About & Worship

WORSHIP SCHEDULE & DETAILS

 

 

We’re a congregation of about 200 members affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; the only ELCA congregation located in the City of Alexandria. Within the ELCA, we’re part of the Metro DC Synod.


If you're new to Good Shepherd, we warmly welcome you for worship and to any of an array of service, learning and fellowship activities. Please join us for whatever events and efforts speak to you.

What We Believe

As Christians, we follow the teachings of Jesus and the Old and New Testaments of the Bible. We believe in the trinity:

  • God, our parent
  • Jesus, our savior
  • The Holy Spirit, our advocate, who gives us insight and gifts to carry God’s mission forward in this place and time.

As Lutheran Christians, we follow the theological tradition of Martin Luther:


For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—not the result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life. Ephesians 2:8-10


Our saving relationship with God is pure gift, given freely through the sacrificial death of Jesus to be received in faith. In the forgiving presence of God, we’re set free so the good works we’re created for may flow naturally from our daily living. What this means for us is:

  • Sharing the good news of Christ in word and action.
  • Making maximum use of our building for congregation and community.
  • Joining our efforts with other individuals and organizations to care for people and creation.

Worship

We practice liturgical worship, which establishes a pattern for mutual communication, giving and receiving. Confession and absolution. Sacrament and sacrifice. Word and creed. Giving and receiving in response, like breathing in and out.


Worship also engages the real us with the real God in the ebb and flow of real life.

  • What and who are we concerned about?
  • What troubles us?
  • What delights us?

God is concerned with those things too and what they mean us. All of that is the content and intent of our worship and prayer life, public and private.


WORSHIP SCHEDULE & DETAILS

Our Mission Statement

We, the people of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church are a:

  • Family of faith,
  • Created by God in baptism,
  • Forgiven and fed in communion with Christ,
  • Gifted and enlivened by the Holy Spirit for our life and mission together.

In faithful witness to all God does for us, we commit to:

  • Invite and welcome people of God's diverse community to work and worship together,
  • Preach and teach the Word of God, nurturing people of all ages to grow in faith,
  • Love and serve one and all as challenged by the Gospel, sharing the bounty of our lives with others.

Learn more about the Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy's Living Wage Certification program


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