Worship Services

Our services provide a space to encounter God and to build genuine friendships through music, relevant teaching, communion and prayer.


Sunday mornings are: casual, filled with laughter, coffee, baked goods and authenticity...people from all over the world pursuing God.

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Our Values

We are committed to living out the values of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our mission is to love God, love others, and share the good news of Jesus Christ.


Prayer

The Arlington Woods Free Methodist Church family strives to become a people who pray (Mark 11:17).


Discipleship

We strive to be disciples of Jesus, who help each other become disciples of Jesus (Matthew 28:16-20) .


Church Family

We strive to be a church that becomes a loving family, pursuing freedom in Jesus, which leads to authenticity and joy (John 8:36; Galatians 5:22-23)


Community

We strive to welcome and care for our community (Luke 10:25-37).


Healthy Families

We strive to cultivate healthy families by supporting marriages, parents and grandparents (Deuteronomy 6:4-9).


Celebrate Diversity

We celebrate that we are a church family composed of many people groups and reflective of all seasons of life (Revelation 7:9).


Spiritual Gifts

We will strive to help each other discover our spiritual gifts and be generous stewards of our resources in order to fully engage in God’s calling together locally, nationally and beyond (1Corinthians 12).


Leadership

We strive to develop leaders and to cultivate a leadership structure that is Holy Spirit led, Bible-centered, highly relational, and marked by excellence (2Samuel 23:3b-4; 1Timothy 3:1-7).


Body of Christ

We understand ourselves as only a part of what God is doing in this community and the world. We will therefore participate in the broader Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12).


A Brief Overview

Our Church History

Arlington Woods Free Methodist Church traces its roots to the Westboro Gospel Mission, founded by Rev. John Scobie in 1930 in Ottawa. Early services were held in a rented community hall, with revival meetings conducted outdoors. After Rev. Scobie’s death in 1937, the church faced difficult times, but was revitalized under Rev. William Hamilton’s leadership in 1942. Rev. Manly Pritchard became the first full-time pastor that same year.


Significant changes occurred in the late 1940s and early 1950s: the church was renamed Scobie Memorial Church in 1948, a new building was constructed in 1949, and in 1950, the church aligned with the Holiness Movement. In the 1960s, the church formally united with the Free Methodist denomination and was renamed Scobie Memorial Free Methodist Church.


By 1963, the growing congregation moved to a larger location, eventually purchasing land on McClellan Road in 1972. The new Arlington Woods Free Methodist Church building was completed later that year and officially dedicated in 1973.


As the church continued to grow, a significant expansion was completed in 1991, allowing for a sanctuary that could hold 600. Despite periods of leadership transitions in the 1990s, the church saw steady growth, reaching over 500 members by 1995. In 1998, an anonymous donor paid off the church’s mortgage with a $237,000 gift.


Through all challenges, the church has remained committed to its mission of spiritual growth and community outreach, emphasizing the importance of a deeper life in Christ.


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Our Beliefs

We invite you to explore our beliefs and join us in our pursuit of living out our faith in boldness and passion.

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  • The Free Methodist Church In Canada

    The Free Methodist Church in Canada (FMCiC) is a movement of Christian congregations all across our country that are committed to sharing the good news of faith in Jesus Christ and encouraging believers into a life of ongoing transformation that impacts our families, our communities and our nation.


    We are committed to the authority of the Bible and to the life of the Spirit. We seek to allow God to shape our whole lives; that is, attitudes, thoughts and relationships. Free Methodists seek to help people find new life in Christ and to live lives of loving integrity.


    We are committed to the biblical principle that all believers are participants in God’s purposes. Our churches are eager to help people discover how they can know God and serve others in meaningful ways and so bring about transformation in our world.

  • What is a Methodist?

    Humorously enough, the term “Methodist” was first used as an insult. John Wesley, a pastor in the 1700’s, thought it was important for Christians to meet together in small groups where they could hear and discuss Bible-based teaching, and where they could encourage, pray, and be accountable to each another. Wesley’s small groups were also known for their emphasis on social justice, often doing things like visiting people in prison and serving the poor. Because they did these things on a regular basis (being so methodical) they were jokingly referred to as “Methodists”.


    Wesley eventually experienced a spiritual awakening where he began to emphasize having a relationship with Jesus instead of mere religious rule-following, and often spoke passionately about the love and grace of God. Wesley’s teaching went on to influence many other Evangelical Christian denominations (Free Methodist, Baptist, Pentecostal, Wesleyan, Christian Missionary Alliance, and Salvation Army).


  • What is a Free Methodist?

    Arlington Woods is a part of the Free Methodist Church in Canada (FMCiC), but what exactly is a “Free Methodist”?


    To tell you the truth, our list of beliefs likely won’t look much different from any number of Evangelical churches you might have heard of, but what distinguishes us a little bit, is our emphasis on the word “free”.


    Historically, our denomination was formed in 1860 because we felt strongly about a few key issues. For one, Free Methodists stood against slavery in America at a time when slavery was socially accepted and the issue was being ignored by other churches. Another issue at the time was that some churches allowed people to pay for or rent their seats, often meaning that a rich person would get the best seat in the house, while a poor person would have to sit on a bench at the back of the church. Free Methodists stood against this kind of elitism. Free Methodists also emphasized freedom in worship, balking against “stifling formality”. In other words, they didn’t want church to be like a stuffy library.


    Today, our emphasis continues to be on freedom. One of our pastors describes our denomination this way: “The FMCiC maintains a strong but simple statement of faith on the imperatives, and flexibility on those things that are side issues”


    Some churches have “distinctives” when it comes to their values or beliefs. What this means is that, while we’re all in agreement on major beliefs, some denominations have a unique stance on things that Free Methodists prefer not to squabble over. We don’t sweat the “small stuff”. For example, some churches have very specific doctrinal statements on the order of end time events, but we leave it more open to interpretation. While some churches today still believe that women should not be pastors or in positions of spiritual leadership, the Free Methodist church allows both men and women to serve as pastors. While some churches might over-emphasize certain spiritual experiences, we try to maintain a healthy balance.


    Free Methodist Churches today want to be known for:

    • Justice (to alleviate suffering),
    • Inclusion (serve and advocate for the vulnerable, oppressed, marginalized, and people of all ethnicities in our communities),
    • Discipleship (helping people grow in their faith and being a support to others),
    • Innovation (be led by the Holy Spirit),
    • Jesus (to introduce people to Jesus and be people who love and follow Him).