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Looking for a church in the Bethesda/Rockville/Chevy Chase area
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tmruffin
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Hello,
I am looking for a family friendly, diverse (age and racial) church in the Bethesda/Rockville/Chevy Chase area. We prefer either Catholic, non-denominational or Protestant. Any recommendations? Thank you. |
Anonymous
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We have tried out several in the area and were surprised to love McLean bible church. We are coming from north Potomac and it is a short drive on sunday mornings.
We were skeptical because it is a 'mega church' but it really meets our needs. They have great kids programs and many different ways to plug in to the adult activities. They Are starting a Bethesda campus in Jan 2011. |
Anonymous
| Journeys Crossing up in Rockville/Shady Grove is non-denominational and diverse. It is in the casual, modern vein with a live band. |
Anonymous
RUC- Rockville United Church of Christ on Linthicum, is an open and affirming, more light church. ALL are accepted and welcome. It is very friendly to mulit-faith families, gays, etc. The organist is Jewish and loved by the children of the church. The general feeling is that one should not leave feeling guilty for sins, but to go forth with newness of life 
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Anonymous
| Love Christ Episcopal Church in Rockville. It's age-diverse, and very family-friendly. Less ethnically diverse, though. |
Anonymous
| We also love Christ Episcopal Church in Rockville. PP is right that it's not as ethnically diverse as some other churches, but we are a bi-racial family and we feel at home there. My kids have really benefited from the children's and youth programs. |
Anonymous
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I always find these "looking for a church" posts interesting. Everyone says the same thing "diverse" "Family friendly" "open." Don't get me wrong, these are all great things for a church to be, and I believe my church qualifies.
But if you set out looking for a church and these are your main criteria, or at least the only ones you feel the need to mention? Well, I think you aren't looking for a church so much as a country club, hopefully one with opportunities for charitable work. I suggest Unitarian. And I don't say this with any animus toward the Unitarian church. I was married in a unitarian church and attended one for years. But if you are looking for a church, what are your beliefs about god? What types of rituals are important to you? How do you feel about communion? How do you feel about redemption and salvation? What do you want your children to learn about god? from whom? at what age? I suggest thinking about these things a little more. |
Anonymous
My thoughts exactly! I mean, Catholic, Protestant, or non-denominational covers a HUGE range of churches! |
Anonymous
Mclean Bible Church is strange recovering drunks, drug addicts, divorced all of them have somethign liek that, not that it is bad but strange how they all end up there |
Anonymous
So true. I wrote the second post about Christ Church Rockville, and I should have added that the church is a good fit for us both theologically and liturgically. |
Anonymous
| I agree with the previous poster regarding the "looking for a church" post and then being so open ended in your criteria as a little odd. I was on a church hunt myself about 10 years ago and went to a variety of churches before I found one I liked. I found a very small Presbyterian church that is open to all (including sexual orientation) and have been a member now for a long while. FWIW I grew up Catholic and it didn't meet my needs. In my search I also went to Mclean Bible Church for a while (back when it was in a girls school right off the beltway) and I had mixed feelings about it. Anyway, my suggestion to you is to go to a different churches yourself until you find what you are looking for. Everyone on this board will have a different opinion on why their church works for them and you are the only one that can truly find the church that works for you. |
Anonymous
| Not to sounds hateful, but isn't the point of going to church worshiping God. At least I thought it was. So, if that is the point, shouldn't the doctrine of the church matter more? You included Catholic, non-denominational and protestant. Perhaps you should check out a synagogue too? I've always disliked the idea of "shopping" for a church myself. If you are, let's say, baptized in a protestant church (although variations on those are pretty wide as well), find one reasonably close to you, join, worship on Sundays and try to help your community through donations or any kind of community work they have. If you're looking to find a new social club, you're not going to find it through DCUM. |
Anonymous
This is a joke, right!!! |
Anonymous
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Close to catholic, but open. Not racially diverse, but warm and welcoming. Interesting social justice work: St. Paul's Lutheran off Connecticut Ave at Ellicott St. About a mile south of Chevy Chase Circle.
If you want Catholic and diverse, then Our Lady of Lourdes in Bethesda, but then they have a strong connection with Opus Dei. I agree with PPs: you need to decide what your faith needs are and what you want your children to believe. For myself, if I were not already Catholic, I would check out the Presbyterians too. I went to their church for vacation bible schools and the local church had an active youth program. Very cofortable there, |
Anonymous
| Thank you to everyone for your response. We are open to trying multiple churches and just wanted an idea of some that indivdiuals thought were good to try. At the end of the day, we will choose the one that is best for us and our family. It is important to not only be fed spiritually but also for us as a multi-racial family to feel comfortable in the environment we worship. |