First United Church of Jesus Christ

First United Church of Jesus Christ: The first and the last

Hi folks! I'm back from my road trip and a few days of rest. Thought I'd start things up again by recommencing my Churches of 16th Street series. Not very auspicious; I promise tomorrow's content will be far more fun.

This is the First United Church of Jesus Christ located at 7901 16th Street NW. It is the first church you see on 16th Street if you're entering the District from Maryland and the last church you see as you leave the District. I couldn't find any information online about the church or congregation. If anyone knows the history of this church, let me know.

Update at 7:30 p.m.: Thanks to Andrea for finding a link to this church. I missed the word "Apostolic" in the name of the congregation. The one word resulted in a link. Here it is. Thanks, Andrea!

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential/Janet Kincaid

Washington Ethical Society

Washington Ethical Society: A humanistic religious community

Of all the churches along 16th Street, the Washington Ethical Society intrigues me the most. I keep meaning to attend a service to check it out, but haven't been yet. Having taken a class or two in grad school in ethics and social justice, the focus of the WES fascinates me. I don't know whether to think of WES as ironic in a town peopled by an overabundance of politicians, lobbyists, and lawyers who often lack ethics or a sign of hope that the same players can be people of conscience, justice, and ethical behavior. Either way, every time I drive past the WES, I feel glad that there's someone in this town talking about humanistic, ethical ideals.

Mosaic on the side of the WES building
(Click to enlarge)

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential

Ohev Shalom Talmud Torah Synagogue

Ohev Shalom Talmud Torah--the National Synagogue

Located at 1600 Jonquil Street NW, Ohev Shalom Talmud Torah Synagogue describes itself as "the National Synagogue." The synagogue is a merger of two congregations whose respective histories date back to the late 1880s and early 1890s.

Ohev Shalom Talmud Torah is a merger of two congregations originally founded in the late 1800s

Founded in 1886, Ohev Shalom was formed by a group of Russian Orthodox Jews who fled their homeland under the despotic rule of Czar Alexander III. The congregation originally met on the second floor of Myer's Clothing store in the 1100 block of 7th Street NW. Established in 1892, Torah Talmud was a group of 28 families in southwest Washington who gathered daily to hold minyans. They first met in Isaac Levy's clothing store at 4 1/2 Street SW. In 1958, the two congregations merged and in 1960, they dedicated the Ohev Shalom Talmud Torah Synagogue at 16th and Jonquil, where they've gathered ever since.

The synagogue is located directly across the street from last week's featured church--the Tifereth Israel Congregation.

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential

Tifereth Israel Congregation

Tifereth Israel Congregation:
A friendly, communal synagogue at the northern edge of the city
(Click image to enlarge)

Only a few more churches and synagogues left on 16th Street and then I'll be done with this series! Located at 7701 16th Street NW is the Tifereth Israel Congregation. Tifereth describes itself as "a participatory, egalitarian, and innovative Conservative synagogue" that is "welcoming, 'hamish' and committed." (I'm not sure what it means to be "hamish." If anyone out there knows, I'd love to learn more.)

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential

Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Church

Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Church

While not directly on 16th Street, Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Church is just off of 16th on Alaska Avenue. Located at 7142 Alaska Avenue NW, Our Lady of Lebanon includes the sanctuary above, as well as a seminary for Maronite priests.

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential

Sufi Institute

The Sufi Institute of Washington

Located just off of 16th Street NW on Manchester Drive is this stately building. Upon closer inspection a sign announced it as the Sufi Institute. I've searched high and low on the internet looking for information, but have turned up nothing. If anyone knows anything about this building and what goes on there, leave a comment and fill me in!

Of course, at the very least, I have deduced that activities surrounding the mystical branch of Islam--Sufism--are housed here. Beyond that and sans ringing the doorbell, my powers of deduction are useless!

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential

Baha'i Faith Center

The Baha'i Faith Center

The Baha'i Faith Center at 5713 16th Street NW is a multi-national faith reflecting the diversity of the world at-large and communities in particular. The Baha'i faith is one of the youngest monotheistic religions in the world. Founded in the 1800s in Persia by Baha'u'llah, the Baha'i emphasize the spiritual unity of humanity and see religious history as a series of messengers or prophets sent by God/Allah/Yahweh at appropriate and needful times in human history.

Prior this location, the Baha'i Center of Washington was located down on Massachusetts Avenue in a building that is now owned and occupied by the Human Rights Campaign.

UPDATE at 8:30 p.m.: I just realized that I mixed up the Baha'i Faith Center with the B'nai Brith. It is the latter that use to be headquartered down on Mass Ave. The B'nai Brith is a Jewish humanitarian, human rights, and advocacy group. After selling their building to the Human Rights Campaign, they relocated to 2020 K Street NW. My apologies for any confusion.

Fourth Church of Christ, Scientist

Fourth Church of Christ, Scientist : Definitely not brutalist architecture

Unlike its brutalist counterpart down on 16th and I Streets NW, the Fourth Church of Christ, Scientist on 16th Street NW just above Kennedy looks like a suburban rambler. A Google search for information about this church yielded a website for a congregation with a similar name down in the Columbia Heights neighborhood. This church is in Crestwood and I am unable to find a fixed address or specific information about this congregation. Regardless, it's on 16th Street and is part of my continuing series on the Churches of 16th Street.

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential

Sixth Presbyterian Church of Washington

Sixth Presbyterian Church at 16th and Kennedy Streets NW

Moving forward with my series The Churches of 16th Street, this is the Sixth Presbyterian Church of Washington. Located at 5413 16th Street NW at Kennedy Street, this congregation has been ministering in the Nation's Capital for more than 150 years. While the church has a website, there isn't a lot of information about their history in the city. The congregation describes itself as a "welcoming, inclusive congregation of diverse cultures and talents ministering in the nation's capital."

Sixth Presbyterian: A congregation of inclusion

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential

Chua Giac Hoang Buddhist Temple

Zen in the City

Continuing my Churches of 16th Street series, the Chua Giac Hoang Buddhist Temple is located at 5401 16th Street NW. The only information I could find for this organization was an article from the Washington Post in 1996 about the discovery of a dead body in the basement of the church. Beyond that, I was unable to locate a website with information about this congregation.

Sandwiched between houses on 16th Street is this tranquil Buddhist temple.

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential

Superet Church

Superet Church: Jesus Christ's Religion

Continuing on with my series The Churches of 16th Street, the Superet Church is located just east of 16th Street NW at the intersection of Colorado Avenue and Ingraham Street NW. There is little information on the internet, but from what I can gather, the Superets study auras and their connection to living a Christ-like life. There are only two congregations in the U.S.: the founding body in Los Angeles and this congregation in Washington. To learn more, go here.

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential

Christ Lutheran Church

Christ Lutheran Church

Continuing my Churches of 16th Street Series, this is Christ Lutheran Church located at 5101 16th Street. The church's website provides information about its ministries and service, but I couldn't find any historical material.

However, the congregation is most known around the neighborhood for its annual Yard Sale, which often features very high end items and raises money for non-profit social service organizations in the area.

Come back later today and see a couple more pictures from the 2008 Festival of Lights I featured yesterday.

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential

Washington Buddhist Vihara

Washington Buddhist Vihara

The Washington Buddhist Vihara is located at 5017 16th Street NW and welcomes people of all nationalities and languages through its doors. As the organization's website states, "As there are no language barriers, visitors and devotees who speak different languages feel quite at home at the Vihara. There is always some one to talk to."

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential

Nipponzan Myohoji Japanese Buddhist Temple

Located on the corner of 16th Street and Blagden Avenue NW is the Nipponzan Myohoji Japanese Buddhist Temple. The Nipponzan Myohoji was founded by Nichidatsu Fujii. Fujii Guruji opened a temple in China in 1918. In the 1930s, he visited India and met Mahatma Ghandi. At the end of World War II, and in response to the nuclear bombings of Horoshima and Nagasaki by the Americans, Fujii Guruji spent the rest of his life working to abolish nuclear arms. The dojo in Washington, D.C., was opened in 1974.

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential

Zion Baptist Church

Zion Baptist Church: Enlisting, Educating, Empowering, Encouraging and Exalting

Located just off of 16th Street at 4850 Blagden Avenue NW is Zion Baptist Church. I'm including Zion Baptist in my Churches of 16th Street series because it is visible from 16th Street and it is one of the larger churches in the stretch between the White House and the Maryland state border.

According to the church's website, six Baptists moved from the Commonwealth of Virginia into the District in 1861 and began meeting. Two years later, nine more believers were baptized into the faith and a year later, in September 1864, these 15 Baptists and their pastor formed Zion Baptist Church. The congregation originally met on 3rd Street NW between E and F Streets. Sometime in the 1960s, the church built this edifice on Blagden Avenue. Today, Zion Baptist continues to be a vibrant community of worshipers. The church's mission states that it "shall enlist sinners, educate students, empower the suffering, encourage the saints, and exalt our Savior."

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential

Church of Christ

Church of Christ

Continuing the Churches of 16th Street series, this is the Church of Christ located at 4801 16th Street NW. I couldn't find a website for this particular congregation. If anyone knows the history of the church and this location, please let me know.

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential

Capital Spanish Seventh-Day Adventist Church

Capital Spanish Adventist Church:
Serving Washington's Hispanic/Latino Adventist faithful

Continuing the Churches of 16th Street series: located on the corner at 4800 16th Street NW is the Capital Spanish Adventist Church. I couldn't find a lot of information about them and their website appears to still be under construction.

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential, 11/08

Seventh Day Baptist Church

Seventh Day Baptist Church: Like their counterparts, the Seventh Day Adventists,
they worship on Saturdays. That's where the similarities end.

This past spring, I started a twice-weekly series called The Churches of 16th Street. The series featured a picture and information about a different church on 16th Street NW every Wednesday and Saturday. In June, I suspended the series because the weather was warming up and I was getting out and photographing more. As we move into the late fall and early winter months, it's getting dark earlier and the weather is a bit nippier, which means I'm not going out as frequently. So, today, I'm resuming posts about the remaining churches I haven't featured in this series. I'll post in this series once a week, on Saturdays.

To start (or restart) us off, this week's church is the Seventh Day Baptist Church. Located at 4700 16th Street NW, this congregation was established in 1946. I couldn't find information about how long they've been worshiping at their current location. What makes this gathering of Baptists unique from their broader Baptist counterparts is, Seventh Day Baptists worship on the biblical Sunday--what is known on the calendar as Saturday--rather than on calendar Sundays. In this sense, they are akin to Seventh Day Adventists, but that's as far as the similarities run. To learn more about Seventh Day Baptists, visit this information page on the church's website.

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential

19th Street Baptist Church

19th Street Baptist Church: Contagious Christianity since 1870!

Located at 4606 16th Street NW is one of Washington's oldest Baptist churches--19th Street Baptist Church. In March 1802, a group of Baptists joined together and began creating a religious community that would grow in prominence over the next 200 years. Six months after the initial members gathered, they acquired a plot of land at the corner of I and 19th Streets NW. They built a church and named it 19th Street Baptist Church. For more than 135 years the church met downtown, but in 1975 it moved to its current location on 16th Street. Despite its move from 19th Street to 16th Street, the church hasn't changed its name.

While the church's website includes a picture with D.C. mayor, Adrian Fenty, I don't know if this is actually where he goes to church. It's only a few blocks from his home, but then so too are a number of other churches.

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential, 2/08

Simpson-Hamline United Methodist Church

Simpson-Hamline UMC

Simpson-Hamline United Methodist Church is located at 4501 16th Street NW. The website listed for the church is incorrect and no other specific information could be located about this particular church or its community. If anyone has any information about this church, please let me know!

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential, 2/08