History
In the summer of 1953, the Alexandria District Board of Missions recommended the establishment of a new Methodist Church in the area between Annandale and Arlington Boulevard in Falls Church, Virginia. A nearby congregation, Annandale Methodist Church, became the sponsor of this mission.
A committee to form a new Sunday School met on September 23, 1953 and decided to begin Woodburn Sunday School in October. The first meeting of the Woodburn Sunday School was held at Woodburn Elementary School on October 18, 1953 and 101 people attended. On October 22, 1953, Rev. J. Carroll Fink was appointed to organize and serve as the pastor of this new congregation. The first worship service was held on November 15, 1953 with 17 people in attendance.
January 24, 1954 was Charter Sunday and Dr. John H. Pearson, District Superintendant of the Alexandria District of the Methodist Church delivered the sermon and assisted in the reception of 53 charter members. Charter membership closed on February 7, 1954 with a total of 66 members. A Church Conference was held following the worship service and the name Friendship was selected as the name of the Church because the congregation wanted to serve as friends to the neigboring community.
Since its beginning in 1953, Friendship Church has been committed to serving its local community through various outreach programs such as Annandale Christian Community for Action (ACCA), Wesley Housing Development Corporation, evangelism, and youth programs.
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Friendship's Vision Portrait
The year was 1953. It was then that God called into being a community of people who would become Friendship United Methodist Church. Our church has a rich history of valuing relationships and reaching out to others. Friendship is a loving church where people still take time to care.
In 1998, during our 45th year, Friendship Church embarked upon an intense period of self-examination, prayer, and discernment which has blessed the congregation in a reaffirmation of our United Methodist faith and tradition. The visioning process has brought about a quickening of our spiritual life and is illuminating the path ahead.
As we minister in a new millennium, we recognize that the Christian community -- the church -- exists because of God’s initiative, not ours. God has called us to be a part of the community of God’s new people, living a new way of life, through whom God has promised to bless the entire world. Being the church is always a response to God’s call to be the people of God, a response that is always changing. The God who makes “all things new” calls the church to be about the task of renewing itself in each new generation. Change is not an option for the church, but a necessary part of its being. Discerning God’s call is central to the life and mission of the church.
We commit ourselves to becoming a community of covenant disciples who are growing more faithful in our Christian discipleship. We understand that our gift to the world lies in our becoming spiritually alive Christians who are encouraged, empowered, and equipped to live out our faith in all areas of our lives. Therefore, we endeavor to walk in the shoes of others, seeking to see the world from their perspective, as we extend Christian love and care to the surrounding community and to the world.
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