DC/NoVa Adventures – The National Cathedral

One of our first visits to Washington, DC was to the National Cathedral.  When we first moved here we decided that we wouldn’t rush the whole church hunting thing, because “church shopping” is probably one of my least favorite parts about being a military spouse.  So, in order to ease into things we decided to take a tour of some historic churches to both satisfy our unquenchable thirst for all things historical, which we both share, and attend a church on Sundays.  Naturally, our first thought was The National Cathedral.  We actually ended up going there about six or so times.  It was pretty amazing.  The people were wonderful, the staff was great, the sermons were wonderful and I thoroughly enjoyed the traditional aspects of it. I would highly recommend attending service there, as well as taking a tour. It is a pretty incredible experience. One of the Pastors that we met while there was a gentleman on Sabbatical from Westminster Abbey.  He had been part of the service when William and Kate got married.  Now I’m sorry, but that is pretty darn cool!

National Cathedral Fun Facts

• The church has a stained glass window dedicated to the Apollo XI mission.  In the middle of the red circle is a piece of the moon.

• Woodrow Wilson is buried in the Cathedral, and is one of the only people buried in a tomb and not in a crypt.  He’s actually right in the worship area, which is cool but weird.  Just right there where you can touch it.

• Each one of these kneeling cushions in some of the historic chapels inside is hand done, each with different themes.  One of the Chapel’s has cushions representing each state.  Each is made by someone in a committee that had to submit various samples and be approved.  There is even one made by the Queen Mother!

Add this to your list of places to visit when you come to DC. Check out their website for the most up-to-date info on service time, tour offerings, and their special tours like after dark and the gargoyles tour!