Adult Formation
Spiritual formation at St. Paul’s encourages, develops, and supports disciples for ministry in the world. Below are opportunities to deepen your faith, explore God’s Word, and engage in enlightening discussions with fellow parishioners.
Owning our Faith
Staring Sunday, October 17th, our 10:00 adult formation hour will explore deeply the promises you made at your baptism. This 5-week series (10/17/ 21 - 11/21/21, no forum on Sunday, October 31), will cover the Sacraments, the Bible, the Holy Eucharist, Baptism/Confirmation, and prayer. Click the week below to watch a recording.
Sunday, November 14 - Prayer
Sunday, November 7 Baptism
Sunday, October 24th The Bible
Sunday, October 17th Leading a Sacramental Live
Adult Forums
St. Paul’s offers Adult Forums at 10 a.m. every Sunday during the program year (Labor Day through Memorial Day), featuring notable speakers and a wide variety of engaging topics. Come listen, learn, and ask questions.
Annual Lecture Series
Each year, we welcome celebrated speakers to honor the legacy of two important figures in St. Paul’s history.
Each year, St. Paul’s hosts a lecture honoring the legacy of architect Benjamin H. Latrobe. Latrobe played a significant role in the design of St. Paul’s Church, which was completed in 1818. Since that time it has been modified, expanded, and renovated, always preserving the basic integrity of Latrobe’s design. The annual lecture typically features an acclaimed church architect and takes place in mid-winter.
Benjamin H. Latrobe Lecture
The Martha J. Horne Lectures were established to recognize and celebrate the significant contributions that Dean Horne has made to the education and formation of many women and men for service in the Church. Her efforts to prepare students have been significant and far-reaching. These lectures strive to honor the commitment she made to the Virginia Theological Seminary during her 13 years as Dean and President and to St. Paul’s through her long-standing ministry as a Parish Associate. The lecture typically takes place in late winter.
Martha J. Horne Lecture
Book Group
This group meets on the third Tuesday of each month (unless otherwise noted) during the program year to discuss a pre-selected book.
Men’s Bible Study
This group meets on the first Thursday of each month (unless otherwise noted) during the program year at 7:30 a.m. in Norton Hall.
Pious Pint
This group meets the last Sunday of every month (during the program year) following the 5 p.m. service for conversation about the intersections of faith and daily life.
Questions? Contact the Rev. Alyse Viggiano – 703-549-3312 x19
Inquirers’ Class
New to St. Paul’s or the Episcopal Church, or just want to further explore your faith? Then the St. Paul’s Inquirers’ Class is for you. The six-week session meets during Lent, Sundays at noon. All are welcome, particularly adults seeking confirmation, reception, or reaffirmation of baptismal vows.
Questions? Contact the Rev. Alyse Viggiano – 703-549-3312 x19
Discipleship 101
Discipleship 101 is a 7-week course that helps us ask questions of faith, seek God, and build friendships.
Questions? Contact the Rev. Alyse Viggiano – 703-549-3312 x19 Stay tuned for an announcement about the next Faith Seeking Understanding (FSU) course. All are welcome to participate, especially folks new to St. Paul’s and anyone looking to deepen their understanding of Christianity. Email Alyse to learn more and sign up.
Next FSU Course TBD
A multi-week course (typically six weeks) that offers a survey of pertinent topics of the Christian faith from the Anglican/Episcopal perspective. It’s also a chance to get to know other parishioners and form lasting community. Think of it as part theology, part spiritual formation, part history and part practical faith.
What is Faith Seeking Understanding?
Think of the content like an upside down funnel. We begin the first class broadly asking questions like “Is there more to life than what we can see?” “What does ‘God’ mean?” and “How do we respond to atheism?” From there, each week, we go deeper. How do we know what God is like? We look at the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. How do we account for this? We are entrusted with Scripture. How can we read Scripture and be mindful of its original context and how it operates as a living Word of God today?
Then we uncover how the Holy Spirit acts in the world, how the Church acts on behalf of the Spirit, and by the time we get to the seventh class, we have funneled down to a specific presentation and discussion on being Episcopalian in today’s world – how we worship, why we do what we do and believe what we believe given all that has come before.
What topics will we cover?
It is designed to be appropriate for long-time parishioners as well as new parishioners, so that people at different points in their faith journeys can share and discuss these matters together and help each other form theological opinions, engage with Scripture, perhaps look at their own faith with new perspectives and possibilities, and strengthen our St. Paul’s community. Participants should commit to attending all classes, to the extent possible.
Who should come to this class?
The format is simple: dinner, presentation, and discussion in small groups/tables. All three components are essential to the design of the course.
What's the format?
Email the Rev. Alyse Viggiano to sign up. Course cost is $20 to cover cost of materials. In certain circumstances the cost of the course can be waived.
Sign me up!
Center for Spiritual Direction

St. Paul’s Center for Spiritual Direction, established in September 2016, serves as an extension of our pastoral ministry and as a resource for spiritual guidance to the parish and to the larger community. To be paired with a spiritual director, contact any of the directors directly or complete the form below. We recommend three sessions with a director to discern if it is the ri…
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