive each November for those experiencing homelessness, UMCOR hygiene kits and flood buckets assembled each June, and Rise Against Hunger meal-packaging events.
Adult Discipleship and Small Groups
Wesley offers a range of adult small groups, both in person and online.
The current book study walks through A Disciple's Path: A Guide for United Methodists in a six-week journey of conversation and prayer. Meetings rotate between Tuesday and Wednesday mornings in the church library, with the pastor leading the discussion.
United Women in Faith (UWF) gathers in two circles. The Morning Circle meets on the first Wednesday of each month at 10:30 a.m. in the church library. The Evening Circle meets on the first Thursday at 7:30 p.m. via Zoom. A UWF Book Club is open to anyone, regardless of gender, choosing titles from the UWF Reading Program that explore mission, leadership, community, social action, and spiritual growth.
Common Grounds is the adult Sunday morning discussion group. It gathers after worship in the library and on Zoom at 11:05 a.m. for a half-hour of conversation, with the formal discussion running from 11:20 to noon. No prior reading is required to join.
Methodist Men Morning Devotion (M3D) meets on Thursday mornings in the library to discuss Biblical wisdom in a small group setting. The Thursday Morning Breakfast meets weekly at 7:30 a.m. at the Merrifield Silver Diner. Billed as a men's group, all are welcome, and the table has been a Thursday staple for more than 25 years.
College, Young Adults, and Seniors
Wesley supports college students through the College Care Packages program, sending snacks and handwritten notes during the school year, especially around finals. The Young Adult ministry gathers seasonally around Korean BBQ for Grill and Grace evenings that mix food, conversation, and faith.
The Senior Adult Gathering meets on the third Wednesday of odd months (except July) at 10:30 a.m. in the Fellowship Hall. Recent programs have covered topics like planned giving, dementia awareness, vitamins and supplements, gentle yoga, and visits to local destinations like Meadowlark Botanical Garden and the National Museum of the U.S. Army.
Serving Vienna and Beyond
Service is woven into the identity of Wesley United Methodist Church. The congregation partners with several established nonprofits to serve neighbors near and far.
The Committee for Helping Others (CHO) is an ecumenical effort of Vienna churches supporting people in need. Food for Others partners with Wesley to feed children at Freedom Hill Elementary School through the Power Pack Program. Second Story receives a meal from Wesley once a month for families in its programs. The Lamb Center is a daytime drop-in center in Fairfax for people experiencing homelessness. Shepherd's Center supports older neighbors in the community. Wesley also takes part in the Wounded Warrior Project to support veterans at Walter Reed Hospital.
Annual drives include the Wesley Coat Drive each November, UMCOR Hygiene Kits and Flood Buckets assembled each June, and Salvation Army Stockings coordinated by United Women in Faith. Rise Against Hunger meal-packaging events bring together volunteers of all ages.
Every Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving, 100 percent of the special offerings goes to mission causes. Recent Easter offerings have supported Second Story and Rise Against Hunger. Thanksgiving offerings have supported Rising Hope Mission Church, Feeding America, and World Central Kitchen. Christmas offerings have supported Wesley Housing, FACETS, and UMCOR.
Pastoral Care and Life Events
Wesley walks with members and neighbors through the milestones of life. Baptisms are offered to people of all ages, including infants, as a one-time sign of God's grace and welcome into the family of God. Weddings at Wesley are open to both members and those seeking a church, celebrated as a gift of committed partnership before God. Funerals and memorial services are supported by the pastor and staff, who help families plan meaningful services.
The Prayer Quilt Ministry combines prayer with handmade quilts given freely to anyone facing illness, grief, or hardship. Each knot tied into a quilt represents a prayer lifted for the recipient. Anyone may request a quilt for a loved one, with the recipient's permission.
The church office also takes reservations for groups wanting to use the building for meetings, ministry activities, or events.
What Wesley Believes
Wesley United Methodist Church holds the historic beliefs of the United Methodist tradition and is part of the Virginia Annual Conference. The congregation's mission statement reads: "Wesley Church is a loving home where all are welcomed and encouraged, and together we grow in Christ, living as Jesus taught us in our own lives and our world."
Teaching reflects the Wesleyan emphases on grace, faith working through love, and the General Rules of John Wesley: do no harm, do good, and stay in love with God. Sermon series have explored themes rooted in Scripture and connected to everyday life, including the Wesleyan way of living taught through John Wesley's General Rules.
Whatever the place in life's journey, the doors at 711 Spring Street SE are open each week for worship, fellowship, and service.